Passion Pursuit for Wives Facilitators – Ruth and Casey Jane

Get to Know Ruth

Hi there I’m Ruth. I discovered Authentic Intimacy OBS groups a couple of years ago and they have been so helpful.

A few years back I had reached a point where I had no interest in sex whatsoever. As you can imagine that wasn’t a great situation for my husband! I’d tried quite a few things over the years (including HRT / testosterone) but nothing had worked and I’d essentially given up. It was at that point that I started the Passion Pursuit Course – and it made such a difference! It changed my attitude towards my husband; our relationship improved considerably. I discovered God’s plan for sexual intimacy is much bigger and broader than I’d thought. My whole perspective changed and I started enjoying our times of closeness again.

However that wasn’t the only thing that changed, I can’t quite explain it but my relationship with God deepened as I invited him into these personal areas of my life.

The other great benefit was being in community with other women in the group, walking alongside one another. It was a safe place to share and be honest; our stories varied but we supported and encouraged each other. It was so special and I believe it’s the way God made us to be.

I can’t say that everything is perfect now. I’m still very much on a journey but things are definitely much better. So I’m excited to be doing Passion Pursuit again, I’m ready for further transformation!

Get to Know Casey Jane

Hi I’m Casey Jane!

I have such a heart and a passion for the ministry of Authentic Intimacy and all of its resources, and I am so excited to be co-leading this session of Passion Pursuit with Ruth!

For so many years I struggled with reconciling Biblical Truth about sexual intimacy with the internal dialogue/narrative that the purity movement had woven into my thought process. Participating in a Passion Pursuit OBS five years ago was a major turning point for me, and I was finally able to start making significant progress in this struggle. I learned about God’s unmistakable desire for intimacy in marriage, how much power I truly hold as a wife, and what it looks like to steward that well. I am forever grateful for the strengthening of my marriage, the personal growth in my relationship with the Lord, and the safe community of women who walked alongside me.

I’ve found that each new season of marriage brings its own unique difficulties (we’re never completely done are we?) but having a foundation based on Biblical Truth means not having to start from square one with each challenge- Praise The Lord!

What others are saying about Passion Pursuit:

I did Passion Pursuit in 2022 and it was so valuable, I would say life-changing. It brought me closer to Jesus as well as to my husband. There was something very powerful about digging into the bible and letting the Holy Spirit touch my heart. Coming together and sharing with other women was so encouraging (we all needed encouragement at various stages, the course doesn’t shy away from difficult topics and we all found it challenging at times!). For me, before the course my libido was at ground zero – it had disappeared without trace over a 10 year period. I had no interest in sex whatsoever. For the first few years my husband was passively frustrated but that didn’t bother me… He then become more proactive (reading loads of books on the female libido and what can be done about it, and telling me he wanted sex!). I did my bit, going on HRT and even trying testosterone medication. I looked at various Christian woman blogs on how to get your libido back with limited improvement. I was pretty sure that my lack of libido was related to the menopause and that ‘that was it’ – my libido was gone forever. And I didn’t really mind. The Passion Pursuit group made me examine God’s opinion of sexual intimacy. I realized that my sexual intimacy is important to God and indeed glorifying to him. I now understand that for sexual intimacy to work, both spouses need to be selfless and sacrificial (which is difficult, let’s be honest – but we do have the Holy Spirit to help). I can now see how my lack of respect and resentment was hindering intimacy with my husband, and that shame from my past was preventing me being as free as God wanted me to be.

Just the accountable community/ group of women who you can listen to. I was often very encouraged by the testimonies or current struggles shared. It gave me hope and reminded me that I wasn’t alone. I came face to face with my deepest fear. I also gained new perspectives on forgiveness and how to forgive myself. I learned that a deeply intimate physical connection with my husband requires effort on my part, not just willingness.

The lesson videos…very inspiring, the workbook, helpful to make it practical, and the wisdom I gained from everyone else’s life/experiences: invaluable – doing the study in community gave me many insights and ahah! moments where I realized my experience is very normal that i would have missed reading the book by myself.