Students around the country wore white T-shirts to school on the day before Valentine’s Day in order to show their commitment to save sex for marriage reported CNN.com. The “Day of Purity” event was organized and promoted by the Liberty Counsel as a way for students to make others aware of their decision to practice abstinence.

Abstinence is a morally right decision, but it is a difficult commitment to maintain in a culture as sex-saturated as ours. Sadly, many who choose abstinence will lose their virginity before their wedding night because they do not understand that the best way to remain abstinent is to remain sexually pure as well.

On the surface, it might seem that abstinence is the same as sexual purity, but that is not the case. It is so much more. Purity has to do with the heart and mind, and committing to it means guarding them carefully. It is important because it is demanded by God. In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus redefined adultery as looking at someone with lust in your heart. By doing this, Christ made it clear that His standard involves thoughts and feelings.

The reason purity of mind is important is because thoughts very easily turn into actions. Having a pure thought life is necessary to preserving chastity. To maintain this, Christians must take every thought captive to the obedience of Christ as it says in II Corinthians 10:5.

In addition to guarding one’s thoughts, it is also important to guard one’s emotions. Joy Abbott, a junior at Liberty University, understands this and clings to Proverbs 4:23 (NIV) “Above all else, guard your heart, for it is the wellspring of life.” Abbott said, “I always knew that before a guy could get my body he would have to capture my heart, so it was not necessary to guard my virginity, but more important to guard my heart.”

Striving for purity requires not only abstinence but a change in other behaviors as well. A pure person should be discerning when it comes to entertainment so that they do not pollute their mind and heart, dress modestly out of respect for themselves and so as not to tempt others, and should speak about sex respectfully rather than crudely or casually.

There are also great rewards for sexual purity. Many of these rewards mirror those of practicing abstinence. If a person is pure, there is no chance of them becoming pregnant, or of contracting a sexually transmitted disease. It is also true that better marriages result from sexual purity. The National Marriage Project did a study and found that cohabiting couples have less marital satisfaction. Those who are sexually active before marriage are more likely to divorce. And those who have had premarital sex are more likely to be unfaithful during a marriage. Other studies have also found that the highest rates of marital satisfaction are between those who practiced abstinence before marriage.

But in addition to the rewards that can be accomplished by abstinence, purity guards the heart from emotional scars and regrets. According to an article on http://www.teen-aid.org, sexually active teens often have emotional problems because they are not psychologically ready for sex. It explained that teens often think sex is what they want, but they are left feeling empty because they really need love and commitment.

Striving for sexual purity is a constant battle, and one not easily won. Absolute purity, like perfection, is impossible, but it is well worth the effort even if poor decisions have been made before.

While abstinence is a worthy goal, there should be a higher standard of sexual purity backing up that commitment. With sexual purity as a standard influencing every area of life, it is easier to remain abstinent. Guarding the mind and heart is an even better choice than only guarding the body, and it is worthwhile physically and emotionally as well as making for a better marriage later on in life.