Quick thought experiment: If someone says the word, "desire," what's the very first thought that pops into your head?

Was it any of the following:

• Romantic love? 
• “Say what?” 
• The U2 song off their woefully underappreciated Rattle & Hum album? (IYKYK)
• Nice to have,  but more like a luxury.
• Desiring God by J.I. Packer? 
• Sex? 
• A psalm saying something about   God giving you the desires of your heart?
• Lust? 

Or did you maybe start to crave ice cream? Or a beer? Or a day off?

Was it the concept itself that you thought about, or an actual desire that you first noticed?

And even though this prompt asks about a thought, did you have any kind of feeling at the same time?

What else did you feel, if anything, when asked to think of that word?

The wide variety of possible responses that ordinary folks might have (or that one somewhat out-of-practice would-be writer/podcast producer can think up in a few minutes) suggests strongly that our relationship with desire is, well… complicated.

Author and therapist Jay Stringer is not afraid to think about desire. Or to research it. Extensively. 

Nor is he at all daunted to talk about his newest book that comes out in March, Desire: The Longings Inside Us and the New Science of How We Love, Heal, and Grow . Download this one and put it on repeat, cuz it's that good.