Cheated and got an STI

Dear Pastor,

I am 19 years old and I am very worried. I have a boyfriend and he is taking good care of me. I am still living at home. I spend time with him at his apartment sometimes.

He was away for a while and during that time, I had sex with an older man who used to help me a lot. This older man gave me money to go to school. He was the first man who bought me a nice pair of shoes. So while my boyfriend was away, I stopped by his workplace to see him. When he saw me, he said he felt horny and he wanted me. I made plans to see him again the following day. The following day, he picked me up and we went to a hideout. We made passionate love.

This man is 35 years old. He asked me what I needed from him and I told him I always need money. He gave me $20,000, but I regret making love to him because we did not use the condom. I knew something was wrong with me because I was having an unusual discharge. I knew that it was not caused by my boyfriend. I called the man and told him what was happening and he said I should go to the doctor and call him back. The doctor confirmed that I had picked up a disease. He gave me a prescription.

This man knew that he got the disease from someone else. He kept saying that he was sorry for what had happened and I shouldn't hold that against him. I asked him if he knew that he had gonorrhoea and he said no, but he had fooled around a prostitute a few days before we had sex. This was the first time I was cheating on my boyfriend. I will never do it again. I am glad that he was away.

Since his return, I am even afraid to make love to him although the doctor has told me that everything is all right. This man told me that he made a big mistake, but he hopes that my boyfriend would never know that I cheated because I am a damn good girl.

B.L.

Dear B.L.,

I am really sorry to hear that you have had such a bad experience. Your boyfriend trusted you, but you have let yourself down. This other man who was very helpful to you should not have put you through that ordeal. He knew that he had played around with a prostitute. He had unprotected sex with this prostitute. He came to you without using the condom. He's a very careless man. You, too, can be described as careless. You could have destroyed the relationship that you have with your boyfriend. I hope that you are cured of this disease and that you would learn that cheating is never good.

You are 19 years old. You have not said anything about school. I hope that you would seek an education and that you would remain faithful to your boyfriend. Forgive yourself for what you have done and consider it a big mistake.

Pastor