Hi Again!

When I prayed about what I should write in this posting and heard the Lord say, “Sexuality,” I said, “Ooh, no, thank you, Lord. I don’t want to write about that.”

One reason is that sex is a subject too many people have too complicated of a relationship with. And another big reason is that I’m not a psychologist, a sexologist, or a Dr. Phil, so what do I really know?

But since my book, Hanging Out with the Most High God, Books One and Two, along with this blog, is geared toward anyone in the LGBTQ community who is curious about and open to having a relationship with Christ that leads us straight to God, then speaking about sexuality is a necessity. Society at large, and some gay people themselves, define gays through the lens of sexuality, and therein lies the problem.

As for myself, I am thankful I feel at peace before God with my spiritual self and my sexual self, and so, because of this,  I answered the still, small voice that speaks peace to my soul and said, “Okay, what should I write?”

What I heard next rang even deeper – “Just be sure to tell them I love them.”

Later, I thought that’s just like the Lord: He tells you something and invites you to dig deeper, to come to Him to seek more of its truth.

And the primary truth is that God loves us all with the same love. Whether we like it or not, we are a part of His plan devised to give everyone on earth only one effective way to His majestic power and truth: through the Spirit of Jesus Christ and His righteousness.  And even though He loves us all the same, we must love Him back to benefit from this gigantic love. We learn how to do this through Jesus’ teachings that lead us to the Holy Spirit, an essential component of salvation.

Accepting Christ, getting saved, and earnestly trying to be honest in our thoughts and deeds, according to His simple teaching of the Ten Commandments (Love God with all thy heart, love thy neighbor as you love thyself, and on these hang all the rest)  is how we get to stand freely before God’s throne and ask questions about His truth. He doesn’t always answer in ways we’d want or expect. But by spending time with prayer,  just a few minutes a day, even a week, or a month (though going a month without spending time is not as effective or as fun), we understand God and his plan to bring mankind back into his grace more and more, bit by bit. We find ourselves wanting to put God first in our lives.

Putting God first is the key to walking freely under the umbrella of His love and grace in an oftentimes rainy world. And because of putting him first, we get to stand before His throne with our requests. Wanting and learning to understand Him instead of trying to figure him out, telling Him what He can and cannot do and whom He can and cannot love, becomes the result of the mature and obedient action of putting Him first.

By studying the Bible and other great books on God, and in His spirit, asking God for understanding, we learn that His love is the most effective love on earth. With a proper understanding of his word, we get to love living in a restful and peaceful state with many days of unspeakable joy, and we will always want to be a part of this love. Even with hardships, peace and spiritual joy will be the bottom line of any day; it’s what will become of your life.

Since God’s love is no respecter of the person (Acts 10:34), I’ve often wondered why some people want to make it their right and sole purpose to take His love away from anyone who’s gay. Some of these people say they love God and, in the same breath, say they hate anyone who’s gay – if not the person, then the sin.  Some carry signs that say “God Hates Fags.”

But what can these unfortunate people do? They have read scriptures or heard sermons against same-sex relations all their lives.  Since the majority of them need and want to be seen as clean and pure and distant from their sexuality, and since the sign carriers have no actual relationship with God, they have no choice but to hate “fags.” They think God condemns sex because it is dirty. He especially condemns it against “the gays.” How dirty can you get!?

The church gets most of its information from Leviticus, Romans, and the Sodom and Gomorrah story in Genesis. This message is taught from the pulpit and passed on to the godless part of this world.  But as I have seen, you cannot just give these scriptures a superficial reading and, when you come across the words “shall not,” decide that no more understanding of the text is needed. What’s understandable, though, is that since these scriptures do not apply to heterosexuals, why should they do any further reading, any deeper digging? For them, it’s unnecessary; besides, they’ve got something to condemn, ridicule, and be better than. Some want to hold on to that.

But those of us who are gay and who also love God have no choice but to ask questions. This is our lives that everyone is telling us we should not have, but we have them just the same, not asked for but accepted. The burden of having these lives is not to be ignored. Answers will only come from a more profound study of the subject and all of God’s word while asking God for understanding. Wisdom is the principal thing; therefore, get wisdom, and, with all thy getting, get understanding (Proverbs 4:7).

Asking for understanding and help is necessary in a society where scriptures on same-sex behavior aren’t usually rightly divided (2 Timothy 2:15).  And the so-called anti-homosexual passages cannot be read superficially.  Digging deeper is always the preferred way of reading God’s word, and I say this, especially regarding same-sex relationships, which are a mystery to everyone. Why has homosexuality happened to so many if it is so wrong? This should be one of the questions at the forefront of everyone’s mind since everyone has a lot to say about it.

However, when reading all of the scriptures in depth that speak against homosexuality, you see God’s warning against idol worshippers, a favorite pastime for many ancient folks, before God came on the scene and warned the Hebrews in the desert to have no other God before Him. But people don’t see idol worshippers and abuses of power when they read what they like to think are anti-gay scriptures. Most see words that they think give them the right to discriminate and foster fear and hate toward anyone who is gay. They see God as being vehemently against same-sex unions and ready to strike everyone blind.

I recommend reading Judges 19 and comparing it to Genesis 18 & 19.  What you see in both readings, almost identical situations, are men, not gay men, but men, full of fiendishly lewd and, to use an appropriate word here, sinful behavior. It’s more than immoral. It’s evil.

And it is not to be compared to activities seen at pride parades all over the world, which many Christians like to look at as apt comparisons. Pride parades can be sinful. Sinful is the way of the young, living as they have always done in the face of disapproving elders since the beginning.

Everyone needs Jesus. And are not to be judged and dismissed by the disapproving. Gay men and women get to hear the word of God, to be embraced into God’s love and understanding commissioned for all men, coming to God just as they are, learning before God to be counted as worthy, to become like little children to enter into the kingdom of heaven, and that’s all they need to hear from people of the church. If anyone thinks they aren’t allowed to do this because of behavior, they are not letting God do his work. If people are to change who they are, they are to do so before the Lord.

While we pray on that, it is time to recognize that all scriptures in the Bible concerning same-sex relations are speaking about idol worshippers,  people who think they can gain strength and power from idols, and this is usually done around some salacious, nothing else in this world matters or is as good orgy. We all know what God says about idols. Anyone engaging in fiendishly lewd sexual sins or having sex as a way to find answers, a way of life, a safe haven will have to answer to God, no matter what their orientation. And he’ll probably point a finger in their faces, for they had been warned.

So, comparing homosexuality to anything written in the Bible can be completely wrong if the homosexuals being discussed are not using their sexuality as a means to worship idols. The only thing that is happening from using the so-called anti-homosexual scriptures is that gay people are being chased away from God. And a spirit of hate that permeates some of the country’s churches wants this to happen. God does not want people being chased away from Him. So Christians, who spread gay hatred more readily than anyone else, should rightly divide the word of truth and learn how to reach out to all of God’s children.

I read somewhere recently that even though the Pope accepts that gays are going to be gays, and he says that God loves them, so I guess that is true, he doesn’t trust that they cannot act on their sexual needs, so he doesn’t want them signing up for the priesthood.

Just a note to the Pope: Celibacy is a choice. Gays are capable of making that choice, too. And it’s good for them to come into the priesthood knowing who they are when making that choice instead of making the “celibacy choice” because they are trying to cure themselves and learning, sometimes in unfortunate ways, that they cannot.

People entering the priesthood because of wanting to be cured, like some men used to do with heterosexual marriages, are the result of a society that has to deal with homosexuality in the new way of acceptance that is being presented to the world. If someone enters into a contract with God that requires celibacy, they are required to give up their sexuality. If they can’t, the church shouldn’t make it hard for them to quit, if that is the case. And they should quit.

One is not required to give up their sexuality to be loved by God. But gay people need to know that they can come before the Lord without worrying about whom and how they love. The key words here are…coming before the Lord.

And who, please tell me, will want to give up their sexuality, especially among the young, to practice some irresponsible religion with hatemongers or hypocrites who think God made a mistake in giving sexual desire to anyone other than those who wish only to procreate while teaching that sexuality is evil, meant to be ignored and think they don’t have to care that it’s misunderstood. Many attitudes and behaviors in this life are unhealthy, and some are just plain wrong.  As I’ve said before, I am not a psychologist or a sexologist, but I do know that ignoring our sexuality for any reason – when this can many times interrupt mental and physical well-being – is wrong. Ask Dr. Phil.

People who enjoy their sexuality can have a relationship with God. That is something they can choose. We can take Jesus’ yoke upon us and learn of Him. Let Him give His peace unto our souls, and from there, ask God questions. We should never let our lust of the flesh take us away from our Creator, the only salvation this world has to offer.  Gay and Straight, we can always ask God for help. The kind of help that won’t turn on you and render you lost. We can ask as often as we feel we must.

The Lord shall deliver me from every evil work and will preserve me unto his heavenly kingdom: to whom be glory forever and ever. Amen (II Tim 4:18).

God said, “Tell them that I love them.” Let’s build on that.