Homosexuals and Christians

We are living in such different times than our parents and grandparents live. School shootings are becoming more frequent and more deadly. Children are no longer taught how to show respect to adults and they use vile, filthy language when addressing adults and their peers. Innocent babies are murdered every single day in the name of "freedom of choice". We're overseas, fighting a war in a land filled with people who know no other way of dealing with differences than to murder, and blow themselves up.

One of the greatest wars going on, right here in our own country, is the war between Christians and homosexuals.

It makes me so sad that the hot topic in our pulpits these days is about homosexuals and whether or not they should receive the "right" to be "married". With the help of the media and many in Hollywood, this "war" has become mean and hateful, and Christians are coming out looking like hatemongers. Christ told us to LOVE our neighbors as we love ourselves. But Christians certainly are not showing the love that Christ told us to have.

If we take a look at this issue, objectively, and not allow our emotions to get involved, I believe Christians would approach homosexuality in a completely different way. When I've heard preachers talk on this subject, their voices and faces show disgust and disdain for the lifestyles of homosexuals. In part, I share in this emotion simply because it is such a foreign concept to me to be romantically involved with someone of the same sex. And, to be honest, it is repulsive to think about and imagine. This does not make me a homophobic person. I find eating raw fish repulsive. I find having sex with animals repulsive. I find a great many things repulsive, but it doesn't mean I have a phobia about those things, it just means I find them repulsive!

But for the person living the life of a homosexual, when they see and hear disgust from Christians, why on earth would they want to be one of us?! We Christians have such an amazingly difficult time separating our hate for sin and love for the sinner. What makes a homosexual, to us, any more repulsive than the liar, the adulterer, the gossiper, the murderer? Why do we allow this "righteous hatred" of homosexuals who might enter our sanctuaries, when we would never allow such hatred for the drug addict who comes to church? Doesn't God's word say they are both loved, equally, by God? How in the world do we expect to reach ALL people's of the world, when we so persecute this one group of people in this country? And yes, the church truly does persecute the homosexual community. And what's so sad, is we've made this lifestyle so repugnant and repulsive, that men (especially) within the church who struggle with this issue hide it and suffer silently for fear of reprisal from the very people they're supposed to be ministering to. As a result, it always comes out in a terrible way and it becomes fodder for the leftist, liberal media and the homosexual community to "prove" how hypocritical, unjust, and judgemental we Christians truly are.

Why have we, as Christians, allowed ourselves to be pulled in to this debate over homosexual marriage? Why are we fighting this fight when there are so many souls dying, even now, and entering eternity without knowing the loving, saving grace of our Lord?

Ponder this: marriage is an institution ordained and blessed by our God, not the country in which we reside! About 20 years ago, I won a beauty contest. I entered the pageant, paid my fees, prepared my talent and speeches, participated in the contest, and a panel of judges made the decision to crown me Miss Polk County. It was an official title, ordained by the judges and pageant board and thus bestowed on me. Now, some girl could go out to a store, buy a sash and crown and claim herself a beauty queen. A law could be passed saying that any girl could go out a buy a crown and claim she's a beauty queen. Would that mean that my title is no longer valid? Would it mean that these other women earned the title or that the title truly meant anything? No! My hard-earned, and hard-won title of Miss Polk County would not be tainted or invalidated simply because someone went out, put a crown on their head and called themselves a beauty queen without the title being ordained by an official pageant board.

The argument is made that homosexual marriage would cheapen Christian marriage. Well, then why aren't we as Christians making a big deal about non-Christians getting married? Why aren't we causing a ruckus about people who get married but have no minister officiating? MARRIAGE is an institution created, blessed, and ordained by GOD, no one else. This country passing any law that states otherwise, does not overwright GOD's law!! There is no power on earth that could ever, ever, ever negate what God puts in place! So, to enter a fight over whether or not this country allows gay marriage is completely missing the big picture! I believe it's this same mentality that allows so many divorces to take place. We forget that marriage is not a LEGAL institution, it's a SPIRITUAL one.

We Christians are allowing ourselves to be drawn into a fight with the world that we will not win on any front. Have we forgotten, "For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms." Eph. 6:12. The "rulers", "authorities", and the "powers of this dark world", are Satan and his cohorts.

You can not deny that Homosexuals feel love and want to share that love with someone for a lifetime. For Christians to come out "against" them and "deny" them the chance to "legally" share that love, comes across as just mean and hateful. Again, it's GOD who ordains and blesses marriage. If our government allows them the LEGAL right to get married, how does that affect our SPIRITUAL rights? It doesn't!!!

The issue isn't, and shouldn't be, should homosexuals be allowed the right to get married. The issue should be, are we as Christians allowing God to use us to show love and compassion in such a way that would help people caught in sin to turn away from that sin and give their lives completely over to God? Would homosexual marriage lead to physical harm of anyone? Will it destroy lives? The only thing that would change is that the homosexual partner would then be allowed to make medical decisions and collect insurance monies in case of death. This, in no way, threatens God and shouldn't threaten us as Christians.

How are we going to win over the world, if we allow ourselves to be caught up in a fight that only makes us look mean and hateful? We need to ask ourselves, what are we doing and are we living in such a way that would make the world want to be like us? I know the world is working over time to make themselves look attractive to Christians. From what I've seen lately, the world is winning.

Life with Keith

Well, this is my first blog......I don't know if anyone will ever read this. I guess it really doesn't matter much. For those of you who do read this, however, I would like you to know something about my husband. So, here goes.......

Keith and I met over the internet in January of 2003. We were both on a dating website, and after too-numerous-to-count failed relationships, I agreed to let my parents "pick" my date from the website. They picked Keith, and I will forever be in debt to them for doing so.

We corresponded via e-mail and phone for a month before we ever met face to face. He was so refreshing. After several months of dating, Keith decided to completely overhaul his career in order to provide more financial stability for me and my son. He went back to school (Vanderbilt University, no less) and moved us to Nashville, after our completely amazing wedding and honeymoon in March 2004.

After much hard work and studying, he was offered a prestigious position at the largest privately owned hospital in the country, located in downtown Nashville, TN. He's head of his department!

We now have four amazing and beautiful children. Corbin, is 8 years old, Cameron (our honeymoon souvenir) is 2, and Catherine and Carson will be 1 in just four weeks! Keith bought me a beautiful home in a town just south of Nashville and we're raising our children in what we feel to be paradise on earth.

Keith is such a caring and sensitive man. He's so selfless, thoughtful, and loving. It's a rare thing to find a man who would take on another man's child and raise that child as his own, but Keith has done just that. My sweet boy has even taken to calling Keith "Dad" now, and their bond is almost as if they were biologically related. My husband is well-known, greatly loved, and highly respected at work, in our neighborhood, community, and church.

We both had to travel a rocky road of failed and abusive realtionships, broken trust, betrayal, and numerous infidelities. After such treatment from the very people we had given our hearts to for safe-keeping, it was difficult to learn to trust and love again. Amazingly, despite the betrayal Keith experienced by one very close to him, he made it his priority to make sure that I felt loved, safe, and secure in our relationship at great risk to his own heart. He took a huge gamble, and I can only hope and pray he will always believe that gamble paid off.

I believed I would never again find love. Not only did I find love, I found a greater love than I've ever know from any man.

Years ago, there was a song on the charts that I now find poignant: "If she would have been faithful, If she would have been true. Then I would have been cheated, I'd have never known real love, I would have missed out on you..."

I love my husband. My life is wonderful. My children are beautiful. GOD IS GOOD!!! :-)