it is well

I haven’t been around recently, just reblogging something here or there, and the reason for that is that I’ve been really stressed. It’s been really bad. It just seems like everything is happening all at once and I can’t really catch a break. So, I don’t have a whole lot to share right now, but I do feel like God has been putting this on my heart to share with a few people recently, so I thought I would share it here as well.

No matter what happens (and that can be a very wide spectrum of things for people like us), God has got us and we can say, “It is well with my soul.”

I hope this is an encouragement to anyone who sees it. I just know that I’ve been going through a lot of stuff right now and that God has been trying to tell me to trust Him, because no matter what happens, it is well.

Advertisement

Take Me To Church

While I don’t feel nearly the same way about the church as Hozier clearly does, I still think that what he is trying to say with this song and video is important for us as Christians to notice. Yes, the song does sound a little bit blasphemous. Yes, it does sound a little outrageous and a lot of Christians might possibly be offended by it, but I also think that it’s an interesting perspective for us to take in.
What does it say about us when people only recognize the church for what it is against and what it hates? What kind of message does that send about Christians?
Seriously, just think about that for a little bit before you write it off as another figure in pop culture trying to tear down the church. This is how secular culture views the church, and that isn’t good. I think that as Christians, we need to be part of the change, part of something that people don’t fear or associate with hate.
Just think about it.

Just another idiot's blog

Take me to church
I’ll worship like a dog at the shrine of your lies
I’ll tell you my sins and you can sharpen your knife
Offer me that deathless death
Good God, let me give you my life

You know it’s a good song when your ears perk up the very first time you hear it play. This is undoubtedly a very good one – with its soulful rendition and deeply powerful melody. I could listen to it many times in a row and still appreciate the passion the singer has put into singing it every single time. It is dark. It is beautiful.

But the deep controversy revolving around the lyrics of the song just about makes a little change of perspective. How could a song with such a spiritual feel to it, have so many hidden meanings behind it? Blasphemous. Offensive. But some don’t think so…

View original post 157 more words

You must be straight to get your book published

As a fellow writer, this really breaks my heart. What’s even more sad is the fact that I’m not super surprised that the publisher refused to publish the book, given the reasons they provided. I’m more saddened about the fact that their reasons are probably legitimate.
Even though the publisher is a Christian publisher, it is still a business, and a business must abide by the laws of supply and demand, and the tragic thing is that it’s probably true that many Christians wouldn’t buy the book simply because the author was gay. Why is this the way that the church is behaving in this day and age? I think that if the only reason not to buy a book is that the author is gay and that we (used generally to refer to the Christian community) don’t agree with that, then I think that we need to reexamine our own hearts. The book he was going to publish isn’t even about sexuality, and he noted that he even left out a chapter on sexuality so as not to detract from the overall message of the book. If we refused to listen to anyone just because they held differing views from us, I don’t think we would listen to anybody.
I think that we need to start taking a better look at ourselves and asking ourselves why we’re doing the things that we’re doing. I vividly remember my parents telling me to try and listen to people who I don’t agree with and at least understand where they’re coming from and think about what they have to say objectively before we critique or judge. Perhaps it’s time to get back to a spirit more akin to that.
What do you guys think?

good intentions

I think that most of us would agree and can relate to situations in which our well-meaning straight friends say something or point us to something, whether it’s a book, online sermon, article, or anything else that unintentionally hurts us, sometimes a lot. Something like that happened to me earlier this week, which is what I want to share with you for this post.

Now, I typically like to say that I don’t get offended very easily, and I still hold to that as I’m writing, but what I experienced earlier this week was something that was a rather unique experience in a really uncomfortable way. I can’t remember the last time (if ever), I’ve ever experienced anything like it before, but I’m sure that perhaps some of you have encountered something like this:

One generation’s morality crisis is another generation’s “Eh, whatever”

This is honestly such good food for thought. I will most likely write a full-length post detailing my views and thoughts on gay marriage in the future, but I encourage you to think about the implications of things like this. No, I don’t think that ‘gay is the new black,’ because honestly, I just don’t see the same level of oppression, but I do see a lot of parallels from what I have read about the civil rights movement and what I’m seeing today. Think about it.

Sarahbeth Caplin

Once upon a time, Christianity condoned and even encouraged owning black people as slaves. Today, we know better, and lament the behaviors of our ancestors. History tells us that every generation of Christians has had its own particular culture war. For our parents it was Jim Crow laws, and today, it’s gay marriage.

What do slavery, Jim Crow, and gay marriage have in common? Scripture has been used, and is still being used, to condemn all of the above. In the case of the former two, most Christians today admit that Scripture was twisted to justify those actions, and perhaps the enforcers weren’t really Good Christians. My question for Christians today is this: several generations from now, what’s to stop our great-great-grandchildren from maintaining that Christianity has no moral issues with being gay?

View original post 254 more words

w i s t f u l

Not to post something really melancholy again, but the whole situation surrounding Valentine’s Day got me in a really pensive mood last night, and the way that I always remedy that is by writing. It’s something that I love to do, whether it’s short stories, (attempts at) poems, letters to no one, or just a stream of my consciousness directed onto a page. It always helps me sort through the whirlwind of emotions that I’m constantly bombarded with, and a lot of the time it will give me some perspective on life while also giving me a good chance to just reflect and turn some less ideal situations into more wistful ones, in a good way. Plus, I just really enjoy the act of writing, the sensation of the ink or pencil lead flowing onto the page so smoothly. It’s therapuetic to me.

So that’s what I’ve got for you again today: a piece of writing and a song:

The Dehumanization of Homosexuals

I honestly don’t care if you disagree with me, but please still treat me like a person. There can still be love in disagreement. Thanks to this author.

Dan Williams

I have seen things I thought I would never see and today is no different. I did not think same sex marriage would be legal in Alabama during my lifetime. Some people are celebrating today while others grieve. It is not an issue of which people often find middle-ground. It is an issue that is hard to find discussion that does not grow heated and a war of words. People just become mean. Posts on social media bring out the venom. I am against same sex marriage because of my biblical worldview, but I do not hate homosexuals. I have people that have been in my life that are strong in the area of same sex relationships and some involved in same sex relationships. Here is my concern for many people who hold beliefs like myself.

People against homosexuality often dehumanize homosexuals.

If you believe like me, I have a…

View original post 44 more words

The Godly Hearts Column: Christian AND Gay?!

I really love this post, and I can resonate with a lot of the experiences that this author described, including the fact that many of the author’s Christian friends were accepting and loving of him. No matter how many times you tell people or how many people you tell, it still feels a little strange (or a lot strange) to have those words come out of your mouth, telling people that “I’m gay.”
And just like this author, I too, am single and a virgin, but I resonate a lot with just thinking that my faith and this part of me were incompatible and also how freeing it was to have God speak to me and say “maybe you should reexamine this part of your life. Listen to me, not what other people say.” So, yes, I too am hoping that I’ll be able to find a guy that will love me, but until then, I’m trying to remain satisfied in the Lord, just like straight people have to do until they find someone.
Ah. I just really like this article a lot. God knew you before you even existed, and He loves you so much. God doesn’t make mistakes. Just like this author, I don’t have all the answers and a lot of what I’m writing here is personal experience, but I do believe that God is good and that He is loving. I’m just trying to share my experiences in the hopes that they will encourage others like me.

annieanais:

  Guest Writer: Anonymous

Let’s get the key details out of the way first. Yes, I ama fully committed Christian; yes, I am single (weird, I know on the blog series about singleness) and finally, I am gay. To some people these words can sound like an oxymoron, like two absolute opposites – and I certainly have had some puzzled looks when I tell people that I am both a Christian and gay! I don’t want this post to be some in depth discussion as part of the raging debate over homosexuality and Christianity (I’ll leave that to the likes of right-wing Americans, thank you very much!) but it is my personal experience of trying to wrestle these two, what appeared to be, conflicting interests. Some may read it just to gain an insight in to what it’s like, or even; some of you may be struggling with…

View original post 1,164 more words

Okay to be gay? Homosexuality and Christianity

A lot of food for thought here.

The Evangelical Liberal

This has turned into a ridiculously long 3500-words post due to the complexity and sensitivity of the subject, so you may wish to tackle it in two or three sittings. 🙂

So, having set out my thoughts on how Christians should disagree (with shedloads of love and respect), it’s time to get down to some of the real issues that Christians do disagree on. Like homosexuality.

Views on homosexuality and homosexual practice have hugely divided Christians, and in recent years have repeatedly threatened to split the Anglican communion. On the liberal, pro-gay side it’s seen as a straightforward issue of human rights, akin to the historical Abolitionist, Civil Liberties or Suffragette movements. On the conservative side it’s viewed as a matter of upholding unchanging Scriptural Truth and time-honoured morality in the face of libertarian attacks which are seen as undermining the stability of the family, of society and of the church. (I have some sympathy for both…

View original post 3,415 more words

v – d a y

It’s been a little while since I last shared anything with you guys. It also happens to be a day that many people, gay Christians included, tend to dread. It’s Valentine’s Day. I know firsthand how difficult and disappointing this day can be. I mean, I think there’s a reason that all of my friends banded together to celebrate Singles Awareness Day in high school in protest to this holiday that just seems to celebrate what everyone has that you don’t.

It’s actually really interesting that the United States has such a fascination with the romantic love aspect of Valentine’s Day, because in other countries the focus tends to be on all love, not just romantic love. For example, in many Latin American countries, the holiday is called “El Día del Amor y Amistad” instead, which translates to “The Day of Love and Friendship.” But regardless, I definitely understand the loneliness and bitterness that can take over many people come Valentine’s Day, especially in this country.

For that reason, instead of a “real” post today, I want to share a prayer with you instead.