“No matter who you are, or where you are on a life’s journey, you are welcome here!”
As I sat on the bench at a new church I visited on Sunday, I could not help but to cry as this was the first time I had ever heard a church welcome me in this manner.
I grew up in a conservative God-fearing household. My family always put an emphasis on faith and I am grateful for their unconditional love and support. But as a young child, I did not really understand the power of a true relationship with God.
As I grew older, I started to notice that I was attracted to men, and after I realized what this meant, I never felt welcome at that church. At times, I would get in trouble because I dared to clap during a song. Or I questioned the church’s teachings on the exclusion of women in leadership roles because of religious rhetoric or due to the notion that men did not want to give up their position in power because they felt threatened by women.
When I came out to a few people in the church, I was told that they either “used to stone gays to death in biblical times”… “that I was going to hell”… and a person even attempted to out me to a family member on Facebook.This experience in itself caused me to question my faith, reject God, and fall into depression.
I knew of many gay members at the church that used to go too, but most of us felt excluded and unwelcome. There were some members of the church that accepted me and welcomed me with open arms. To them, I was a person, and I was not perceived as the one and only “sinner” in their eyes.
As I was looking through my cell phone late at night on a Saturday, I Googled gay affirming churches in DC so that I could go to a church on that Sunday. I picked one randomly that was affiliated with the United Church of Christ.I am an extrovert, so I typically do not have many issues going into a new environment.
But since I was Bible bashed growing up, I still felt apprehensive stepping into a new church. All of these questions went through my mind:
Would they accept me?
Welcome me with open arms?
Or would they shun me, put on a façade and tell me that they “loved me”?
When I walked in, I noticed that the church was an older congregation. I have recently grown fond of churches that do not have many youth, because I can truly focus on God rather than attempting to find someone to date. The pastor was a woman. This actually made me feel even more welcomed, because they did not ostracize her just based on something she could not control… her gender.
And,Her message was simple, that you should never feel ashamed, because of who you are and that you should trust God to guide you in your walk of life.
After the service, I joined the congregation for their fellowship event. I spoke to some of the people and they told me to meet a random guy that worked for Whitman Walker Health, a program that is a partner of WAP. When I introduced myself, he mentioned that he worked at Whitman Walker as the executive director. I asked him if he knew the Director of WAP, and he mentioned that they worked closely together.
For me, this was a sign from God that I was supposed to be at that place.
It was of no coincidence that the random church I picked from Google was the church that may become my new home. It has been a long journey for me to finally reconcile my sexuality with my faith.
Thankfully, there are some resources like gaychristian.net that is a support network for LGBT Christians, which has helped me get through difficult times. I’ve realized that even in the midst of everything, God loves me for whom I am and there are still people out there in this amazing world who love me… just the same.
Need A Massage? Learn How To Give One To Yourself And Your Loved Ones
Receiving a massage, whether it’s given by someone else or self-administered, can help loosen your muscles and establish a better connection not only with your body but also with the people you love.
