We're sitting in our warm home with the fireplace going and listening to Christmas music tonight. We realize how blessed we've been this year, and part of that blessing has been working on this blog and putting it out there for you. We're received some truly wonderful and moving feedback during the course of the year which is appreciated and tells us that we are doing something worthwhile.
As Christmas Day is almost here, we want you all to know how much we value and love each and every person who our work has touched in some way. We can say that about those of you we haven't met or even interacted with because we are children of the Most High, and are therefore of value and worthy of being loved because He first loved us.
Regardless of your family situation, we sincerely hope and pray that you seek the joy, peace, and hope that the birth of Jesus Christ, our savior, is all about. If you haven't talked to Him recently, maybe just start out by wishing Him a happy birthday and see where the conversation goes from there.
Merry Christmas and God Bless everyone!
Jim and Brenda
Showing posts with label In Our Own Words. Show all posts
Showing posts with label In Our Own Words. Show all posts
December 24, 2009
November 27, 2009
In Our Own Words 11/27/09-Welcoming or Tolerating?
"We welcome homosexuals."
"We can't condone homosexual behavior."
How many churches do you know that make both of those statements?
I was reminded of that reading a story in the Christian Post where a Lutheran pastor in Minnesota tried to get his church to leave the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) after the denomination voted to allow ordination of non-celebate homosexual pastors. When the congregation voted on and rejected that idea, he resigned and started a new church with people leaving his old one. The pastor used both of the opening phrases to describe his old church.
Seriously, if we were "welcomed" into a church but told that our "behavior" of having sex with each other was considered sinful, I don't think we would feel very welcome. Tolerated, maybe, but certainly not welcome. Who wouldn't feel the same way? Sadly, that concept continues to be a mystery to many mainline churches who have to tried to convince people (and perhaps their own congregations) that allowing people in the door without swift and direct condemnation is a sufficient display of Jesus' love.
Isn't this just one tiny step better than the worn out "Hate the sin, love the sinner" approach some of the more fundamentalist churches take, especially when the hate part is so often directed at the aforementioned sinners.
Remember, the only people Jesus cast out and was sharply critical of were the religious types, the ones who administered the Law that had grown so it was impossible for anyone to be in total compliance. He loved sinner of all types, but the religious leaders really got on his nerves, mainly because their rules put obstacles between people and His Father. Jesus came down to earth and suffered on the cross to give us a path to the Father, not to keep "certain types" away and out of fellowship with Him.
Jesus doesn't tolerate sinners, He loves them. Perhaps our churches should put more effort into doing the same.
"We can't condone homosexual behavior."
How many churches do you know that make both of those statements?
I was reminded of that reading a story in the Christian Post where a Lutheran pastor in Minnesota tried to get his church to leave the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) after the denomination voted to allow ordination of non-celebate homosexual pastors. When the congregation voted on and rejected that idea, he resigned and started a new church with people leaving his old one. The pastor used both of the opening phrases to describe his old church.
Seriously, if we were "welcomed" into a church but told that our "behavior" of having sex with each other was considered sinful, I don't think we would feel very welcome. Tolerated, maybe, but certainly not welcome. Who wouldn't feel the same way? Sadly, that concept continues to be a mystery to many mainline churches who have to tried to convince people (and perhaps their own congregations) that allowing people in the door without swift and direct condemnation is a sufficient display of Jesus' love.
Isn't this just one tiny step better than the worn out "Hate the sin, love the sinner" approach some of the more fundamentalist churches take, especially when the hate part is so often directed at the aforementioned sinners.
Remember, the only people Jesus cast out and was sharply critical of were the religious types, the ones who administered the Law that had grown so it was impossible for anyone to be in total compliance. He loved sinner of all types, but the religious leaders really got on his nerves, mainly because their rules put obstacles between people and His Father. Jesus came down to earth and suffered on the cross to give us a path to the Father, not to keep "certain types" away and out of fellowship with Him.
Jesus doesn't tolerate sinners, He loves them. Perhaps our churches should put more effort into doing the same.
November 24, 2009
In Our Own Words 11/24/09-The LGBTS Church Is a Sleeping Giant!
Jim's essay was originally published in the Unidiversal Times Nov-Dec issue.
Those are the words I heard from the Lord during our amazing Fall Renewal gathering at Believers Covenant Fellowship, at which I also had the wonderful opportunity to worship with Robbie and Don once again.
As I write this, it’s been a week since the Lord gave me that word, and here’s how I believe He has led my wife Brenda and I to understand it and act upon it.
Our Fall Renewal came only a couple of days after same-sex marriage was struck down by the voters in Maine, marking the 31st consecutive time that issue has lost at the ballot box. In most cases, it has been “the church” that has been the leading voice of opposition and that has provided much of the resources used to campaign against LGBT equality. Clearly, the political process has seldom worked, and when it has like it did in Maine early in the year, it can be overturned making a lasting victory extremely difficult to obtain.
Those who are in the LGBTS (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and straight ally) Christian community know where lasting victory has been achieved and that is at the cross, where Jesus Christ died to redeem us from our sins. Many other Christians believe that, but we in the LGBTS camp know that Jesus did not withhold certain blessings and rights from certain groups of people. He died for us ALL so that WHOSOEVER comes to Him shall have everlasting life.
Brothers and sisters, we had just about every gender orientation represented at the Fall Renewal, and the Holy Spirit flowed over and through everyone. Brenda and I didn’t get an extra dose because we are straight; EVERYONE shared in the power of the Lord and the blessings He wants so badly to bestow upon us. Although LGBTS Christians are a minority, we are a powerful minority because the Word of the Lord will break people out of bondage and set them free (Romans 8:21)!
I believe that in many parts of this country the LGBTS church is a well kept secret. The dynamic preachers we heard last weekend; Apostle Dale Jarrett at BCF, Pastor David Thomas from Abundant Grace Church, Sister Evelyn Shave (another straight ally), and Apostle Randy Morgan bring messages from the Lord that can change lives and people need to hear them! The music from Apostle Dale and Pastor Debbie George is truly anointed—people need to hear this stuff so they can find a new place in their spirits where they are drawn close to God! A loyal, diligent minister like Robbie Ousley, one of the people who inspires our Straight, Not Narrow ministry, is someone people need to know. They need to see the messages at the Unidiversal website and be touched by his sincerity and spirit of servanthood.
Okay, so how can we make this happen? Here are some thoughts:
1) Adopt the attitude that people NEED these messages, these songs, and these relationships. They NEED to know that LGBT and Christian are not mutually exclusive and then to see positive examples of it. We can post them on Facebook, Twitter, and any other social media you participate in. We can talk about them with friends and family who are not accepting of LGBT people.
2) We need to live a life that makes people ask questions like “Why do have this sense of peace about you?” or “How have you been able to over [fill in the blank].” They we need to praise God as the answer.
3) We need to be out of our closets. If people know you are LGBT, do they know you are Christian? If you are a straight ally, do people know that? I know my boss at work just doesn’t get what Brenda and I are doing ministering within the LGBTS community, but I pray that over time he will seriously consider opening his heart and embrace equality.
4) Do NOT underestimate the power of God and His desire for everyone to live a full life in Him. I believe He hates how His word has been twisted and people abused and discriminated against in His name. His strength is sufficient (2 Corinthians 12:9) and He expects us to use it for His glory. We are all part of the Great Commission (Matthew 28:19) and we all have a role to play in presenting the Gospel to the world.
Let’s not accept the idea that a LGBT ministry is no more than a “niche” ministry. Don’t allow the right-wing church to marginalize our body. We have a message to share and the Lord will provide opportunities to share it with the world if we are serious about doing so and actively seek opportunities.
I realize some of you reading this have already shown great dedication to spreading God’s word and have been working very hard in ministry for a while. I believe that time is growing short and we will all be seeing more doors open and be able to connect with more people who need to hear what the Lord would have us say to them.
The Lord told me that the LGBTS church is a sleeping giant and we had two different confirmations with people also hearing the word “awake”. It’s time to wake up folks!
Those are the words I heard from the Lord during our amazing Fall Renewal gathering at Believers Covenant Fellowship, at which I also had the wonderful opportunity to worship with Robbie and Don once again.
As I write this, it’s been a week since the Lord gave me that word, and here’s how I believe He has led my wife Brenda and I to understand it and act upon it.
Our Fall Renewal came only a couple of days after same-sex marriage was struck down by the voters in Maine, marking the 31st consecutive time that issue has lost at the ballot box. In most cases, it has been “the church” that has been the leading voice of opposition and that has provided much of the resources used to campaign against LGBT equality. Clearly, the political process has seldom worked, and when it has like it did in Maine early in the year, it can be overturned making a lasting victory extremely difficult to obtain.
Those who are in the LGBTS (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and straight ally) Christian community know where lasting victory has been achieved and that is at the cross, where Jesus Christ died to redeem us from our sins. Many other Christians believe that, but we in the LGBTS camp know that Jesus did not withhold certain blessings and rights from certain groups of people. He died for us ALL so that WHOSOEVER comes to Him shall have everlasting life.
Brothers and sisters, we had just about every gender orientation represented at the Fall Renewal, and the Holy Spirit flowed over and through everyone. Brenda and I didn’t get an extra dose because we are straight; EVERYONE shared in the power of the Lord and the blessings He wants so badly to bestow upon us. Although LGBTS Christians are a minority, we are a powerful minority because the Word of the Lord will break people out of bondage and set them free (Romans 8:21)!
I believe that in many parts of this country the LGBTS church is a well kept secret. The dynamic preachers we heard last weekend; Apostle Dale Jarrett at BCF, Pastor David Thomas from Abundant Grace Church, Sister Evelyn Shave (another straight ally), and Apostle Randy Morgan bring messages from the Lord that can change lives and people need to hear them! The music from Apostle Dale and Pastor Debbie George is truly anointed—people need to hear this stuff so they can find a new place in their spirits where they are drawn close to God! A loyal, diligent minister like Robbie Ousley, one of the people who inspires our Straight, Not Narrow ministry, is someone people need to know. They need to see the messages at the Unidiversal website and be touched by his sincerity and spirit of servanthood.
Okay, so how can we make this happen? Here are some thoughts:
1) Adopt the attitude that people NEED these messages, these songs, and these relationships. They NEED to know that LGBT and Christian are not mutually exclusive and then to see positive examples of it. We can post them on Facebook, Twitter, and any other social media you participate in. We can talk about them with friends and family who are not accepting of LGBT people.
2) We need to live a life that makes people ask questions like “Why do have this sense of peace about you?” or “How have you been able to over [fill in the blank].” They we need to praise God as the answer.
3) We need to be out of our closets. If people know you are LGBT, do they know you are Christian? If you are a straight ally, do people know that? I know my boss at work just doesn’t get what Brenda and I are doing ministering within the LGBTS community, but I pray that over time he will seriously consider opening his heart and embrace equality.
4) Do NOT underestimate the power of God and His desire for everyone to live a full life in Him. I believe He hates how His word has been twisted and people abused and discriminated against in His name. His strength is sufficient (2 Corinthians 12:9) and He expects us to use it for His glory. We are all part of the Great Commission (Matthew 28:19) and we all have a role to play in presenting the Gospel to the world.
Let’s not accept the idea that a LGBT ministry is no more than a “niche” ministry. Don’t allow the right-wing church to marginalize our body. We have a message to share and the Lord will provide opportunities to share it with the world if we are serious about doing so and actively seek opportunities.
I realize some of you reading this have already shown great dedication to spreading God’s word and have been working very hard in ministry for a while. I believe that time is growing short and we will all be seeing more doors open and be able to connect with more people who need to hear what the Lord would have us say to them.
The Lord told me that the LGBTS church is a sleeping giant and we had two different confirmations with people also hearing the word “awake”. It’s time to wake up folks!
November 23, 2009
In Our Own Words-Top 25 Gay Rights & Activism Blogs
The blog "Online Paralegal Degree" has compiled a list of what they consider to be the Top 25 Gay Rights & Activism Blogs. We are happy to be notified that Straight, Not Narrow made this list at #23. We appreciate Laura Wright notifying us of this distinction.
We are always pleased to receive positive recognition, not to glorify what we do but because it tells us that we are properly representing what we believe is a critical part of the message of Jesus, which is His love for ALL mankind. Christianity, properly carried out, is a "whosoever" faith, one that takes extra care to reach out to those who have been pushed aside and cast off. That's a revelation we carry with us in our hearts, and we're glad the Online Paralegal Degree blog thinks our blog is sharing it clearly with others.
We are always pleased to receive positive recognition, not to glorify what we do but because it tells us that we are properly representing what we believe is a critical part of the message of Jesus, which is His love for ALL mankind. Christianity, properly carried out, is a "whosoever" faith, one that takes extra care to reach out to those who have been pushed aside and cast off. That's a revelation we carry with us in our hearts, and we're glad the Online Paralegal Degree blog thinks our blog is sharing it clearly with others.
November 21, 2009
In Our Own Words 11/21/09-Back to Normal
We're back to our normal posting schedule, which means plenty of affirming Sunday Worship tomorrow. We've got our traditional aggregate posting coming up at 6:00 AM with music and links to over 20 affirming churches posting video or audio of their services, some live, some from previous weeks.
Then, beginning at 11:00 AM eastern time, we've got the first of nine live services that are posted individually throughout the day. We encourage you to pick one that fits the style you are most comfortable with and enter in! We will be participating in the Believers Covenant Fellowship service at 11:00--we hope you can join us in person if you're in the northern Virginia area, or online via our live video stream and chat room.
God bless!
Then, beginning at 11:00 AM eastern time, we've got the first of nine live services that are posted individually throughout the day. We encourage you to pick one that fits the style you are most comfortable with and enter in! We will be participating in the Believers Covenant Fellowship service at 11:00--we hope you can join us in person if you're in the northern Virginia area, or online via our live video stream and chat room.
God bless!
November 18, 2009
In Our Own Words 11/17/09-CNN Reports on Online Churches
CNN has posted an interesting piece on the growing trend of online churches. They report on the different approaches and goals ministries have for going online, and also the concern about the lack of face-to-face community that is lost by worshiping through the Internet vs. in a brick-and-mortar church building. Here's an excerpt:
Supporters of online churches have a common response to their skeptics: Try before you criticize. The virtual experience goes far beyond using live chat rooms to exchange emoticons instead of hugs and handshakes, they say.
Links allow congregants to "raise their hand" and publicly commit to Christ, while prayer requests and one-on-one guidance are a click way. Sermon notes can be shared and discussed. And many online churches are aided by volunteers, allowing them to hold services several times each day.
The Internet campus of the Flamingo Road Church in Cooper City, Florida, pulls in more than 2,000 congregants from around the world during its Sunday services. Pastor Doug Gramling said his three children are part of the Internet generation that will eventually decide the future of worship. They use Web tools to stay in constant connection with friends over vast distances, which Gramling says "gives me confidence that it can happen in online church."
But the disconnect from physical closeness is what Hyatt said he's "fighting hardest against." His own church offers online extensions such as podcasts and forums. But he believes "the computer
screen is a supplement, not a replacement."
That last statement is how we have approached the presentation of worship services here at Straight, Not Narrow. Although Jim sees this site moving more toward being a form of online church (Brenda doesn't), we strongly agree that anything we offer here is not a complete replacement for being an on-site participant in a live worship experience. We believe that the offerings here are best used for encouragement between church services, or as a closest-to-the-real-thing you might have if there is no affirming congregation near you.
We believe there is a lot of value in that, and we have seen that from the other side as our church, Believers Covenant Fellowship, is seeing significant growth in it's live broadcasting. So far, that is not keeping members away who are content to watch from home--it is broadening the reach of our ministry, involving people who don't have another place to call their church home. It is also helping us stay connected to sister churches on the West Coast by having the opportunity to participate online in each others' services.
We believe that people and churches who ignore the technology and the availability of some wonderful worship resources on the Internet are the ones who are losing. In effect, we think they are limiting God, saying He can't use cyberspace to bless and reach people.
Of course, when we do that, we're not really limiting God, just the blessings we are open to receiving from Him.
Supporters of online churches have a common response to their skeptics: Try before you criticize. The virtual experience goes far beyond using live chat rooms to exchange emoticons instead of hugs and handshakes, they say.
Links allow congregants to "raise their hand" and publicly commit to Christ, while prayer requests and one-on-one guidance are a click way. Sermon notes can be shared and discussed. And many online churches are aided by volunteers, allowing them to hold services several times each day.
The Internet campus of the Flamingo Road Church in Cooper City, Florida, pulls in more than 2,000 congregants from around the world during its Sunday services. Pastor Doug Gramling said his three children are part of the Internet generation that will eventually decide the future of worship. They use Web tools to stay in constant connection with friends over vast distances, which Gramling says "gives me confidence that it can happen in online church."
But the disconnect from physical closeness is what Hyatt said he's "fighting hardest against." His own church offers online extensions such as podcasts and forums. But he believes "the computer
screen is a supplement, not a replacement."
That last statement is how we have approached the presentation of worship services here at Straight, Not Narrow. Although Jim sees this site moving more toward being a form of online church (Brenda doesn't), we strongly agree that anything we offer here is not a complete replacement for being an on-site participant in a live worship experience. We believe that the offerings here are best used for encouragement between church services, or as a closest-to-the-real-thing you might have if there is no affirming congregation near you.
We believe there is a lot of value in that, and we have seen that from the other side as our church, Believers Covenant Fellowship, is seeing significant growth in it's live broadcasting. So far, that is not keeping members away who are content to watch from home--it is broadening the reach of our ministry, involving people who don't have another place to call their church home. It is also helping us stay connected to sister churches on the West Coast by having the opportunity to participate online in each others' services.
We believe that people and churches who ignore the technology and the availability of some wonderful worship resources on the Internet are the ones who are losing. In effect, we think they are limiting God, saying He can't use cyberspace to bless and reach people.
Of course, when we do that, we're not really limiting God, just the blessings we are open to receiving from Him.
November 14, 2009
In Our Own Words 11/14/09-More Worship!
One of the things the Lord led us to during the Fall Renewal at our church last weekend was that we needed to focus more on posting worship at Straight, Not Narrow. You will see the next step toward that tomorrow, when we will have nothing but posts with live church services following our traditional Sunday Worship aggregate post at 6:00 AM.
At this time, we have nine independent affirming churches that broadcast live video streams over the Internet. The first two start at 11:00 AM est, while the last one begins at 9:00 PM est with several others falling in-between. These nine churches encompass several different styles so we be believe we are offering a variety of worship experiences hoping you will find at least one to bless you.
We want to remind you that we do not post these an a substitute for attending church and participating worship, but we do believe that for those unable or just not ready at this time to visit a church that we are offering a valuable alternative.
We are also going to experiment with how we present our LGBT news stories. We'll be presenting a daily digest from the sites that feed into our news aggregator on the right hand side of our home page starting Monday morning. We hope you like it.
We appreciate your feedback on these and future changes, be it positive or negative. We seek to present information in the most interesting and useful manner for our regular readers and so that it might attract new ones.
Thanks and God bless,
Jim and Brenda
At this time, we have nine independent affirming churches that broadcast live video streams over the Internet. The first two start at 11:00 AM est, while the last one begins at 9:00 PM est with several others falling in-between. These nine churches encompass several different styles so we be believe we are offering a variety of worship experiences hoping you will find at least one to bless you.
We want to remind you that we do not post these an a substitute for attending church and participating worship, but we do believe that for those unable or just not ready at this time to visit a church that we are offering a valuable alternative.
We are also going to experiment with how we present our LGBT news stories. We'll be presenting a daily digest from the sites that feed into our news aggregator on the right hand side of our home page starting Monday morning. We hope you like it.
We appreciate your feedback on these and future changes, be it positive or negative. We seek to present information in the most interesting and useful manner for our regular readers and so that it might attract new ones.
Thanks and God bless,
Jim and Brenda
November 09, 2009
Site Updates
Sorry about the lack of posts today--we're still recovering from the BCF Renewal and catching up with our everyday lives.
As we expected, the Lord showed us a few new things during that event that He wants us to do here. One of them was to spend more time on original writing. These pieces, some of which will be first published on other sites, will come under the heading "In Our Own Words." To make time for this, we are collapsing our Matthew 25 Resources, SNN Recommends, and LGBT Helping Hands links into one daily slot. We will also be expanding our worship offerings which we'll have more on this weekend.
Our new Monday-Saturday schedule, effective tomorrow, is (all times EST):
6:00 AM LGBT news story
6:00 AM Daily Devotional
9:00 AM SNN Recommends/Matthew 25 Resource/LGBT Helping Hands
12:00 PM Encouraging Music
3:00 PM Encouraging Words
6:00 PM (or later) In Our Own Words--this won't be daily but when we have something to say
We hope you will gain even more blessing from these changes and others coming as we continue to grow this ministry. Speaking of growth, our traffic is staying on an upward trend. We want to put this out in front of as many people as possible so they can share in the love of God that we enjoy so much.
Thanks for visiting and God bless!
As we expected, the Lord showed us a few new things during that event that He wants us to do here. One of them was to spend more time on original writing. These pieces, some of which will be first published on other sites, will come under the heading "In Our Own Words." To make time for this, we are collapsing our Matthew 25 Resources, SNN Recommends, and LGBT Helping Hands links into one daily slot. We will also be expanding our worship offerings which we'll have more on this weekend.
Our new Monday-Saturday schedule, effective tomorrow, is (all times EST):
6:00 AM LGBT news story
6:00 AM Daily Devotional
9:00 AM SNN Recommends/Matthew 25 Resource/LGBT Helping Hands
12:00 PM Encouraging Music
3:00 PM Encouraging Words
6:00 PM (or later) In Our Own Words--this won't be daily but when we have something to say
We hope you will gain even more blessing from these changes and others coming as we continue to grow this ministry. Speaking of growth, our traffic is staying on an upward trend. We want to put this out in front of as many people as possible so they can share in the love of God that we enjoy so much.
Thanks for visiting and God bless!
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