From this week's newsletter:
Uncomfortable.
On Monday afternoon, some Gilead folks joined a group outside of the Moody Bible Institute. We were there to proclaim that the Church loves LGBTQ people, that the Church is LGBTQ people, and to show love especially to LGBTQ students and staff there, after the president and several faculty signed on to the Nashville Statement (a document condemning LGBTQ people and any other Christians who affirm them). We sang, prayed, and talked to students. Or some of us did.
I (Rebecca) am hugely uncomfortable in this kind of setting. I don't like protests and rallies. I don't like arguing. I don't like worrying that I won't know an exact Scripture reference. If I'm honest, I don't think this kind of confrontation leads to change. I was happy enough to be there, being a sign of love to anyone passing by or peering out the windows but God knows: I didn't want to talk to anyone. Not really.
So I was in awe of the people who did engage in conversations. I heard real, seemingly irreconcilable disagreements, and I heard questions. I watched people listening to each other. I saw people hug. I saw lots of people praying. And I was reminded by Josh Lee — who's preaching this coming Sunday at Gilead — that students there may not know that out, queer Christians or affirming churches even exist. "This kind of confrontation" does indeed lead to change: it's Good News that can save lives.
And that seems worth being uncomfortable.
Read the rest of this week's newsy news here.