Not only to pray for them, but to remember they too have been bought with a Price (whether they believe that [yet] or not) and they belong to Him, not to me; again, whatsoever I would do to them, I would do to Him; so those two thoughts are great temptation quenchers.
Elaine Heath
· 5 months ago
Randy, love your transparency. As you know Im married, and have been for 14 years with a 3 year courtship to my husband, he was a 27 yr old virgin when we got married, its a awesome testimony. Anyway even with being married, keeping the mind anchored in interseccion tied to the Word and Kevin & I's original vow/covenant we made, can be a taxing in mental and heart warfare. Those seasons or better stated testings of the heart can prove to be wonderful in preparation, were the mind is exercised to the point were the testing or temptation is disarmed and the mind of the over comer is established.
I believe the Lord is preparing you in the maturity of your royal identity in Him and He will cause your future to be fulfilled as you continue to trust and wait on His timing. I bet you know that to... :)
Gay Christian
· 5 months ago
Randy,
I want you to know that your post does not offend me in the least. The only possible thing that is offensive is the quotation marks around the word "freedom." I truly believe that you have found freedom in Christ by turning from a gay lifestyle and that I have found freedom in Christ by embracing a gay Christian lifestyle. Same Christ, same God...I believe that He is much bigger than expecting us all to swing the same way sexually. So...I guess all I'd ask is that you'd respect my freedom like I respect yours, and not put quotation marks around it that may indicate a mocking of such.
(And even if you leave the quotation marks, I still consider you my brother in Christ and I can't wait to worship next to you in heaven :)
twt4Christ
· 5 months ago
"It was for freedom that Christ set us free; therefore keep standing firm and do not be subject again to a yoke of slavery." is probably one of the most potent pieces of scripture I ever learned. But that freedom is in Jesus, not my flesh. If "I am crucified with Christ and I no longer live but Christ lives in me" I have to ask myself about the lust. Would Jesus look at a man or woman and secretly salivate at the thoughts in His head? My journey started a mere 5 years ago, but God has done some awesome things. The one date I've been on was with someone young enough to be my daughter, but she was the first to affect my heart's sweet-spot. I would question ministries or programs that put emphasis on sexual identification change. They may be brilliant people in dealing with emotional wounds and psychological wrangling, but putting emphasis on God and godly relationships leads to the in-depth healing that only God can do. I do not mean to open a can o'worms, but for those who have found freedom in a gay lifestyle, I understand COMPLETELY the needs for love, affection and affirmation. Yes, God is a loving God and He's so loving that He came here to rescue us from His own justice. But you cannot discount that God is an entire God. He is not only Love, He is totally righteous. He's totally just. His wrath against those covered by Jesus' blood has been appeased, but He still calls for behavior He finds acceptable. God abhors all sin. There are no degrees or ways to bring justification to ourselves while we are acting contrary to what He's asked us to do, whether it be heterosex or homosex or murder or overeating or just being plain lazy (last two are for me). I remember that WAY back when I was somewhere between 8 and 10 years old I was very interested in the opposite sex. And I can tell you why and how things changed very shortly after that time, so I'm not quite on the same line with those who cannot ever remember having hetero attractions. But there are far too many people who God has blessed with change; there are far too many people who, though they still struggle, have a rich relationship with Jesus and their Father and are complete. But we do get lonely sometimes, don't we? Regardless of anyone's point of view on this, we are fearfully and wonderfully made (Psalm 139). We were made to be wonderful in the eyes of our Creator/Father. How pleased and how wonderful would it be if, despite those DEEEEEPPP longings for the same sex, we looked up to our Father and said that we'll surrender everything and do as He asks? It is HARD. I've been celibate for 22 years and I don't understand why I can't do the things I want to do, except God says so. So, I don't. Lust and overeating aside, God has so richly blessed and so deeply cleansed me that He far FAR outshines the momentary lapses into lust. And He's taught me that I can honestly trust Him even if I don't have a clue about my sexuality or my addiction to food. He doesn't ask for our understanding. He asks us to be like Jesus in flesh as well as the reborn spirit inside. And we are free to be free. Real, godly freedom for us flesh-bound includes the freedom to need, the freedom to be wounded, the freedom to feel the hurt, to feel the deep lonliness that can't be relieved by a snuggling Cocker Spaniel. We're also free to be joyful if while we are in the struggle we get miserable of following His will (please tell me that makes sense to someone besides me). There can be deep satisfaction and completeness in just knowing that Abba Father is pleased. When Peter was freed from his cell is Acts 12, he's the one who had to get up and walk out. Others thought he was a ghost or completely nuts. But he was obedient. Had he stayed with his chains what would have happened? Sorry, Randy. I didn't mean to go THIS long!
PinkDavid
· 5 months ago
Of Godly Desire, Lust and The Goal of Freedom – Ask It Basket … http://bit.ly/j6rdH
Thanks Elaine. Appreciation for the development of true intimacy (in all its forms) takes time and maturity.
While I am always glad to continue to be prepared for what's next ... I would say that I am walking in my "royal identity" and growing in the understanding of what it means to be a son of God in Christ, a man among men and a brother among my sisters.
Randy
· 5 months ago
I put quotes around freedom because we are always saying the word "freedom" around my circles. I was basically quoting an often used word that is generally understood by one community as one thing and quite a different thing to the other community. The quotation marks are for emphasis on quoting what I mean by freedom and not "scare quotes" some people (not you ... I'm sure) love to be offended by. So no ... I will not delete them.
Also, I respect your right to self-determination. I am fully aware of and respect that I am not the judge over your eternal soul. I can even respect any potential claims that your decision to follow Christ may have brought about positive and healthy changes (overall).
But I can't respect the way you define freedom (in the context of homosexuality) if it is the anti-thesis of what I think God asks us to do with same sex attractions. I can respect your right to say and believe whatever you want but I don't agree with the end result. So, I respectfully disagree with your conclusions of how to steward same sex attractions.
Randy
· 5 months ago
Dude ... that is long :). Thank you for sharing your heart though. It's a complicated subject that brings up a lot of important issues. I am glad you spoke to the ones you find important to address.
Randy
· 5 months ago
Actually, I just re-read the post and noticed that I did quote "freedom" in the context of how you would define it. My earlier comment was based on my (poor) recollection of quoting "freedom from homosexuality." Sorry about that. I don't think this negates my earlier comment but point taking on the quotes. I didn't mean them to be scare quotes though.
All Comments
New blog post: Of Godly Desire, Lust and The Goal of Freedom – Ask It Basket http://bit.ly/h0Ikc
This comment was originally posted on Twitter
I believe the Lord is preparing you in the maturity of your royal identity in Him and He will cause your future to be fulfilled as you continue to trust and wait on His timing. I bet you know that to... :)
I want you to know that your post does not offend me in the least. The only possible thing that is offensive is the quotation marks around the word "freedom." I truly believe that you have found freedom in Christ by turning from a gay lifestyle and that I have found freedom in Christ by embracing a gay Christian lifestyle. Same Christ, same God...I believe that He is much bigger than expecting us all to swing the same way sexually. So...I guess all I'd ask is that you'd respect my freedom like I respect yours, and not put quotation marks around it that may indicate a mocking of such.
(And even if you leave the quotation marks, I still consider you my brother in Christ and I can't wait to worship next to you in heaven :)
My journey started a mere 5 years ago, but God has done some awesome things. The one date I've been on was with someone young enough to be my daughter, but she was the first to affect my heart's sweet-spot.
I would question ministries or programs that put emphasis on sexual identification change. They may be brilliant people in dealing with emotional wounds and psychological wrangling, but putting emphasis on God and godly relationships leads to the in-depth healing that only God can do.
I do not mean to open a can o'worms, but for those who have found freedom in a gay lifestyle, I understand COMPLETELY the needs for love, affection and affirmation. Yes, God is a loving God and He's so loving that He came here to rescue us from His own justice. But you cannot discount that God is an entire God. He is not only Love, He is totally righteous. He's totally just. His wrath against those covered by Jesus' blood has been appeased, but He still calls for behavior He finds acceptable. God abhors all sin. There are no degrees or ways to bring justification to ourselves while we are acting contrary to what He's asked us to do, whether it be heterosex or homosex or murder or overeating or just being plain lazy (last two are for me).
I remember that WAY back when I was somewhere between 8 and 10 years old I was very interested in the opposite sex. And I can tell you why and how things changed very shortly after that time, so I'm not quite on the same line with those who cannot ever remember having hetero attractions. But there are far too many people who God has blessed with change; there are far too many people who, though they still struggle, have a rich relationship with Jesus and their Father and are complete. But we do get lonely sometimes, don't we?
Regardless of anyone's point of view on this, we are fearfully and wonderfully made (Psalm 139). We were made to be wonderful in the eyes of our Creator/Father. How pleased and how wonderful would it be if, despite those DEEEEEPPP longings for the same sex, we looked up to our Father and said that we'll surrender everything and do as He asks? It is HARD. I've been celibate for 22 years and I don't understand why I can't do the things I want to do, except God says so. So, I don't. Lust and overeating aside, God has so richly blessed and so deeply cleansed me that He far FAR outshines the momentary lapses into lust. And He's taught me that I can honestly trust Him even if I don't have a clue about my sexuality or my addiction to food. He doesn't ask for our understanding. He asks us to be like Jesus in flesh as well as the reborn spirit inside. And we are free to be free.
Real, godly freedom for us flesh-bound includes the freedom to need, the freedom to be wounded, the freedom to feel the hurt, to feel the deep lonliness that can't be relieved by a snuggling Cocker Spaniel. We're also free to be joyful if while we are in the struggle we get miserable of following His will (please tell me that makes sense to someone besides me). There can be deep satisfaction and completeness in just knowing that Abba Father is pleased.
When Peter was freed from his cell is Acts 12, he's the one who had to get up and walk out. Others thought he was a ghost or completely nuts. But he was obedient. Had he stayed with his chains what would have happened?
Sorry, Randy. I didn't mean to go THIS long!
Of Godly Desire, Lust and The Goal of Freedom – Ask It Basket … http://bit.ly/j6rdH
This comment was originally posted on Twitter
While I am always glad to continue to be prepared for what's next ... I would say that I am walking in my "royal identity" and growing in the understanding of what it means to be a son of God in Christ, a man among men and a brother among my sisters.
Also, I respect your right to self-determination. I am fully aware of and respect that I am not the judge over your eternal soul. I can even respect any potential claims that your decision to follow Christ may have brought about positive and healthy changes (overall).
But I can't respect the way you define freedom (in the context of homosexuality) if it is the anti-thesis of what I think God asks us to do with same sex attractions. I can respect your right to say and believe whatever you want but I don't agree with the end result. So, I respectfully disagree with your conclusions of how to steward same sex attractions.