Daniel Johnson
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@timqz1 @Rob W You know what, you are right about that part of it being a heated issue and frankly my attitude to those who are not getting what I am saying is "screw you and your bigotry that you claim is for the other side." How is that for a christian response to their post? Not very Christian is it? Well, those who are sitting there thinking that I am trying to change "all the homos" sound just like that when they talk. They toss the word love around like it was a piece of paper and don't know what the hell it means. Let me tell you something about love. Love is when you stand in a crowd of people who you know hates you for who and what you are and you still look them in the eye and smile, feeling the hurt they have been through because you have been there too. Love is when you look at the person who beat you as a child and know that no matter what they did they are a person, God created and they need to know you love then regardless because some where they did not get that love in their lives. So, before anyone tosses that word around again lets be clear on who loves and what it is. Can any of them say they can do any of those things? if so then welcome.If not then shut up and learn to grow a pair and love the unlovable first.
As for me wanting to change people. I know I can not change anyone. I would not want to change anyone. Its not my job. As for that matter I do not care is one person changes anything. My job is to speak to and speak up for people who can not or will not speak up for themselves.including myself at times. I don't care how gay they are or how homeless, or fat or ugly or pretty they are. Its about justice! If one of these kids on here is hurting then I am hurting too. If someone tried to hurt them in any way, and that includes trying to "make them straight" then they are hurting me too. DO YOU PEOPLE GET THAT?Have I made that part clear enough for your little minds yet. Christians? None Christians? co called who every you are? It is not about what I think, or feel or want to believe or not. Its about them and no amount of abuse is going to do one thing for them. I know that better than any of you. How many of you have had people drag you into a freakin exorcism and try to "heal" you? How many of you have spent every moment of the day worried about when not if you were going to be beaten because you were not the person others thought you should be, in your own home? So, if you are stupid enough to think I would put on child through anything like that or even the program I went though, you are oh so wrong my friends. Watch who you judge and how you judge them. You might be biting the hand of the only real friend you could ever have and the only one that might understand someone else enough to save their life rather than toss them into some program or some group of people they are not ready for or may never be ready for. HAVE I FINALLY MADE MYSELF CLEAR ON THIS SUBJECT?
@timqz1 @Rob W This is going to be my last reply on this blog as I am really just not feeling the love here at all but I wanted to say this. I lost at least 20 friends to AIDS in that time. I had not been out long myself and so these were people who I had grown to love as my only family at the time. My adopted family had kicked me out so I moved to Atlanta and that is where I met these guys. One after another I watched them get sick and die while the church shouted about how we all should die. I was so caught up in the fight against the church and in helping my sick friends I did not even have time to think about me or life any longer. I would not change that for the world even now.
There are people out there that would make me out to me a monster and even to try to push my beliefs on people who I know for a fact are not ready for that sort of thing and might never be ready for it. They, in fact are doing what they say we do, jumping the gun and pointing fingers. It is very clear to me that I do not have a place in a world like this any longer. I do not identify with homosexuals any longer so I am a brainwashing freak who has no heart and wants to help youth kill themselves. To the church, I am either one of those poor souls struggling with a horrible sin or I am forced to keep silent out of worry that I will be an out cast by the zombies that claim to follow Jesus and clearly do not.
I came on here hoping to be a voice for the other side, in between the two lines but what I find is that neither side wants those of us that have been called out and that neither side can be trusted with our hearts because few if any really understand or get who we are or our part in life. This is just a huge, ugly reminder to me that a very small few people will most likely make it to heaven and those that do will not only find true love in their hears but they will also know what God's word is and what it says. I hope to be one of them because the hell many of you put us through every day is enough for me.
@JimZiegler WOW, well not to bust your bubble but I have found for me it seems to be working rather well. Again though, this is my path and choice and not one I would suggest to just anybody. BTW, I did not "Pray the gay away" any more than I prayed the gay into my life before. What I discovered for me was the personal root cause and how that effected my life and choices made.
ugh! You know I am really REALLY tired of repeating myself over and over every time one of you post. If you are really interested in my story or just want to talk I have left two e-mails on this site. You wanna talk to me bad enough you can find them easily enough. More than willing to chat with you but, frankly this place is not really getting me anywhere but down.
@CurtisBeauJackson So basically if it breaths and is human they could be into it? Ok, that works. I had visions of someone who only liked half human half goat like beasties....i.e Pan sexual....lol.
@GBEECK @ThomasRoss Understandable. Not the best option for you. Still willing to be friends with you and leave out the other stuff. Pretty much just willing to be there as a sounding board. I know that too can be something lacking at times in a small town in Illinois or anywhere else. Its your call and your choice as to if you except the offer.
@Ono @DavidStevens @Servent I did, with a question that no doubt you can not answer yourself. Love you my friend but I am convicted that the Bible is true and correct not by the mind but by the heart and the spirit. Anything short of God's revelation of the truth of the Word is worldly wisdom. If the Bible is just a bunch of half truths than why do we need it, God or even the cross? It would all be for nothing. Don't buy that for a moment, sorry.
@ThomasRoss @GBEECK Finally I found this...
Thomas, Thomas, again you just do not get it yet because YOU do not know me. First off, I do not go trying to drag every homosexual into the journey I chose because it was my choice, on my own to take and it is every one else also. What I offer is a hand of friendship without deceit one way or the other. The fact that I am an "ex gay" which is in itself even flawed in its labeling has nothing to do with the fact that I know how messed up others lives are when they feel like no body gives a damn. Frankly I could care less if they want to join a program or not unless that is what they chose to do.
Do I share my testimony? in time I will but not with some sort of "you ought to do this too" tone but, as a part of my story. I would be no better than the so called Christians that made me a mess is I had some plan like that and frankly I reject that notion you are trying to speak into me as false and yet another lie someone wants me to believe about me.
Now if you would like to get to know me and what I am really about then lets do it. Other wise stop projecting who or what you think I am into every last statement you make.
@Danieliam @GBEECK Daniel, I know you are reaching out to young people you see in pain. You might want to give them a little more background on The Edge publicly and that it has a focus as a "reparative" therapy ministry. I am not trying to discourage the conversation, but from some of their posts having that brought up unexpectedly might feel somewhat violating.
This blanking site is hard to get around today so I am posting the replay to this here Rob, in view of time needed for something else that has come up today.
The reparative therapy ministry that I belong to is not part of The Edge, though I would more than willingly share their information with anyone who wants it. The Edge is more about social justice from a Christian prospective if there is a way to define the ministry over all. I deal with youth for the most part but we are seeking to include adults also. The goal of The Edge is more restoration than anything else. With that what I normally would do is simply be a friend to others and to speak out for those who can not or will not speak out for themselves. One option is to direct those interested to MVF or PF which does the other. I do not personally encourage either way unless there is an interest. Beating people over the head with "thou shelts" is counter productive and would only put The Edge in danger of loosing its prime goal. Sorry if I confused you all on the nature and differences of the two ministries.
@Rob W Yeah, believe me, I remember that time all too well and the lost of friends I lost to AIDS in that time frame and the angry I had at God because "His people" were too busy pointing figures and says "got what you deserved!!" while a number of young men died rather than being cared for, they died feeling no one really ever loved them. Oh, I remember that time all too well and how it pushed me farther away from God than ever because of the false testimony of the "church" at the time. One of the very reasons I am at the point I am today of wanting to minister to people who need to know God's real love and not be fooled into what I was fooled into for years.
I a @Rob W Agreed and I need to watch it again soon. Still can not get the image of some of those people out of my head that he talked to in the confessional.
@kathleen z @Rob W You just made my day! Resting faith is a good thing and a huge part of ministry. Just know that even if we do not all agree completely on any one piece, we are all fighting the same fights in life and built for community. Rom chapter 12, Paul writes "Just as we have one body with many members and these members do not all have the same function, So we who are in Christ, who are many form one body and each member belongs to all the others."
@Rob W I have to get past that word "lifestyle" but it is one that is used in the program. Still trying to grasp the full meaning of the word.
@kathleen z @Rob W lol...yes I did. I would love to talk with you about the walk and way of those of us I am talking about. Its the battle ground between to the two lines here in a way.
@kathleen z @Rob W Sister...sorry, I miss the boat sometimes and forget there are some sisters who get ordained.
@kathleen z @Rob W Thank you for chiming in brother. "Bad Christian" is not a term I understand or accept right now. Grace is the gift we have by the way of the cross, do not forget that.
I would suggest that you get to know more about the side I seem to be a rep for on here. There is a whole world not spoken for on here until I came along that is just as important to the issue. You are most welcome to e-mail me to go deeper into this at discovertheedge@gmail.com and I will fill you in on this part of the discussion in detail and answer any questions you have. Its worth the effort to get to know about those of us who feel they have been called out for this reason.
@Rob W @Kievjoy @kathleen z @Servent What you are referring to is Jesus quoting of the Shema and then amending it with loving others... I point to a book called "The Jesus Creed" by Scott McKnight. It is part of my library and a big turning point in my understanding of who we are to love and how.
@Rob W Hey now! You are bring out the big guns with Doris Day...lol..love the old school stuff sometimes. I do get it though. Jesus said we are to love others as we love ourselves, Knowing this is helpful in healing. I might not like parts of the old man but, embracing who we are is taking up our cross also.
@Rob W Want you to check this out too. I think you will be overwhelmed by the end with the message it brings out about the church today.
http://www.imdb.com/video/hulu/vi2089486617/
@Servent wanna suggest a Christian film for you. Its called "Lord, save us from your Followers." It is not one of those films from the other side, it is actually about us from one of our own. It really opened my eyes up to why people do not like us and what we have done as Christians to get there. More so, what we can do as Christians to take back ground for the Kingdom and still be Jesus Followers according to the creed He put forth.
Hulu offers this as a free video. Check it out brother and just think about the amazing story of God's work if we lived His story the way He wants us too.
http://www.imdb.com/video/hulu/vi2089486617/