Homosexuality and your church

What do the gay people in your church look like? Do you spot them by their flamboyant clothing, their mannerisms, their declarations?

When a brother or sister in your church came to you to ask you for your help and support in their personal struggle against homosexuality, what did you do to walk with them? How did you respond the last time this happened to you?

“Oh, we don’t have that problem in our church,” you say?

If yours is a typical Southern Baptist church in Oklahoma, you do. If it is not a problem for Southern Baptists, why did Jimmy Draper lead in the creation of “The Way Out,” SBC’s Task Force on Ministry to Homosexuals, now led by former Texas SBC minister, Bob Stith?

Statistics show that one out of every five church members has a family member or close friend who struggles with homosexuality.

So, again, what do the same-sex attracted people in your church look like? Could they sit there looking like you, dressed like you, acting like you, worshipping in the pew with their spouses and children, or moms and dads, Bibles open, faces forward, smiles on, handshakes offered, singing alongside you in quiet despair? Are they hiding their pain and confusion behind their Sunday smiles?

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Thom Hunter, former chief of staff for AT&T in Oklahoma, is now a full-time writer. His blog, Signs of a Struggle, offers hope and help to those who struggle with all forms of sexual brokenness. It can be found at http://thom-signsofastruggle.blogspot.com/