Hannah tells us how God has used her experience of same-sex attraction to bring her closer to Him and the body of believers

In this article, we hear from Tony and Eileen and the challenges in their marriage.

This article tells of Catherine and Richard's struggles in their marriage.

Liz tells her story of struggling to relate to other women, often finding that sexual attractions complicated them. God helped her to see herself as He saw her, and also healed the relationships that had been damaged.

John shares his story of the guilt he faced with his same-sex attractions. Through finding acceptance at TFT, he found much greater freedom as no-one was telling him that his sexuality needed to change any more. Whilst continuing to battle temptation, like any Christian, John found a much greater contentment.

“For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” (Romans 3:23). As a young child, I sang this well-known scripture verse along with a cassette tape of Bible songs. My mom interrupted me, saying, “You shouldn’t sing that! It’s too negative.” That moment encapsulates how my family, and even my church, felt about sin. It was something we didn’t talk about, or even think about, and certainly not something we ever did.

I was once part of a small group (around ten people at the time) from a large church (several hundred people) in Cambridge that held to the orthodox view on biblical sexuality. We formed this group of various people within the church who experienced same-sex temptations. The leader of the group was Brian, who did not personally struggle with same-sex feelings, but he had a gift for overseeing our gatherings.

To tell you my story, I should really go back to the 1970s. I grew up in rural East Anglia. My family were Quakers and so, from my birth, they took me along to the local Friends Meeting House. The one thing I most remember was being interminably bored!

The intention of this article is to help same-sex attracted Christians to get their particular challenge(s) in perspective, and to recognise that many other Christians also carry significant burdens resulting from their faith. Comparing the relative sizes of the crosses we bear with those of other Christians is an unhelpful exercise. If we judge that our particular burden is greater than that of others, it’s likely to fuel self-pity, resentment and pride.