“I Wonder if Churches do to People What Zoos do to Animals?”

Wow. Just wow. We just had a crazy storm blow through. There was rain and hail the size of baseballs! There was a tornado warning for thirty minutes and I was stuck in a tub as it rumbled and I heard the rain, hail, and wind outside. It was scary, but I prayed that God would put a hedge of protection over the city and then I saw this posted on Facebook. Wow.

And this alone shows that God is faithful and is there with us through the storms of life.

The past few days God has been removing people out of my life that really fed into my self-hatred and it just humbles me completely. God continues to amaze me day by day and I lift up these people that He removed from my life to Him and that God will forgive them for they don’t understand what they were doing. I didn’t understand what I was doing when I was so focused on what was right and what was wrong. I lost sight of the cross. I lost sight of God’s love. I lost sight of the gospel!! I had love spelled backwards…literally…and was blind to it.

I heard a few a weeks ago after I almost killed myself at church this quote: “I wonder if churches do to people what zoos do to animals?”
I still wonder about that quote, and I can definitely see what they were saying.

Jesus did not come to condemn us or tell us we are wrong. He came to love on us unconditionally. To eat with us. To clothe us. He even SERVED us. He did not have to do any of that. He is a king! He could have done anything-God was on His side after all- But He chose to love us.

So maybe you or someone you know believes that being LGBTQ is a sin/choice…well if you believe it, please be slow to speak and quick to listen when someone says they are gay. Pray for them, do not preach at them (they have heard it all before), and just simply love on them like Jesus would.

And if you know someone that believes this…have mercy for them. I was once there myself–which is what almost led to my funeral…  Sometimes it looks like out right hate–but maybe they just so strongly believe that you won’t be with them in eternity if you don’t change and that’s what keeps them firm… Pray for them, avoid arguing, love them anyways, and seek Jesus because I promise you His love remains unconditional (from my own experience) and He will comfort you through the storm.

Jesus is teaching me to love…for real…for the first time ever.