Be the Voice

You might have noticed in my blogger profile that I refer to myself as "One voice crying in the wilderness."

This is based on two things:

1. My name- My first name is John.  My mom named me after John the Baptist.  By all accounts John the Baptist was considered a radical in his day especially by the religious folks.  Prophets foretold that there would be one man crying in the wilderness "preparing the way of the Lord."  You can read about this in all four gospels, Matthew 3, Mark 1, Luke 3, and John 1.

2. My calling- God's calling on my life has become very clear to me over the past several years.  I am to be a voice crying in the wilderness of His Love, His Joy, His Salvation, His Healing, and of course, His Hope.

Uhmmm, okay John.  Why are you telling us this?

Because, the best way to combat the message of non hope that flows from too many churches today is to have more Voices in the Wilderness rise up and be heard! 

The second blog I ever posted on this site talks about the message of non-hope that has been taught feverishly in churches around the world for years.

To combat this message those of us who love God HAVE to show His love to others especially in the LGBTQ community.

This isn't just for my gay and lesbian readers.  We are blessed at this blog to have a lot of support from straight folks as well.  It takes all of us working together, sharing the unconditional love of God to undo the damage and hurt that exists in the LGBTQ Community as a whole.

I know that there are many others of you who want to stand up and shout that God Loves Us Too!

For every protester who carries a sign stating "God Hates Fags" I believe there are ten more Christians who want to say "No! God Loves Us All. We Are ALL Created In His Image."

If this is you I am calling you out today to rise up.

Be the Voice Crying in the Wilderness!

I want to Be the Voice but how do I do that?  

There are some wonderful resources that I have links to on this site.  

These are all voices shouting through their actions about the Hope of Salvation through Christ and how this Hope is for ALL people!

Supporting these awesome organizations is a way to Be the Voice.

You don't have to give them money to support them.

You can spread the word about them to your friends and family.

Tweet about them.  

Suggest them on Facebook.

Another way to 'Be the Voice' is to live like Jesus.

This isn't some sinless or judgmental life I'm talking about. 

Jesus led a life that showed the Love of God.

He did not exclude anyone, but went out of His way to make the social outcasts feel accepted.

The gospel accounts of Christ' time here on earth show Him to be encouraging, patient, and someone who never gives up on people.

Most of all, to Be the Voice, be a person of Hope.

If your friends or family find themselves in a place that's tough or sad or desperate, offer to pray with them.

Really?  

Offer to pray with them?

Why would someone who is dealing with hurts by Christians want a Christian to pray with them?

A person who feels like God doesn't care about them at all will be the very person who is blown away when you ask if you can pray with them.  

At the root of their hurt and pain, underneath all of the crap they have heard, people want to believe that God really does love and care about them.  

And, He does.

Moreover, we need to be the ones to show them that He does.

There are a thousand voices flying around us each day.

Every voice carries a different message.

To the LGBTQ people who are hurting, you can bet that those messages of non-hope are front and center in their brain.

Give them a smile, lend them an ear, and offer to pray with them.

Share with them how amazing it is to know that our daddy God created them, loves them, accepts them, and sent His Son to die for them.

You never know how much your Voice could change their life.

This is the simplest and most outstanding way to Be the Voice.

Until Next Time,

God Loves and Accepts You,

SavedByGrace