connecting...the dots

There is often an attempt by my conservative friends to relate with me and my journey.  It often goes like this:  "Its okay John, homosexuality isn't any worse then any other sin in the eyes of God.  There's no difference between you and an alcoholic or a drug addict."  Yay.  I understand the intention.  I really do.  But the attempt at connecting with me this way is faulty.  Let me explain why.

I constantly find myself abstaining from things that are common in the gay lifestyle.  I choose not to be promiscuous.  I choose not to go out and get laid whenever I feel like it.  It can be frustrating actually, seeing others getting all the “candy” they want, while I try to have a moral basis for living.   Temptation is everywhere, just as it is for everyone else.

I completely understand associating promiscuity or pornography with the sin of drug addiction or alcoholism. (Sin, by the way, is a church word that simply means anything that causes separation from God.)  But homosexuality by itself is not the same thing at all.  It’s a desire to love someone and be loved by someone the same way that a heterosexual person does.  Period.  Let me talk with you about my occasional stumble with porn.  And by all means, tell me its no different then alcoholism.  But don't put it on the same level as wanting to wake up next to the same person for the rest of my life.

In no way am I implying that I am any better then a drug addict; to assume this would miss the point of this blog.  In fact, I feel I’m very much the same.  How?  I screw up:  Having a crappy attitude or cussing out the traffic in front of me because I chose to leave my house late.  We all fall short, as clearly stated in the book of Romans.  But the next time you look at your wife or husband, imagine being told that God views your relationship like a drug addiction.

Thanks for reading…

John