CALMING EXERCISE TO FOLLOW. 

First thing:  Slow down. 

Stop what you are doing. Find a comfortable chair near a window with a beautiful view. Sit down. 

Take a deep breath. Let it out. REEEEEE-LAX. 

Calm yourself down. 

So now, invite God into your space by the window and the crowded space of your mind. Don’t worry, He will fit. 

Meditate on your favorite scripture for a moment. If you don’t have one, use this time to find one. Then meditate on it. 

This is not just for moms, Dad. Even the straightest, most masculine dad needs to respond to God in a receptive way, the way a wife responds receptively to the husband. 

Dads, they don’t call us the bride of Christ for nothing. 

You could use some time by the window as well or perhaps outside near a lake or in a deer stand while you aren’t hunting. The idea is that you take time out of your busy, yet spiritually unproductive life, and restore some spiritual productivity.

One thing I’ve learned this year more than any other is I am always in a rush. 

As a country we call moments of peace, like the one above, stolen moments. 

Why do we call them stolen? Because we give away so much of our time to people and things that we are forced to steal it to get it back. 

Does that seem right or logical to you? Why are stolen moments so precious? And if they are precious then why don’t we make moments like that a priority, working them into our everyday lives? 

Perhaps we should plan some time for these moments and change their name to Mental Health Moments, because we need the rest and perspective they give us after enduring the mob.

I am meeting with parents this week, being obedient to hear and speak God’s heart. 

My greatest desire is to bring hope and peace back to families of all sorts. 

Many of the parents I meet with have older children who have left the house and are living some form of an LGBT life. College and career aged kids who have disconnected to a certain degree from mom and dad and are trying to find their way in the world. 

Chances are, if these kids grew up in a Christian home and attended a bible teaching church, they know what the Bible says and what mom and dad believe about homosexuality. 

While it may be cut and dry for you, Mom and Dad, you may be living “near” your child, but you aren’t living in their mind. 

You may observe their everyday life, but are clueless to their everyday thought life. 

From generation to generation, the pattern and process of thought change. Sometimes just enough so one generation views the other with misunderstanding, frustration and confusion and we start sentences with “well, back in my day”. 

As parents it is often hard to navigate communication with kids who are not following the instructions we laid out clearly. Confusion comes into play, when you use the way you think to analyze the way they think.

That being said, each parent needs a little time at the window so you can hear God saying, “I am not finished yet. So please stop trying to force ME, an all-knowing God, to do what you think is best. And by the way, let’s talk about some of the discrepancies in your life while you are here.” 

I would ask you: Are you one of those parents who weaponizes the Bible to get your kids to do the right thing? Or are you a parent who prioritizes a relationship with Jesus over fixing their broken sexuality? 

You may think you are just aiming the truth at their sin, but they could feel it is an attack on who they are. 

We can’t expect people who aren’t following Christ to get Jesus the way we do. 

And if you are weaponizing the gospel, I would hazard a guess to say there are certain parts of Jesus you don’t fully understand either. 

Sorry if I am stepping on toes. Put on your steel toed boots and buckle up.

Here we find Jesus stooping down to write in the dirt. 

Nearby, a woman is slumped on the ground. She’s been caught sleeping around. 

There is a crowd gathered here as well. Each person, young and old, is armed with a heavy stone. 

Jesus eventually addresses the crowd, “those of you without sin, throw the first rock.” 

Slowly, the crowd dissipates. Jesus asks the woman, “where are those that condemned you?” Finding no one, Jesus says, “I don’t condemn you either. Go and sin no more.”

Mom and Dad – Who do you identify with most in this story? 

Are you a member of the crowd, heaping condemnation on the sinner? 

Are you Jesus protecting, loving and instructing the broken? 

Perhaps, you identify with the accused woman, because when your child came out it isolated you from the religious people in your life? 

No matter where you find yourself, Jesus has a message for you. 

To the crowd He reminds them they are no different than the accused. 

To the woman, He weaves a story of truth and grace. She knows her sin and the consequence. Yet Jesus carried words of life not death.  Jesus stepped in as her advocate.

Are you like Jesus? 

Do you serve as advocate for your child in their brokenness? Or are you holding onto a spiritual stone, ready and waiting to make them behave? 

Do you carry your child daily before the Father? 

Are you waiting by the road to condemn them or kill the fattened calf? 

Many times in the word, those who were incapacitated were brought before Jesus, not for judgment but for healing. 

Do you see your child as condemned and disobedient or broken and needing Jesus? 

There was a paralytic man whose friends tore open a roof in order to lower their friend into the presence of Jesus. Mary and Martha sent for Jesus when their brother Lazarus grew ill. The deaf, blind and demon possessed were all brought before Jesus, because people believed Jesus could heal.

I fall into this last category. 

A paraphrase of Mark 9:17-24. 

A man brought his son to Jesus. The boy had a mute spirit. When it seizes him, it throws him down; he foams at the mouth, gnashes his teeth, etc.. 

Jesus asks the boy’s father, “How long has this been happening?” 

The man says, “From childhood, but if you can do anything, have compassion on us and help us. 

Jesus says, “If you can believe, all things are possible to him who believes.

Immediately the father cried out and said with tears, “Lord, I believe; help my unbelief!”

Our LGBT kids struggle with the sin the church fears, maligns and refuses to understand. 

We carry shame, hurt and disbelief. We see what the sin of homosexuality has done to our babies. 

The story is not over. Satan has not won.

Whether your child is 4 years old or 50 years old.  Carry them to Jesus. 

Regardless of what you see in their life or hear from their mouths, you have a responsibility to take them to Jesus. Tell Jesus what is going on in their lives. Ask Him for fresh eyes to see them.  Jesus is interested. He wants to hear the story. 

Don’t say to Jesus “If you can do anything?”.  Confess your unbelief.  Let Jesus know exactly what you want. Jesus has compassion for you. 

Watch God do a miracle. His word says, “If you can believe, all things are possible to him who believes.”

Take your place by the window my friend. 

Bask in the presence of your Savior Jesus. 

Believe for a miracle today. Believe that your son or daughter is going to exit the LGBT world, claiming the name and power of Jesus over their lives. 

Until then, believe on the Son, petition the Father, and let the Holy Spirit do the work of conviction.  Then be free do the work of loving your child.