“Insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results.” – Albert Einstein
This post is inspired by a beautiful young man, whose family is constantly haranguing him and banning him from family gatherings because he is gay. As I listened to Jeff I thought, once again, This stuff just got real.
Jeff, this is for you.
Rats are smart. They can learn which tunnel in a maze will reward them with cheese. If you move the cheese, the rat will soon learn where the cheese has been moved and go there; it will stop going down the tunnel with no cheese.
Humans aren’t always as smart.
Unlike rats, humans will continue to go down the tunnel with no cheese.
They will continue to hope this time there will be a reward down that same empty tunnel.
If your family is shunning you, shaming you, kicking you out, they are continuing down a tunnel with no cheese. They are continuing to try what has failed to work for countless others.
Those actions are not love. They are not the embrace Christ offers, always. Their tunnel has no cheese “because human anger does not produce the righteousness that God desires.” (James 1:20)
Yet these people will stand there and tell you there is no chance they could be wrong on their interpretation of God’s opinion of homosexuality.
Seriously.
We are talking about God’s thoughts on LGBTQ people, and there is no chance this human person could be wrong?
Read Michael Kimpan’s eye-opening post on how the church has used scripture to hurt people, and been wrong time and again.
You’d think people would learn. You’d think there would be no room at all for such hubris.
If you have been hurt by yet another person believing there is just no way they could be wrong on this, try to have pity. Apparently they can’t learn the difference between a tunnel with cheese — where life and love blossom, which fulfills the biblical law — and a tunnel with no cheese — which leads to death, and obliterates the biblical law.
And better not send them to the store for the wine and cheese. 🙂
[To read more from Susan Cottrell, visit www.FreedHearts.org]
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SUSAN COTTRELL is a national speaker, teacher, and counselor with years of Biblical study and discipleship experience. Her books include: Mom, I’m Gay – Loving Your LGBTQ Child Without Sacrificing Your Faith
She is the Vice-President of PFLAG Austin, and her “Mom, I’m Gay” book has been endorsed by The Human Rights Campaign and others. Sharon Groves, PhD, HRC’s Religion & Faith Program Director says, “I often get asked by parents for resources that can address the struggles of raising LGBT sons and daughters without having to leave faith behind. Susan Cottrell’s book, Mom, I’m Gay, does just that. This is the kind of book that parents will love.”
She and her husband have been married more than 25 years and have five children – one of whom is in the LGBTQ community. She lives in Austin, Texas, and blogs at FreedHearts.org and here in IMPACT Magazine’s FreedHearts and Jesus Blog columns.
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