Point of View

Melanie Spinks left lesbianism several years ago. She told me recently how glad she was to see Southern Baptists establishing a full-time office to help our churches deal with the issue of homosexuality. Her message to me was basically, “Encourage our churches to be the church.”

While still struggling with lesbianism, she had begun attending First Baptist Church of Atlanta. She heard biblical teaching and preaching, but just as important was what she found in her Sunday School class. The group of women knew nothing of her struggle but simply demonstrated the love of Jesus and welcomed her as a friend.

In this environment she began to blossom. Eventually, with much fear and trepidation, she shared her story. The enemy tried to convince her that once they knew, things would change. Things did change—the Body of Christ became even more visible and supportive.

Today Melanie is a truly delightful and Christ-like young woman. She is a wonderful asset to the church. She leads a ministry to others who desire to leave homosexuality, but much of the emphasis is on getting her group members involved in a local church.

Christians often tell me they don’t know how to relate to homosexuals, but over the years I’ve heard many strugglers tell their own variation of Melanie’s story.

One man said the church he began attending when he first came to Christ knew nothing about homosexuality. But the men were not afraid to hug him, to invite him to their activities and homes. The pastor took him to lunch and called just to see how he was doing.

We live in a culture with broken people all around us. They desperately need a touch from Jesus. Too often we are either repulsed by their sin or we look the other way. When I first became involved in this ministry, the director of a local group told me to just show up and love them.

Frankly, I wanted a more detailed job description. But I didn’t know anything about this issue, and it would take me years to begin to understand. In the meantime, I just showed up and loved people. I saw God take those loaves and fish and bring healing nourishment to His children. I was both amazed and humbled that it wasn’t my years of pastoral experience, my degrees, or my hours of study that made the most impact. It was simply coming alongside, listening, loving, and walking together toward Jesus.

Let’s commit ourselves to being the church, to being the light that pierces the darkness. We have the tools and the power to change this world. In Melanie’s words, “Southern Baptist churches already have an outstanding discipleship format for those struggling to overcome homosexuality. It’s called Sunday School. The group dynamic of both male and female forms a natural context for growth into relational wholeness as participants walk shoulder to shoulder toward Jesus Christ.”

I couldn’t have said it better. We have a lot to learn and a long way to go, but we already have the foundation in place. Let’s work together to make our Southern Baptist churches and entities places of refuge and healing for God’s hurting children.

Bob Stith is a former pastor and currently serves as the national strategist for gender issues for the Southern Baptist Convention.