Wednesday, June 26, 2013

Just Wondering?

I've been thinking a lot today about gay marriage.  Well, not just today, but often given the recent push to legalize gay marriage in various states.  I am not one to dive into controversial topics, and I have debated whether or not to do so this time.  That being said, writing is most often how I process things that are floating around in my head and in my heart, so I have decided to put some thoughts out there.  Let me be clear before I begin.  I am not posting this blog in order to attack any person or lifestyle, and I would very much appreciate not being attacked by others for putting my thoughts out there.

I am a professed Christian.  I try to live my life not in order to please people but in order to demonstrate God's love.  I have been blessed in my life with many mentors who have and do set great examples for me to follow, but I am ultimately, as a Christian, always looking to how Jesus lived His life so that I might become more like Him.  Jesus didn't come to Earth to participate in politics.  His followers were at first disappointed when they learned that He wasn't going to deliver them by ousting the Roman government and placing himself on the throne.  He came to demonstrate His unfailing love for us.  He gave His life so that we may have eternal life.  I am so far from being an expert on the Bible that I hesitate to ever quote it.  I do, however, feel very confident in saying that the greatest commandment is to love; love God first and love each other as God has loved us.  In demonstrating this love for God and in an effort to live by the principles that we hold true in His word, we must be careful that we don't force our beliefs and that love on other people.  Jesus, after all, never forced His love on anyone. 

The United States of America was founded by men and women who came to this country seeking a fresh start and a place to worship free from government persecution.  Our Constitution was written so that the basic rights of freedom would forever be protected.  As citizens of these United States we are promised life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.  I have learned through the years that happiness is just an emotion that can't compare with the joy that comes from knowing Jesus as my Lord and savior, but I do still enjoy being happy.  Some of the things that bring me happiness are silly: a clean car, a clean house, an ice cream sundae, and finding a great deal on an item that I have had my eye on.  Some of them are more serious: spending time with my family, being able to go to church on Sunday and worship without the fear of persecution, seeing my children's face light up when they reach a goal or see an old friend or watching my niece prepare to marry the man she loves later this year.  All of these things I often take for granted despite my best efforts not to do so.  Today, as I thought about the decisions the Supreme Court handed down and the ones I'm sure it will face in the near future, I pondered something.  What if my niece were not marrying the man of her dreams?  What if she were gay and wanted to marry the woman of her dreams?  Would I love her any less?  Certainly not.  My love for her isn't based on her sexual preference.  What would I do?  What would I say when my friends and fellow church members looked at her with disgust and told her that she didn't have the right to the same pursuit of happiness that straight couples have because we believe that homosexuality is wrong? 

So, with all of this on my mind and in my heart, I've been asking myself what would Jesus do?  Is it right for us to impose our beliefs on consenting adults who are responsible, loving members of society?  Is it right for us to condemn and pass judgment when we know that our own lives are riddled with sin?  Does giving someone else the same basic right to marriage that we take for granted somehow diminish or dismiss our own faith?  If we insert our religious beliefs into our Constitution in such a way that we deny the very basic freedoms that we have fought so hard to protect, are we any better than the governments that we sought refuge from so long ago? 

Certainly something to think and pray about.



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