Tidbits For Gays, Lesbians, Bisexuals and Transgender

1. Think about what you are thinking about.

2. Where the mind goes the (wo)man follows.

3. Being negative only makes a difficult journey more difficult.
        You may be given a cactus, but you don't have to sit on it.

4. Worry is a down payment on a problem you may never have.

5. I learned that what happened to me did not have to define who I was.
        My past could not control my future unless I allowed it to.

6. You can suffer the pain of change, or suffer remaining the way you are.

7. Character is doing what you don't want to do but know you should do.

8. Have God make a message out of your mess.

9. 80% of people's problems are about how they feel about themselves.

10. Complain and remain. Praise and be raised.

11. Just because you feel fear doesn't mean you can't do it. Do it afraid!

12. If you want to give the devil a nervous breakdown, just get up every day
        and see how much good you can do.

13. Better to have a big goal and reach half of it than to have no goal
        and reach all of it.

14. If you only do what is easy, you will always remain weak.

15. The mind is the leader or forerunner of all actions.

   ~ From Joyce Meyer's book Battlefield of the Mind. Thank you Joyce!

If you are always trying to be normal you will never know how amazing you can be!
   ~ Maya Angelou

Gay Pride was not born out of a need to celebrate being gay, but instead our right to exist without prosecution. So maybe instead of wondering why there isn't a Straight Pride month or movement, straight people should be thankful they don't need one.

Blessed are the people who can give without remembering and take without forgetting.

Whether you think you can or think you can't, you're probably right. ~ Henry Ford

It is often said that to have a fulfilling life, three essentials are required: a clear sense of personal identity, a deep sense of faith and meaning, and a strong sense of purpose and mission. ~ Os Guinness

Homosexuality is found in over 450 species. Homophobia is found in only one. Which one seems unnatural now?

All truth passes through three stages. First, it is ridiculed. Second, it is violently opposed. Third, it is accepted as being self-evident.
   ~ Arthur Schopenhauer, German philosopher (1788 - 1860)

When you are going through something hard and wonder where God is, remember the teacher is always quiet during a test.

Worry is the interest we pay on the debt before we even get the loan.

You can't change how people will treat you or what they will say about you. All you can do is change how you react to it.

There comes a time in your life, when you walk away from all the drama and people who create it. You surround yourself with people who make you laugh. Forget the bad, and focus on the good. Love the people who treat you right, pray for the ones who don't. Life is too short to be anything but happy. Falling down is a part of life, getting back up is living. ~ José N. Harris

Various Things The Bible Bans
- Shaving (Leviticus 19:27)
- Cursing (Ephesians 5:4)
- Gossip (Leviticus 19:16)
- Tatoos (Leviticus 19:28)
- Football on Saturdays (Exodus 20:8)
- Eating lobster (Leviticus 11:10)
- Eating pork (Leviticus 11:7)
- Cotton/Polyester blends (Leviticus 19:19)
- Association with women who are having their periods (Leviticus 15:19-20)

Too many answers lead to smug self-righteousness and - even worse - to human beings, rather than God, deciding who is and who is not loved by the Maker. Can't we trust God?. ~ Madeleine L'Engle

The word "homosexual" did not appear in the Bible until 1946.
(Revised Standard Version).

An old man said, "Erasers" are made for those who make MISTAKES.
A youth replied, "Erasers" are made for those who are willing to CORRECT their mistakes. ATTITUDE MATTERS!!!

In the U.S. Armed Forces more than 14,000 men and women have been fired over the last 17 years because of their sexual orientation.
   ~ Servicemembers Legal Defense Network, Dec 2010

Life is not the way it's supposed to be.
It's the way it is.
The way you cope with it is what makes the difference.

Forgive me my nonsense as I also forgive the nonsense of those who think they talk sense.    ~ Robert Frost

The wise man in the storm prays to God not for safety from danger, but for deliverance from fear.    ~ Ralph Waldo Emerson

Failure is only failure when you do not learn from the situation.   ~ Tange

It is strange that in our praying we seldom ask for a change in character, but always a change in circumstances.

A life spent making mistakes is not only more honorable, but more useful than a life spent doing nothing.   ~ George Bernard Shaw

The Bible contains six admonishments to homosexuals and 362 admonishments to heterosexuals. That doesn't mean that God doesn't love heterosexuals. It's just that they need more supervision.   ~ Lynn Lavner   

Do not ask the Lord to guide your footsteps if you are not willing to move your feet.

If you find a path with no obstacles, it probably doesn't lead anywhere!

Being gay is not a Western invention; it is a human reality.   ~ Secretary of State Hillary Clinton

The curious paradox is that when I accept myself just as I am, then I can change.
   ~ Carl Rogers

Whatever is worth doing is worth doing badly.   ~ G.K. Chesterton
(If you try to do it perfectly some of you will never start.)

Sometimes I'd like to ask God why He allows poverty, famine and injustice when He could do something about it.......but I'm afraid He might ask me the same question."   ~ L. Strobel

Nothing in the world is more dangerous than sincere ignorance and conscientious stupidity.   ~ Martin Luther King Jr.

Be Yourself. Everyone Else Is Taken!   ~ Charles Schulz

Pain makes you stronger, Fear makes you Braver, and Heartbreak makes you wiser.

The concept of homosexuality as an orientation was unknown until after 1869 when the first writing was published that put forth the idea that there really were people who were "homo" sexual.
Until that time everyone was understood to be a person who was sexually attracted to someone of the opposite sex.
The Bible writers talked about the only kind of people they knew - we would call them "heterosexual," and they said sex between two same-gender heterosexuals was evil. We would agree; it would undoubtedly be lust. The Bible has nothing to say about homosexuality or homosexual people. But there was much heterosexual same-gender sex for the Bible writers to condemn.
   ~ Rev Bruce Lowe

Be who you are and say what you feel, because those who mind don't matter and those who matter don't mind.   ~ Dr. Seuss

If you are depressed, you are living in the past. If you are anxious, you are living in the future. If you are at peace, you are living in the present. ~ Lao Tzu

Everything happens for a reason, and sometimes the reason is that you're not very wise and you make bad decisions.

Blessed are the cracked for they let in the light.

I will say, even if you do believe the Bible is anti-gay (which I do not), that is no reason to oppose gay marriage. In the USA, you don't have to be a Christian to get married. You don't have to go to a church to get married. You don't have to believe in God to get married. Therefore, in this country, marriage is an act of the state. It is a legal contract. In the United States, marriage is not a religious right. It is a social institution. Just from a legal perspective, there is no reason to deny gay couples that legal avenue. Plus, since the divorce rate among evangelicals is as high or higher than the rest of the country, any talk from them about the sanctity of marriage is empty rhetoric, and laughably hypocritical.
   ~ David Foreman

Lord, when we are wrong, make us willing to change. And when we are right, make us easy to live with.

Between World War II and 1993 about 100,000 troops were discharged for being gay, and lost their benefits as a result.   ~ Julie Watson, Associated Press

Faith is hoisting your sails, when there is no wind.

Things turn out best for those who make the best of the way things turn out.
   ~ John Wooden

To get something you never had, you have to do something you never did.

Sticks and stones may break my bones, but words will crush my heart.
   ~ Pastor Leon Fontaine

Sticks and stones may break my bones, but ridicule, slander, rejection, down-grading, prejudices, belittling, ignoring, poking fun, and excluding can break my will, self-image, spirit, desires, motivation, purpose, emotions, hope, strength, joy, goals, trust, and possibly even my faith.
   ~ Dennis O. Shepherd

Anger is like taking poison and waiting for the other person to die.
   ~ Malachy McCourt

When God takes something from your grasp, He's not punishing you, but merely opening your hands to receive something better.

The stigma comes from the condemnation of homosexuals by misinformed preachers, saying homosexuals are condemned by the Bible. There is nothing in the Bible about homosexuality. There are only references to same-gender sex. The writer was thinking of heterosexual practice, and there was lots of that in both OT and NT times, for that was all he knew.
Just as there cannot be anything in the Bible about electricity (though it existed in Bible times) because no one knew anything about it or could say anything about it until it was discovered many centuries later, so there can be nothing in the Bible about homosexuality, gay men or lesbian women or anything they do, because no one knew there was any such thing or person until the 19th century AD.
As theology professor Elizabeth Stuart writes, " ... it is misleading to give the impression that the biblical authors talked about homosexuality at all, since the concept and reality of homosexuality ... is barely a century old."
   ~ Rev Bruce Lowe (from a discussion on the List Serve)

Once social change begins, it cannot be reversed. You cannot uneducate the person who has learned to read. You cannot humiliate the person who feels pride. You cannot oppress the people who are not afraid anymore. We have seen the future, and the future is ours.   ~ Cesar Chavez

Our scientific power has outrun our spiritual power.
We have guided missiles and misguided men.
   ~ Martin Luther King, Jr. 1929-1968, Civil Rights Leader

All things in life are temporary. If things are going well, enjoy it, it will not last forever. If things are going wrong, don't worry, it can't last forever either.

Worrying does not take away tomorrow's troubles. It takes away today's peace.

I like your Christ, I do not like your Christians.
Your Christians are so unlike your Christ.   ~ Mahatma Gandhi

Did you know?
- Of 32,000 verses in the Bible, only six verses mention same sex acts.
- Leviticus, the book of the Bible which stipulates death for homosexuality,
       requires the same punishment for adultery, pre-marital sex,
       disobedient children and blasphemy.
- Jesus does not condemn homosexuality.
- The destruction of Sodom was due to their mistreatment of strangers.
- The Bible never condemns same-sex marriage.
- David and Jonathan had a formal same-sex union.
- "Traditional marriage" in the Bible includes bigamy, polygamy,
       concubinage, arranged and levirate marriage.
- No known sacred text forbids same-sex marriage.
- Hindu and other far eastern sacred texts do not condemn homosexuality.
- Homosexuality is not unnatural. It is practised by hundreds of
       species of animals.

Life isn't about waiting for the storm to pass.
It's about learning to dance in the rain.

The reward for conformity is that everyone likes you but yourself.
   ~ Rita Mae Brown

Man's mind, once stretched by a new idea, never regains its original dimensions.   ~ Oliver Wendell Holmes

An exhibit at The National History Museum in Oslo, Norway, entitled "Against Nature" features a sign saying, "We may have opinions on a lot of things, but one thing is clear - homosexuality is found throughout the animal kingdom; it is not against nature." Homosexuality has been observed in more than 1,500 animal species. Conservative Christians are accusing the museum of displaying pornography.

My sexual orientation is not a sickness to be healed or a sin to be forgiven.
My sexual orientation is a gift from my Creator to be accepted, celebrated, and lived with integrity.     ~ Soulforce

Prayer isn't finding answers....
Prayer is finding God....
And with God, the answers will come.
   ~ Oswald Chambers, author of "My Utmost for His Highest"

If the purpose of heterosexuality is the continuation of the gene pool, then the purpose of homosexuality is to make sure it is Olympic-sized with nice tile and plenty of lanes, and with nice terry cloth towels for everyone.
   ~ Bo Young, taken from Two Spirits Rising

If male homosexuals are called 'Gay',
then female homosexuals should be called 'Ecstatic'.   ~ Shelly Roberts

Hurting people hurt people.   ~ Joyce Meyer

The minute you accept the fact that you are different ... you become normal!

Since the definition of "sin" is "missing the mark", then missing out on who God created you to be is the greatest sin of all."   ~ Pastor Chuck Smith Jr.

Read these words from a young pastor in Zimbabwe, Africa, who was later martyred for his faith:
'The die has been cast. I have stepped over the line. The decision has been made - I'm a disciple of His. I won't look back, let up, slow down, back away, or be still. My past is redeemed, my present makes sense, and my future is secure. I'm finished with low living, sight walking, smooth knees, colourless dreams, tamed visions, worldly talking, cheap giving, and dwarfed goals. I no longer need pre-eminence, position, promotions, plaudits, or popularity. I don't have to be right, first, tops, recognised, praised, regarded, or rewarded. I now live by faith, depend on His presence, walk by patience, am uplifted by prayer, and labour with power.'
That's what it means to be a disciple of Jesus!

The best way to get even is to forget.

Homosexuality is illegal in 80 countries and punishable by death in 5.

We don't choose to be white or black, male or female, left-handed or right-handed, gay or straight. We awaken in each instance to the reality of what we are. Nothing external to our humanity activates our self-understanding. It simply is.
   ~ Bishop John Shelby Spong

Feed your faith and your doubts will starve to death.

Some folks wear their halos much too tight.

True happiness is not attained through self-gratification, but through fidelity to a worthy purpose.   ~ Helen Keller

God wisely designed the human body so that we can neither pat our own backs nor kick ourselves too easily.

The Four Agreements (Used with Permission)
Taken from The Toltec Teachings of Don Miguel Ruiz & Don Jose Ruiz
1. Be Impeccable With Your Word
Speak with integrity. Say only what you mean. Avoid using the word to speak against yourself or to gossip about others. Use the power of your word in the direction of truth and love.
2. Don't Take Anything Personally
Nothing others do is because of you. What others say and do is a projection of their own reality, their own dream. When you are immune to the opinions and actions of others, you won't be the victim of needless suffering.
3. Don't Make Assumptions
Find the courage to ask questions and to express what you really want. Communicate with others as clearly as you can to avoid misunderstandings, sadness and drama. With just this one agreement, you can completely transform your life.
4. Always Do Your Best
Your best is going to change from moment to moment; it will be different when you are healthy as opposed to sick. Under any circumstance, simply do your best, and you will avoid self-judgment, self-abuse and regret.

Sorrow looks back,
worry looks around,
and faith looks up.

The illiterate of the 21st Century will not be those who cannot read and write,
but those who cannot learn, unlearn, or relearn.
   ~ Alvin Toffler

Standing in the middle of the road is dangerous. You will get knocked down by the traffic from both ways.

A successful marriage isn't finding the right person - it's being the right person.

You'll notice that a turtle only makes progress when it sticks out its neck.

To forgive is to set the prisoner free, and then discover the prisoner was you.

Although the title page of The King James Bible boasted that it was "newly translated out of the original tongues," the work was actually a revision of The Bishop's Bible of 1568, which was a revision of The Great Bible of 1539, which was itself based on three previous English translations from the early 1500s. So, the men who produced the King James Bible not only inherited some of the errors made by previous English translators, but invented some of their own.
   ~ Skip Church

When GOD solves your problems, you have faith in HIS abilities; when GOD doesn't solve your problems HE has faith in your abilities.

I always know God won't give me more than I can handle.
There are times I just wish He didn't trust me quite so much.

Regret is guilt with a thirty-year mortgage. No matter how many emotional payments we make, we never reduce the principal. The stain of sin remains.
. . . .
Here's the breathtaking truth about God and sinners: He delights when we come to Him, confessing our transgressions. Not so He can gloat or make us grovel, but so He can lavish us with attention, heal our wounds, and remind us that our sins were atoned for at Calvary.
   ~ Liz Curtis Higgs (from Embrace Grace)

I've learned that we should be glad God doesn't give us everything we ask for.

(Mother) Saint Theresa's prayer:
May today there be peace within. May you trust God that you are exactly where you are meant to be. May you not forget the infinite possibilities that are born of faith. May you use those gifts that you have received, and pass on the love that has been given to you. May you be content knowing you are a child of God. Let this presence settle into your bones, and allow your soul the freedom to sing, dance, praise and love. It is there for each and every one of us.

Just remember, if the world didn't suck, we'd all fall off.

Snowflakes are frail, but if enough of them get together, they can stop traffic.
   ~ Vance Havner

Everyone needs to be loved . . . especially when they do not deserve it.

If anyone speaks badly of you, live so none will believe it.

Middle age is when broadness of the mind and narrowness of the waist change places.

God's dream is that you and I and all of us will realize that we are family, that we are made for togetherness, for goodness, and for compassion. In God's family, there are no outsiders, no enemies. Black and white, rich and poor, gay and straight, Jew and Arab, Muslim and Christian, Hindu and Buddhist, Hutu and Tutsi, Pakistani and Indian - all belong. When we start to live as brothers and sisters and to recognize our interdependence, we become fully human.
   ~ Bishop Desmond Tutu

Forgiveness is giving up your right to retaliate.

Experience is a wonderful thing. It enables you to recognize a mistake when you make it again.

When life seems to be crashing in, I hope you will remember three things:

   1. You are not alone.
   2. The problem will pass.
   3. God is faithful and loves you.

   ~ Rev. Dr. Rusty Baldridge

Choose your friends by their character and your socks by their color. Choosing your socks by their character makes no sense, and choosing your friends by their color is unthinkable.   ~ Anonymous

Drag is when a man wears everything a Lesbian won't.

I'd rather be Black than Gay because when you're Black you don't have to tell your mother.   ~ Charles Pierce

There once was a woman who woke up one morning, looked in the mirror, and noticed she had only three hairs on her head. "Well," she said, "I think I'll braid my hair today." So she did, and she had a wonderful day.
The next day she woke up, looked in the mirror and saw that she had only two hairs on her head. "Hmmm, " she said, "I think I'll part my hair down the middle today." So she did, and she had a grand day.
The next day she woke up, looked in the mirror and noticed that she had only one hair on her head. "Well," she said, "Today I'm going to wear my hair in a pony tail." So she did, and she had a fun, fun day.
The next day she woke up, looked in the mirror and noticed that there wasn't a single hair on her head. "YEAH!" she exclaimed, "I don't have to fix my hair today!"

Attitude is everything. As the saying goes: "The kind of life you will have is not determined by what happens to you, it is determined by your reaction to what happens to you."
Be kind today and every day, for everyone you meet is fighting some kind of battle.

If you can't be a good example, then you'll just have to be a horrible warning.
   ~ Catherine

When there is nothing left but God, that is when you find out that God is all you need.

Human beings never behave more badly toward one another than when they believe they are protecting God.    ~ Barbara Brown Taylor

Troubles Produce Patience, and Patience Produces Character.

When asked "Why are you a Christian today?" Barbara Brown Taylor answered: "Because the life, death and resurrection of Jesus offer me the best example of what it means to be fully human in my own time and place. Because for reasons beyond my understanding, the Holy Spirit seems willing to guide and refresh me in all that I do. Because of all the paths I could walk toward God, I want to walk the path of justice and compassion I see embodied in the life of Jesus."

Love is the only thing that can be divided without being diminished.

Storms come for a reason. They also come for a season. Discover the reason and grow wiser. Outlast the season and grow stronger, but never quit.

On reflecting about homosexuality, I've learned that:
My religious tradition taught me to believe that my son was a sinner;
My medical support system taught me to believe that my son was sick;
My educational system taught me that my son was abnormal;
My legal system views my son and his partner in an unsanctioned relationship
   without legal rights and protection that are afforded my married daughter;
My family, immediate and extended, provided no acknowledgment or support
   for having a gay relative in its midst;
My major communications sources treated homosexuality as deviant.
   ~ father of a gay son

Faith is the ability to not panic.

Protect marriage? Puhlease. With a 50 percent divorce rate, rampant domestic violence, Las Vegas drive-through chapels, and I wanna-marry-a-really-rich-guy reality TV shows, there's no way gays could trash marriage the way straight people have.    ~ Good Times, Santa Cruz County News   

I am careful not to confuse excellence with perfection. Excellence, I can reach for. Perfection is God's business.   ~ Michael J. Fox

It is better to be single than to wish you were.

The friends I'd trust with my secret would always say, "RJ you cant be gay. You play football. You do everything a real guy does and you don't wear girl's clothes. You're just confused."
A few of my friends stuck by my side, said it was OK as long as I never talked about anything gay and never acted gay around them. (Kind of like saying, 'We totally accept you, as long as you're not yourself'). LOL
   ~ RJ aka River (one of our CG.com family)

Life is a journey, NOT a guided tour.

When temptation comes to mind, remember,
You can't stop a bird flying over your head, but you CAN stop it making a nest in your hair.

Don't cry because it's over. Smile because it happened.    ~ Dr. Seuss

When you are content to be simply yourself and don't compare or compete, everybody will respect you.   ~ Lao-Tzu

We can easily forgive a child who is afraid of the dark; the real tragedy of life is when men are afraid of the light.    ~ Plato

If there be righteousness in the heart, there will be beauty in the character.
If there is beauty in the character, there will be harmony in the home.
If there is harmony in the home, there will be order in the nation.
When there is order in each nation, there will be peace in the world.
   ~ Old Chinese Proverb

You yourself, as much as anybody in the entire universe, deserve your love and affection.   ~ Buddha

The weak can never forgive. Forgiveness is the attribute of the strong.
   ~ Gandhi

Kind words can be short and easy to speak, but their echoes are truly endless.
   ~ Mother Teresa

There is one sure way of testing the Spirit: do our beliefs lead to an increase in injustice, bigotry and suffering? If they do, they simply cannot be reconciled with the workings of the creative, compassionate Spirit promised to us.
   ~ Rev Professor Andrew Linzey

Never place a period where God has placed a comma.
   ~ Gracie Allen

The only difference between the word bitter and better is the "I" in bitter.

How far that little candle throws his beams! So shines a good deed in a weary world.   ~ Shakespeare

Dance like no one is watching,
Love like you'll never be hurt,
Sing like no one is listening,
Live like it's heaven on earth.
   ~ William Purkey

An eye for an eye only makes the whole world blind.   ~ Gandhi

The tests of life are not to break you, but to make you.

Blessed are the flexible for they shall not be bent out of shape.

Choose your relationships wisely. Being alone will never cause as much loneliness as the wrong relationships.

Man's greatest need is acceptance and greatest fear is rejection. ~ Dr. Phil

Belief in something doesn't make it true; only truth makes a belief true. But without truth, a belief may be only speculation plus sincerity. ~ Os Guinness

When I am hungry, give me someone that I can feed. And when I am thirsty, give me someone who needs a drink. When I'm cold, give me someone to keep warm. And when I grieve, give me someone to console.
   ~ Mother Teresa

When you get tangled up in your problems, be still. God wants us to be still so He can untangle the knot.

A woman was asked by a co-worker, "What is it like to be a Christian?"

The co-worker replied, "It is like being a pumpkin."

God picks you from the patch, brings you in, and washes all the dirt off of you.

Then He cuts off the top and scoops out all the yucky stuff.

He removes the seeds of doubt, hate, and greed.

Then He carves you a new smiling face and puts His light inside of you to shine for all the world to see."    ~ Liz Curtis Higgs

I am not what I ought to be. I am not what I want to be. I am not what I hope to be. But still, I am not what I used to be. And by the grace of God, I am what I am.    ~ John Newton (1725-1807)

Laugh every day, it's like inner jogging.

If only Closed Minds came with Closed Mouths!!

"Love is a temporary madness; it erupts like volcanoes and then subsides. And when it subsides you have to make a decision. You have to work out whether your roots have so entwined together that it is inconceivable that you should ever part. Because this is what love is. Love is not breathlessness, it is not excitement, it is not the promise of eternal passion, it is not the desire to mate every minute of the day, and it is not lying awake at night imagining that he is kissing every part of your body. No don't blush, I am telling you some truths. That is just being "in love", which any fool can do. Love itself is what is left over when being in love has burned away."    ~ from Captain Corelli's Mandolin

It is never legitimate to use the words of scripture to promote a loveless agenda.
   ~ Right Rev. Dr. Peter Short, Moderator of the United Church of Canada

What happens IN us is more important than what happens TO us.
   ~ Robert Schuller Jr.

Dear God, I have a problem, it's me.

From Dear Abby:
DEAR ABBY: In a recent column you advised the mother of a girl who had confided that she is gay and wants to come out, that homosexuality has "nothing to do with parenting and everything to do with genetics." You need to retract that statement. If you do not publicly admit your error, I will know you are a mouthpiece for the gay and lesbian crowd. -- LEONARD IN LYNCHBURG
DEAR LEONARD: If I did not believe with all my heart that what I wrote is true, I wouldn't have put my thoughts on paper. Homosexuality is simply a variant of sexual orientation. Those who claim it is "unnatural" should direct their attention to Dr. Joan Roughgarden, a biologist at Stanford University with a Ph.D. from Harvard, who states that more than 300 vertebrate species have been found to practice homosexuality. (A visit to any zoo might confirm it.) And while one gene may not be responsible for this variant, Italian researcher Andrea Camperio-Ciani of the University of Padua notes that research findings point to there being more than one "gay gene," and that the genetic factors linked to homosexuality in men are also linked to increased fertility in women.
I stand by my reply.

No God - No Peace?    Know God - Know Peace.

Blowing another person's light out won't make yours shine brighter.
   ~ Bob Gass of The Vine

There is no key to happiness. The door is always open.

We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence then, is not an act but a habit.
   ~ Aristotle

A grudge is a heavy thing to carry.

I AM Too blessed to be stressed!

We were called to be witnesses, not lawyers or judges.

The shortest distance between a problem and a solution is the distance between your knees and the floor.

Whenever the church lags behind society in terms of justice and human suffering, it is not doing its job.

An average person's anxiety is focused on:

40% - things that will never happen
30% - things about the past that can't be changed
12% - things about criticism by others, mostly untrue
10% - about health, which gets worse with stress
 8% - about real problems that will be faced

The block of granite which was an obstacle in the pathway of the weak becomes a stepping-stone in the pathway of the strong. That block of granite is often nothing more than a decision.    ~ Thomas Carlyle

Good manners are made up of small sacrifices.

Live Simply.
Love Generously.
Care Deeply.
Speak Kindly.
Leave the Rest to God.
Happiness keeps You Sweet,
Trials keep You Strong,
Sorrows keep You Human,
Failures keep You Humble,
Success keeps You Glowing,
But God keeps You Going!

Young gays are two to three times more likely than their straight peers to attempt suicide, according to the Journal of the American Medical Association. The American Counseling Association reports that nearly a third drop out of school, largely because of harassment related to their sexual orientation.

Our days are happier when we give people a bit of our heart rather than a piece of our mind.

Fight truth decay - study the Bible daily.

It took the Catholic Church 359 years to admit that they were wrong when they accused Galileo of heresy and condemned him to death, unless he recanted that the earth rotates around the sun. Since he wanted to live, he was forced to deny the truth and agree with the Church that the sun rotates around the earth, but he was still placed under house arrest until his death.
The Church is powerful and has a history of pressuring society and individuals to say and believe what "the Church" thinks is right. THEY WERE WRONG THEN AND THEY ARE WRONG NOW re homosexuality. Let's hope it doesn't take them that long this time to discover and admit their error.
Read Galileo's story.

If God is your Copilot - swap seats!

The one who kneels to the Lord can stand up to anything.

Nowhere in the Bible does it say that "marriage is the God-ordained covenantal union of one man and one woman;" in fact, it says explicitly to the contrary! The Biblical view of marriage is not monogamous: it is not necessarily based on love, nor on any amount of mutuality.
See Biblical Marriage: A Bad Source For Debate ~ by Vaughn Roste

God loves everyone, but probably prefers "fruits of the spirit"
over "religious nuts!"

"The Scriptures have been misused to defend bloody crusades and inquisitions; to support slavery, apartheid, and segregation; to sanction the physical and emotional abuse of women and children; to persecute Jews and other non-Christian people of faith; to support the holocaust of Hitler's Third Reich; to oppose medical science; to condemn inter-racial marriage; to execute women as witches; to excuse the violent racism of the Ku Klux Klan; to mobilize militias, white supremacy and neo-nazi movements; and to condone intolerance and discrimination against sexual minorities. "
   ~ excerpt from Mel White's letter to Jerry Falwell

Nobody can make you feel inferior without your permission.
   ~ Eleanor Roosevelt

God promises a safe landing, not a calm passage.

Members, this bill is about hate and fear and discrimination. I know something about hate and fear and discrimination. When I was a small girl, white folks used to talk about "protecting the institution of marriage" as well. What they meant was if people of my color tried to marry people of Mr.[Wayne] Chisum's [R-Pampa] color, you'd often find the people of my color hanging from a tree. That's what the white folks did back then to "protect marriage."
Fifty years ago, white folks thought inter-racial marriages were a "threat to the institution of marriage." Members, I'm a Christian and a proud Christian. I read the good book, and do my best to live by it. I have never read the verse where it says, "gay people can't marry." I have never read the verse where it says, "though shalt discriminate against those not like me." I have never read the verse where it says, "let's base our public policy on hate and fear and discrimination." Christianity to me is love and hope and faith and forgiveness - not hate and discrimination.
From Address to the Texas House of Representatives, by Senfronia Thompson. Read the whole article.

How will you spend eternity - Smoking or Non-smoking?

If you ever felt alone as a gay person, glance at the
Unofficial List of Famous/Distinguished Gays In His/Herstory.
I guarantee you will never feel alone again!

He who dies with the most toys is still dead.

Happy moments, praise God.
Difficult moments, seek God.
Quiet moments, worship God.
Painful moments, trust God.
Every moment, thank God.

Silence is often misinterpreted but never misquoted.

Sexual orientation is not mentioned in the Bible.
Bible languages of Hebrew and Greek have no word for homosexual, sex,
      or for romantic love.
The Bible nowhere says that gays and lesbians can or should change their
      orientation.
The Bible in the original languages never condemns same-sex romantic love
      as sin.
Jesus never mentioned homosexuality.
The Bible repeatedly demonstrates God's love, care and acceptance of all
      outcast, rejected, misunderstood and alienated people.
   ~ by Rembert Truluck

God Himself does not propose to judge a man until he is dead. So why should you?

As a child of God, prayer is kind of like calling home everyday.

The sin of Sodom was NOT Homosexuality! Read The Article ~ by Mary Pearson

It is unlikely there'll be a reduction in the wages of sin.

Mahatma Gandhi, the renowned leader of the people of India, in seeking to overthrow British colonial rule of his native land, was an avid reader. Although a Hindu, in his quest for freedom, he read the four Christian Gospels. He wanted to know more about Jesus of Nazareth. In his reading of the Gospels, Gandhi was impressed with this man whom Christians worship and follow. Where could he find out more about this Jesus whom Christians refer to as "the Christ - the Messiah?"
One Sunday morning Gandhi decided that he would visit one of the Christian churches in Calcutta. Upon seeking entrance to the church sanctuary, he was stopped at the door by the ushers. The ushers told him that he was not welcome, nor would he be permitted to attend this particular church as it was for 'high caste' Indians and 'whites' only. He was neither 'high caste', nor was he British. Because of the rejection by this church, 'the Mahatma' turned his back on Christianity. With this act, Gandhi rejected the Christian faith, never again to consider the claims of Christ! He was 'turned-off' by the sin of segregation that was practiced by the church. Gandhi later declared, "I'd be a Christian if it were not for the Christians!"
We will never know the difference it would have made had Gandhi been welcomed by Christians, and in turn had he come into a personal relationship with Christ as his Savior and Lord. What an impact Christianity could have had on India, a land that has been held in the clutches and bondage of a heathen religion (Hinduism) for centuries.
   ~ by Fred Pattison from his booklet "Challenging: Gay & Lesbian Baptists!"
      (available through this website)

And for something a little lighter about Gandhi:
Mahatma Gandhi, as you know, walked barefoot most of the time, which produced an impressive set of calluses on his feet. He also ate very little, which made him rather frail -- and with his odd diet, he suffered from bad breath.
This made him . . . A super calloused fragile mystic hexed by halitosis!

He who angers you, controls you!

We shouldn't just allow gay marriage. We should insist on gay marriage. We should regard it as scandalous that two people could claim to love each other and not want to sanctify their love with marriage and fidelity.
   ~ David Brooks (Nov 22, 2003) New York Times

The Greatest Man in History, Jesus, had no servants, yet they called Him Master. He had no degree, yet they called Him Teacher. He had no medicines, yet they called Him Healer. He had no army, yet kings feared Him. He won no military battles, yet He conquered the world. He committed no crime, yet they crucified Him. He was buried in a tomb, yet He lives today.

The real art of conversation is not only to say the right thing in the right place, but also to leave unsaid the wrong thing at the tempting moment.

We are responsible for the effort, not the outcome.

If you don't like the way you were born, try being born again.

There is no oil, if olives are not squeezed...
No wine, if grapes are not pressed...
No perfume, if flowers are not crushed...

Have you felt any pressure in life today???
Don't worry... God is just bringing out the best in you!!

Stay happy!

If you worry, you didn't pray. If you pray, don't worry.

The most important things in your house are the people.

LIVE LOVE, and let your LIGHT shine!   ~ Mary Pearson

Don't wait for 6 strong men to take you to church.

Sometimes when God says "no", it's because He has something better in store for you.

The consecration of Gene Robinson as bishop of the New Hampshire Diocese of the Episcopal Church is an affront to Christians everywhere. I am just thankful that the church's founder, Henry VIII, and his wife Catherine of Aragon, and his wife Anne Boleyn, and his wife Jane Seymour, and his wife Anne of Cleves, and his wife Katherine Howard, and his wife Catherine Parr are no longer here to suffer through this assault on traditional Christian marriage.
   ~ Owen Keavney

In the dark? Follow the Son.

The good Lord didn't create anything without a purpose, but mosquitoes come close.

The task ahead of us is never as great as the Power behind us.

Don't let your worries get the best of you, remember, Moses started out as a basket case.

It's my business to do God's business and it's His business to take care of my business.

I would rather be rejected by people for what I am, than be accepted by people for what I am not.

God has a purpose and plan for me that no one else can fulfill.

The opportunity to be threatened, humiliated and to live in fear of being beaten to death is the only 'special right' our culture bestows on homosexuals.

   ~ Denver Post columnist Diane Carman

In 1973, the American Psychiatric Association removed the term "homosexuality" from the list of mental and emotional disorders. Sexual orientation is not a disorder, therefore, it does not need to be cured.

Many folks want to serve God, but only as advisers.

If any white person intermarry with a colored person, or any colored person intermarry with a white person, he shall be guilty of a felony and shall be punished by confinement in the penitentiary for not less than one, nor more than five years.
Remember that law? It wasn't all that long ago (1958, to be exact) that this very line, this nasty little bit of legalized hate, was on the books in Virginia. Yes, interracial marriages were illegal in many states as recently as 50 years ago.
   ~ Mark Morford

Friends are God's apology for giving us family.

If you can't sleep, don't count sheep. Talk to the Shepherd.

Without deviation from the norm, progress is not possible.
   ~ Frank Zappa

Same-sex, same-gender unions have been celebrated in the church throughout history, dating back as early as 514 B.C., long before heterosexual marriages became a sacrament in 1215! The subsequent rise of homophobia put an unfortunate end to such unions in Western Europe.   Eastern Europeans, however, continued to celebrate same-sex, same-gender offices as late as the 1620's and possibly later.
It is also ironic that the radical religious right can resurrect from the Bible NO EXAMPLE of the archetypal "traditional marriage" they so fervently propagandize. The first child of Abraham - cultural progenitor of Judaism, Christianity, and Islam - was borne by his wife's handmaiden, Hagar (Genesis 16). And didn't King Solomon reportedly have a thousand wives and concubines (1 Kings 11:1-3)? There is no consistent, comprehensive Biblical model of heterosexual marriage - it simply doesn't exist.
For more information, please read Justice = Civil Marriage Equality by Christopher Hubble.

The will of God will never take you to where the grace of God will not protect you.

"Tying The Knot", a Roadside Attractions film, was three years in the making and documents the political war between gay people who want to marry and those determined to stop them. When a bank robber's bullet ends the life of cop, Lois Marrero, her wife of thirteen years, Mickie, discovers the police department willing to accept the women's relationship, but unwilling to release Lois's pension. When Sam, an Oklahoma rancher loses his husband of 25 years, cousins of his deceased spouse challenge his will and move to evict Sam from his home. As Mickie and Sam take up battle stations to defend their lives, TYING THE KNOT digs deeply into the meaning of marriage today. From a historical trip to the Middle Ages, to gay hippies storming the Manhattan marriage bureau in 1971, this eye-opening exploration of the embattled institution looks at rights, privilege and love as gay activists and right-wing politicos lock horns in the fight for marriage.

Serenity is not freedom from the storm, but peace amid the storm.

The underlying false assumption of the "The Homosexual Agenda" is the notion that there is some kind of great homosexual organization that represents all GLBT people and has worked out and promoted an agenda that speaks for all of us! How absurd. We can hardly get together to redecorate the house, have a decent pride parade or sustain a local GLBT center much less a world-wide conspiracy to destroy straight people!   ~ Rembert Truluck

Be ye fishers of men. You catch them - He'll clean them.

We cannot be truly Christian people so long as we flaunt the central teachings of Jesus: brotherly love and the Golden Rule.
   ~ Martin Luther King Jr.

God put me on earth to accomplish a number of things; right now I'm so far behind I will live forever.

With regard to the latest Vatican pronouncement against giving legal recognition to unions between homosexual partners, Mike Kirk-Duggan counted certain words in the 12 page document. Here is what he found. "Jesus" 0, "love" 0, "forgive" 0, "compassion" 1, "Christ" 2, "Doctrin(e/al)" 11, "law" 24, "legal" 31.
Point made.

God doesn't call the qualified, He qualifies the called.

Don't bother to give God instructions. Just report for duty.

The only queer people are those who don't love anybody.   ~ Rita Mae Brown

We are all children of this earth born members of the family. Every last one of us deserves to be treated with dignity. We are a rainbow of colors and a smorgasbord of beliefs, yet we are sisters and brothers in our happiness and our grief. We must exalt our differences; exploring possibilities without the need for arrogance and all our petty jealousies. We must never fear the unknown but join hands and stand together without the need for casting stones to prove our beliefs. Ignorance is our enemy and judgment is our albatross. Love is the light that lets us see that hatred is too great of a cost. When we reach out to each other and see beyond our differences only then will we discover the pathways back to innocence. Turn the graveyards into gardens and battlefields to fields of grain without the need to beg pardons when we know we are all the same. The world should be a family where everyone is free to share splendid peculiarities that have no cause to cause despair.
   ~ Erich Von Schiller upon writing Matthew Shephard's parents soon after the   crime.
Note: Matthew Shephard was a teenager who was brutally murdered, simply, and for no other reason than, that he was gay.

Do your best and then sleep in peace. God is awake.

The English word "homosexual" did not enter the English language until the end of the nineteenth century. This word did not appear in any English translation of the Bible until the Revised Standard Version was published in 1946. Therefore, when reading a Bible which has this word appearing in it, the reader should be aware that the word has been put in it by the translators who have assumed or presumed that this is what the original writer intended.
   ~ excerpt from Homosexuality and Christian Faith by Frederick L. Pattison

It is easier to preach ten sermons than it is to live one.

"God loves us no matter the color of our skin, our gender or the type of relationship we were in."
- Billy Graham at the Middle Tennessee Billy Graham Crusade."    June 9, 2000

NOTE: 8 years ago, the Billy Graham Crusade denied the Pastor and staff of Sunshine Cathedral MCC (Fort Lauderdale, FL) the right to be official participants in the Crusade. This year MCC was openly welcomed and participated fully.

Peace starts with a smile.

They gave me a medal for killing a man, and a discharge for loving one.
   ~ Sergeant Leonard Matlovich

1/3 of teenagers who commit suicide are gay.

If you judge people, you have no time to love them.   ~ Mother Theresa

What you are is God's gift to you. What you become is your gift to God.

There is no question but when Christ came and when Peter preached, purity codes were set aside. We no longer lived kosher like our orthodox Jewish friends do. Kosher laws, purity laws have been set aside. And those who are scholars, even the most conservative scholars, will argue with you that the statements in Leviticus that have to do with homosexuality fall into the purity code category. As a matter of fact it comes right after the passage that says that to touch the skin of a dead pig is an abomination to God, which puts the whole Super Bowl into question. So you know, we have to deal with that right up front.
   ~ Tony Campolo

We can never really go where God is not, and where He is, all is well.

You can lead a bigot to the truth, but you can't make him think.
   ~ Rembert Truluck

My Lesbianism is an act of Christian charity. All those women out there praying for a man and I'm giving them my share.   ~ Rita Mae Brown

Why is it that, as a culture, we are more comfortable seeing two men holding guns than holding hands?   ~ Ernest Gaines

A lot of church members who are singing "Standing on the Promises" are just sitting on the premises.

Begin to weave and God will give you the thread.

"You could move." - Abigail Van Buren in "Dear Abby" in response to a reader who complained that a gay couple was moving in across the street and wanted to know what he could do to improve the quality of the neighborhood.

God grades on the cross, not the curve.

No matter what is happening in your life, know that God is waiting for YOU with open arms.

The next time someone asks you, 'Hey, howdja get to be a homosexual anyway?' tell them, 'Homosexuals are chosen first on talent, then interview, then the swimsuit and evening gown competition pretty much gets rid of the rest of them.   ~ Karen Williams

I am God's melody of life and He sings His song through me.

Our Pride Rainbow Flag has changed once more. On June 1, 2003, on its 25th anniversary, it went back to its original 8 colours. Go to History of the Gay Pride Rainbow Flag, for a complete explanation of the transitions that our flag has gone through these past 25 years.

Some minds are like concrete, thoroughly mixed up and permanently set.

It always seemed to me a bit pointless to disapprove of homosexuality. It's like disapproving of rain.   ~ Francis Maude

Opportunity may knock once, but temptation bangs on your front door forever.

What are you trying to protect heterosexual marriages from? There isn't a limited amount of love in Iowa. It isn't a non-renewable resource. If Amy and Barbara or Mike and Steve love each other, it doesn't mean that John and Mary can't.
   ~ From a speech delivered on the floor of the Iowa House
      by state Rep. Ed Fallon

Live simply. Love generously. Care deeply. Speak kindly. Leave the rest to God.
   ~ An Old Farmer's Advice

Great spirits have always encountered violent opposition from mediocre minds.
   ~ Albert Einstein

In my own church, the Metropolitan Community Churches:

   ~ More than 21 of our congregations have been firebombed or arsoned.
   ~ In New Orleans, 12 of our members died in a terrible fire.
   ~ In California, Rev. Virgil Scott was murdered solely because he was gay.
   ~ And just six months ago, our associate pastor in Sacramento,
         Rev. Ed Sheriff, died after being stabbed 24 times. The police say it was
         "just" a robbery, but I'm not so sure.
   ~ Too many high school students taunted and branded as "faggots"
         and "dykes."
   ~ Too many people who've attempted to end their lives too soon because
         society heaped shame and humiliation upon them.
   ~ I think of the man who walked away from his spirituality because his faith
         community rejected him.
   ~ I see the mother in tears because the court took her baby.
   ~ I think of the partner of 35 years denied access to his lover's hospital room
         because no laws protected their relationship.
Excerpt from Troy Perry's speech at March on Washington April 30, 2000

If you feel far away from God, guess who moved?

To love another person is to see the face of God.   ~ Les Miserables

Do what you can, for who you can, with what you have, and where you are.

The promised winds of change are beginning to blow. You will soon see the evidence of this wind in your lives. This wind is My tool to move you into your positions of destiny for this coming time. I will remove some of the old, bring in some of the new, and adjust that which is to remain - for your maximum benefit and effectiveness in My Kingdom. This wind may prove to be a bit unnerving as you are moved out of what you consider comfortable. However, if you will place your full confidence in Me, the season of transition will be shortened. The key is to move with My wind. If you try to do this work in the flesh, you will find yourself on the wrong path and in the wrong wind. Prepare for My wind... it's beginning to blow!

We set the sail; God makes the wind.

Happiness is enhanced by others but does not depend upon others.

For every minute you are angry with someone, you lose 60 seconds of happiness that you can never get back.

Tamara Lowe Does Her Motivational Rap at Christ Fellowship

Note: Where known, credit is given for each quote. If you know the author of a quote which is not stated, please contact me so that recognition may be given. Thanks!

If you liked this page, please share it. It's easy to do. Give it a try.

Note from Mary: The Google Ads at the top and bottom of these pages are supposed to reflect the content within the website, however they are selected by robots so may actually be contrary to ChristianGays.com beliefs and principles. ChristianGays.com does not necessarily endorse the Advertisers, although I'm sure some of them are very good.