Spirituality
There is a reason that LGBT Mormon testimony meetings are so powerful. It is because we have had to wade through rivers of doubt and climb mountains of rejection to know what we know. When we choose to put Gospel principles to the test, we must fight gravity, push against the current.
I received spiritual insights, bit by bit, teaching me and giving me peace and understanding. Being gay would not keep me from becoming the man God wanted me to be. I now believe that it is only the gay me, not some imaginary straight me, that will be able to do and become what he is supposed to in this life.
Once I had accepted myself, the self esteem issues melted away. I came to terms with my religion. I realized I could never leave the church. I am a Mormon; being gay will not change that. I am gay; being a Mormon will not change that. I am not some mistake that God made, he knows me and he wants me to be happy.
By the Affirmation Executive Committee
Despite the struggles and rejection many of us have experienced in our home wards and stakes, many of us have testimonies of the Gospel and want to participate in the work of building the Kingdom of God both in and beyond the Church.
Many of us come to General Conference wondering if there’s a place for us in the church, and yearning for church leaders to speak to the doubt, pain, confusion and fear so many of us feel. Here are our take-aways from the 2014 October General Conference.
I can envision Christ wrapping His arm around the shoulder of the one who I’ve deemed my ‘enemy’ and saying “This is my Friend. Please, love them.” He’s giving us the opportunity to lay down our weapons, and see that this person before us can, too, be our friend.
Thankfully, I have been able to accept that being a lesbian was somehow part of the plan, and in many ways I am thankful this is part of my experience in my daily life.
I look back with fondness and gratitude on my time as a Latter-day Saint. I honor the many wonderful experiences I had then and look ahead to even greater times of joy in my life to come.
Perhaps the most significant message of General Conference for LGBT Mormons, their families and friends had to do with the strong emphasis on empathy
I hesitated to attend until I heard a voice in my mind: “You have to go to the Temple”