Why am I motivated to write this blog? I see beauty, especially in the hearts and lives of people, and I want to draw attention to it.
When God changes the heart of someone who is same-sex attracted so that they pursue pleasure in God rather than the fleeting pleasure of gay sex, there is often a gold-tested-by-fire kind of beauty and strength of character in their inner being that captivates my attention and makes me want to have a heart like theirs.
C.S. Lewis expresses it better than I can in his book, Reflections on the Psalms:
…all enjoyment spontaneously overflows into praise…lovers praising their mistresses, readers their favorite poet, walkers praising the countryside…I think we delight to praise what we enjoy because the praise not merely expresses but completes the enjoyment.
There is so much pleasure and beauty in God and in what He does, I am motivated to say something about it! I hope some of you will find encouragement and real joy in God through these attempts of mine to express what God has let me see.
Much of what I write here will be glimpses of the beauty of God’s work in the hearts and lives of myself and people I know.
Like the other bloggers here, I will be telling my own story of how I live as a Christian while dealing with same-sex attraction. I plan to start by sharing my life experience from my childhood up to the present, including not only events, but also the hopes, fears, joys, and pains I felt along the way.
In the process I will often describe other people and their interactions with me. Names and sometimes other details will be changed in order to respect their privacy.
I gladly welcome comments and questions, although I will not engage in heated or extended political debates in the comment section. Feel free to ask more details about any story I tell, my feelings, and the character of other people I bring up. Of course, share your own opinions, even if they are directly opposite to mine!
In my next post I will be sharing about my family, cultural background, and childhood.
Did you ever notice someone’s strength of character or something desirable in their soul, something that was visible only from observing their behavior and attitude? How did that person affect you?
* Photo courtesy mariachily, Creative Commons.
About the Author
Your story should be well worth reading, and will probably resonate with many.
Thanks! I do have a lot of stories to tell because I have lived a few extra years…
Your heart for others and your wisdom will change the world, Marshall. It’s already happening. Stoked to have you with us!
Likewise, Tom. I thank God for the day I ran across your blog on Xanga and even more for the day I met you face to face in that Panera in Southern California! As I tell my friends often, you are better than anyone else I have ever met at putting emotion into words, especially the particular emotional highs and lows we same-sex attracted guys deal with.
Hey, Marshall! I can’t wait to start reading your words again. I always loved hearing your passion for Jesus and others! It’s always super encouraging and inspiring! One day I will grow up to be like you. =)
Thanks so much Noah! I have been laughing and crying as I write future posts and I hope they are as much of a blessing to you and others as they are for me to write!
I see how you guys on this site inter-act with each other just by the comments on each blog. That in itself is inspiring. I can’t say that there have been too many people in my life that I look up to as models that I admire. Perhaps that’s because I have been too critical of faults and fault-finding, and that is a sad reflection on my own weaknesses. I hope it is not too late to learn to be more gracious, more humble, more accepting of others, and to see that beauty in them beyond any faults. I look forward to being inspired more my you and other bloggers here. Thank you for sharing.
Jeremy, thanks so much for letting me know how the interactions of authors on this blog affect you! I have personally met almost all the authors here and have spent hours with many of them this past year. Several I consider close friends. Their personal success and well-being really matter to me and I hope that comes across in our communication with each other!
Jeremy, thanks so much for letting me know how the interactions of authors on this blog affect you! I have personally met almost all the authors here and have spent hours with many of them this past year. Several I consider close friends. Their personal success and well-being really matter to me and I hope that comes across in our communication with each other!