church Archives • Your Other Brothers

Straight Men are Scary

by Thomas Mark Zuniga | Jul 31, 2019 | Lifestories | 32

Straight men have always been scary. They’ve long been “the other,” going all the way back to first grade. We may not share the same tastes for sports and media consumption, but we still share a common masculine heart. One fraught with hauntingly familiar masculine thorns.

7 Stages of Coming Out: Inadequacy & Requirement

by Daniel Marquez | Jul 16, 2019 | Lifestories | 7

Last month, I wrote about my botched attempt at sharing my story at a church for the first time. Since then, I realised, I’ve never really reflected back on my comings out. Taken a birds-eye view of things, processing the other times I’ve communicated my sexuality to other people. Until today.

How the Church Has Actually Helped Me Fight Homosexual Temptations

by Marshall | Jul 5, 2019 | Lifestories | 8

Many men dealing with same-sex attraction have told stories of being coldly rejected, while men who struggle with heterosexual sins are given compassion and support. My church, however, has actually helped me follow Jesus Christ, allowing me to be happy while fighting homosexual temptations.

Flirting With Temptation? When My Pastor Pulled Me from Ministry

by Ben Rutkowski | Jul 2, 2019 | Lifestories | 22

We will face temptation in this life. There is greater nuance for those of us with fellow “Side B” relationships, as the gender with whom we often need the closest relationships is the gender we are also generally attracted to. Temptation will happen, but it cannot be the only — or primary — litmus test for whether we can be safe in friendship.

Sharing My Story at a Church for the First Time?

by Daniel Marquez | Jun 28, 2019 | Lifestories | 10

The Sunday service started, and I was excited to speak. I’d been praying for this moment for quite a while now — I was about to give my testimony in front of a whole church. The service started, and two songs into worship I felt a tap on my shoulder. It was the pastor, and he was motioning me back to his office…

Revoice 2019: So Much to Learn and Love

by YOB | Jun 20, 2019 | Conversations | 7

Several of our authors recently attended Revoice 2019 in St. Louis. We gathered to discuss the second annual conference: our personal highs, challenges, and hopes for future Revoice conferences.

I Was Fifteen Minutes Away from the PULSE Shooting

by Eugene Heffron | Jun 12, 2019 | Lifestories | 9

In my pre-YOB days, I still felt a lot of self-loathing and internalized homophobia over my sexuality and had yet to come to terms with it. I spent that whole day unsure what to think or feel about PULSE. Dismayed by seeing so many people brutally murdered, of course, yet conflicted about how I felt about my convictions with my own sexuality.

Crying with Hope at the YOBBERS Retreat

by Kevin Zimmerman | May 31, 2019 | Lifestories | 16

As that final morning sped by, I found myself wishing I had been more present that weekend. I don’t cry easily or often. Yet tears flowed multiple times during our YOBBERS retreat weekend. And now a few more times since.

My Sexuality is a Gift from God

by Dean Samuels | May 14, 2019 | Lifestories | 29

God could have prevented my attraction to men. Whatever your beliefs on causation, I believe God is powerful enough to have adjusted whatever needed adjusting to have prevented my attraction to men. Since this did not happen, I can only determine one reasonable possibility: my sexuality was something God wanted for my life. Therefore, I see it as a gift.

Are We Asking LGBT+ People the Right Questions?

by Ryan Burger | Apr 26, 2019 | Musings | 34

If we want to win hearts, we have to ask better questions. How do we win hearts? We win hearts with good news. I want people in my church community to ask themselves, “What is the good news for LGBT+ people in our marriage ethic?”