I Found Acceptance And Fulfillment in Christ – Real Stories for January 2011 by Rochelle

dove

This testimony appears in both our offline and online newsletters.  To receive testimonies like this along with the full newsletter online via email or offline through the postal service please sign up here. --- When I was growing up, I was always searching for something - something to learn, to fill, to numb, to distract me from myself. From a young age, I was certain there was something wrong with me and I needed to fix it in order for people to like and accept me. I was convinced I was unlovable, but believed if I just tried hard enough, I could correct my flaws and finally be … [Read more...]

Together Everyone Accomplishes More – Letter from Alan Chambers for January 2011

Alan-Chambers

This letter from Alan Chambers appears in both our offline and online newsletters. To receive this letter along with the full newsletter online via email or offline through the postal service please sign up here. --- Dear Friends, How many of you have a resolution for the New Year?  Without going crazy, I usually try to pinpoint one or two areas where I hope to make improvements each year.  This year I have decided to work on keeping life simple.  You may remember that our mission at Exodus for 2011 is Simplify, Amplify, Intensify.  I began sensing the Lord's encouragement in … [Read more...]

What’s in a Name? The Story of Brenna Kate Simonds – Part 2

My Wedding Day

Yesterday, I shared the first half of my story.  This is the second half. I had just become a Christian.  In one sense, I felt hope, but at the same time, the labels were still haunting me.  Even though at the time I could not voice what was going on, I continued to spiral out of control with my eating and relationships. I was so desperate for love that I entered into a relationship with an 18 year old woman with a drug problem (I was 24 at the time). After 3 months, this woman (having been raised in a Christian home) said to me, “Listen – the Bible says you must either be hot or … [Read more...]

What’s in a Name? The Story of Brenna Kate Simonds – Part 1

Brenna with a mohawk from having her head shaved

A Christian speaker recently reminded me that words are a container for power. The book of Proverbs says “reckless words pierce like a sword”, “the words of the wicked lie in wait for blood”, and “when words are many, sin is not absent”.  In the Bible, words & names are very important. Throughout my life, I allowed people and circumstances to label me, name me, and define who I am. I was born prematurely in May of 1975. I was given a 50% chance of survival and rode in an ambulance to a hospital 50 miles away since the hospital where I was born did not have premie … [Read more...]

Masturbation: Is it Sin?

78814753a

*Posted originally at Exodus Youth. About seven years ago I attended my first Exodus conference.  As I was looking at the multitude of workshops offered during the week I came across one entitled "Something, something...MASTURBATION".  I can't remember the whole title, because I just saw that "m" word.  I knew I had to go to that one.  But of course when the time came to go I was filled with so much trepidation and shame.  Would I be the only one in the workshop?  I got up enough courage to go, and to my amazement, the room was so full, there was barely any standing room.  It … [Read more...]

Dear Gay/Porn Forum User

confession

Yesterday's post on the disenfranchisement of Christian therapists and clients from professional counseling had a surprising source of linkage that drove a decent amount of traffic to the blog. The sources of the links: Two gay/porn sites.  And I think it comes as no surprise I won't be linking back to them. :) I didn't investigate them to figure out what the purpose of these sites were or what is being said but given the URL of the addresses it was kind of obvious what the overall sites are about. So ... sincerely ... welcome! I can't quite figure out why yesterday's post would … [Read more...]

New Tactics to Disenfranchise Counselors and Clients with a Biblical Worldview

man-in-chair

Back in May we posted about how California Association of Marriage and Family Therapists (CAMFT) was trying to make the practice of "Reparative Therapy" or any sexually oriented change counseling unethical.  Thank goodness that effort, while not completely gone, failed. ... Clearly, the current CAMFT board is not at all ready to pass judgment on the ethical standards of ANY therapeutic orientation. I believe the board began to recognize the danger of putting CAMFT in the position of going way beyond what even the APA (American Psychological Association) has stated concerning SOCE. The APA … [Read more...]

The Complete Christian Guide to Understanding Homosexuality – New Book by Joe Dallas and Nancy Heche released

Understanding Homosexuality

Joe Dallas and Nancy Heche have worked with Harvest House Publishers to release The Complete Christian Guide to Understanding Homosexuality - A Biblical and Compassionate Response to Same Sex Attraction. This book is amazing.  Covers everything from "The Church in Crisis, A History of Gay Rights in America, Understanding Pro-gay Theology, Theories of Origin," Counseling, Sexual Addiction, Parents, Spouses, Gay Parenting, Transgender issues ... and more!  Input was given by many leaders including yours truly and Exodus President Alan Chambers. Chapter 13 - Change, Growth, and the … [Read more...]

British Comedienne, and Former Lesbian, Becomes Happily Married Mother of Four

Jackie Clune

From How I Went from Committed Lesbian to a Happily Married Mother of Four: Looking at my four children racing around the garden with their father, it seems almost impossible to believe that only a few years ago I never imagined having a family. Or rather, when I did stop to think of myself as becoming a mother, I imagined the only way I'd do so would be through an anonymous sperm donor. Today, with five-year-old triplets, Thady, Frank and Orla, and a seven-year-old daughter, Saoirse, a husband and a home in a leafy London suburb, I could be viewed as the archehtypal wife and mother, … [Read more...]

Of Elton And Rush – We Don’t Have to Care But We Might Choose To Do So Anyway

EJRL Poll

I am not exaggerating, when I heard that some of the gay or pro-gay community are furious with Elton John for performing at Rush Limbaugh's wedding, I was shocked.  I thought they would be excited that the highest profile conservative in America would invite one of the world's highest profile gay men to sing at his wedding. The disparity of what I would expect between their reaction led me, on a whim, to conduct a poll on my personal blog.  I put it there and not here because I wasn't sure where and if I was even going to blog about this.  As I got public and private feedback, plus a … [Read more...]