A Walk with Pride

Saturday night, Hope United will be participating in the Austin Pride Parade. We feel that it is important to stand in solidarity with our gay, lesbian, and transgender brothers and sisters, to celebrate our diversity, and to take pride in who we are—who God created us to be.
 

Often, as I look to God’s Word, I speak of the dangers of pride. We can certainly be an arrogant, selfish lot, almost always thinking of ourselves before others, and this stands in direct opposition to our Christ, Jesus the selfless one, who gave up everything, sacrificed all, all in total devotion to the One who gives us Life. And this Jesus asks us to do the same, to follow, to be disciples, to love and give and sacrifice, for God must be our everything.

Our Lord tells us to love God with all our being and our neighbor as ourselves, but we have learned that we can’t really do that unless we love ourselves. And for some, this is a much harder task than for others. Hence, pride.

I cannot even begin to comprehend the internal struggle of someone who is gay, for our culture is still deeply prejudiced against same-gender loving people. And what is the gravest sin, in my opinion, is that people of faith have often led this charge, doing great harm to a people who God created to be that way.

God does not make mistakes. Period.

It wasn’t that long ago that gays had to suffer through “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell,” and indeed, it is still very tough to be gay and in the military. But even so, I’ve often thought of a slogan for our church if we were targeting military gay folk.

Tired of “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” at your church? Come to Hope United where you can be who God created you to be!

Click here to visit the Austin Pride website.

Let me end with a poem by Marianne Williamson, which seems to be fitting for Pride. 

Our Deepest Fear

Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate.
Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure.
It is our Light, not our Darkness, that most frightens us.
We ask ourselves, who am I to be
     brilliant, gorgeous, talented, fabulous?
Actually, who are you NOT to be?
You are a child of God.  Your playing small
     does not serve the World.
There is nothing enlightened about shrinking so that
     other people won’t feel insecure around you.
We were born to make manifest the glory of God
     that is within us.
It is not just in some of us;
     it is in everyone.
As we let our own Light shine, we unconsciously
     give other people permission to do the same.
As we are liberated from our own fear,
     our presence automatically liberates others.
 

For in Christ Jesus you are all children of God through faith. As many of you as were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ. There is no longer Jew or Greek, there is no longer slave or free, there is no longer male and female; for all of you are one in Christ Jesus. And if you belong to Christ, then you are Abraham’s offspring, heirs according to the promise. -Galatians 3:26-28

Ron Trimmer is pastor of Hope United, a new church in Georgetown, Texas. Click here to visit Hope United's website.