I haven’t written much about how I became LGBTQ+ affirming almost a decade ago. It was a slow process, one that was born of relationships with dear-to-me queer folks, revelations of the high percentage of LGBTQ+ people who have suffered deeply in the often abusive hand of the Church, and it was the work of Jesus in me, revealing the way of transforming love in a world where we cling to rules, even we see those rules destroying the lives of God’s beloveds. This is about how I’ve come to know Jesus, how I’ve come to understand the movement of the Spirit of God in the world. It’s not an argument where I try to convince anyone of my reading of particular verses that seem to reject LGBTQ+ relationships. Changing one’s mind on this particularly thorny subject in the Church is not about finally understanding the original Greek of Paul’s letters, or reading the right scholar. It’s about perspective, experience, lens. I can’t convince anyone that I’m right, and that’s not my job. But I did feel joy in telling the story of how I put on my Jesus glasses, saw my queer siblings in the way I believe God had been inviting me to see for a long time, and learned to imagine scripture in a way I never had before. Mostly I wanted to tell you about the the quiet and holy sweetness of finally listening to my own conscience and finding that my relief was the voice of God there with me: “Hi, honey.” God said. “I’ve been here the whole time. You can trust me.”

Links: 

• This reflection and practice were also published this week in The Slow Way Newsletter.
• Find a transcript of this episode here. 
• Find Micha's website and sign up for her weekly newsletter here
• Find Micha on Instagram
• Find Micha on Twitter
• Micha's other podcast, The Lucky Few, is all about Down syndrome advocacy. She cohosts it with Heather Avis and Mercedes Lara. 

Found: A Story of Questions, Grace, and Everyday Prayer is available everywhere books are sold.