Ed is joined by Living Out co-founders Sam Allberry and Sean Doherty to talk about the early years of the ministry and some highlights from its history.

They share the story of how and why Living Out started and what their expectations were when it was launched ten years ago.

In the second half of the show they share their personal highlights, discuss the impact Living Out has had and express their hopes for the future.

Resources mentioned and related

• £10 a month club
• Sam's story
• Sean and Gaby's story
• Aren’t We Just Picking Which Bits of the Old Testament Law Apply Today? Sam Allberry
• If We've Rejected What the Bible Says About Slavery - Why Not What it Says About Homosexuality Too? Sean Doherty
• True Freedom Trust website
• Identity in Christ Conference: Culture and Identity Tim Keller
• The Living Out Church audit
• Ten Years of Living Out Ed Shaw

Adam explains how Romans 7 shows that God understands our experiences and the clash of desires in our hearts. He takes comfort from the fact that the Bible is very real about the struggles we all face but also offers freedom from condemnation for those who come to Christ.

Ed has chosen Acts 8 as a passage as an example of a beautiful encounter between Jesus and someone who experienced the shame of not having children. He takes encouragement from the fact that Jesus – the one who was despised and rejected – meets us in our pain and offers us hope.

Resources mentioned and related

• Misstep 9 - 'Suffering is to be avoided' (The Plausibility Problem #9) The Living Out team
• 'Be True to Yourself.' Really? Adam Curtis
• Whiter Than Snow: Meditations on Sin and Mercy Paul David Tripp

Andrew and Anne each pick a Bible passage that has helped them persevere in living faithfully for Jesus.

Anne explains why Psalm 63 has helped her identify and overcome idolatry in her friendships with women and encouraged her to hunger for God instead.

Andrew's choice of Psalm 73 shows that God himself is the greatest gift to us and we don't need to envy those who have things – like same-sex relationships – that we think we want. Following Jesus never means missing out on good and ultimate satisfaction.

Resources mentioned and related

• No One Can Live Without a Lover Anne Witton
• The Lesbian Urge to Merge Anne Witton
• Is Jesus worth it? King's Church 1066 Andrew Bunt

Ashleigh explains how Revelation 5 helps her keep an eternal perspective in times of change and makes sense of the longings in her heart.

2 Corinthians 12 is one of Andy's favourite passages and he shares how Paul's teaching about his thorn in the flesh is an encouragement to look to Jesus whose grace is sufficient for us.

Resources mentioned and related

• Book of Revelation Summary: A Complete Animated Overview (Part 1) The Bible Project
• Book of Revelation Summary: A Complete Animated Overview (Part 2) The Bible Project
• Is He Worthy Shane & Shane
• What's Good About Struggling With Same-sex Attraction? Anne Witton

Join Anne and Ed as they discuss some passages of Scripture that have really encouraged them.

Ed's pick is John 4 and he explains why Jesus' encounter with the woman at the well helps him understand Jesus' heart for those who have sinned sexually and the beautiful way that he stewards his sexuality.

Anne shares why Genesis 3 helps her make sense of life and God's purposes for sexuality and points forward to the hope of the gospel for all of us, whatever our areas of brokenness.

Resources mentioned and related

• The Three Lies of the Fall Anne Witton
• Newtown: Erskineville Anglican Church, John 4 Ed Shaw
• Purposeful Sexuality Ed Shaw (Living Out review here)
• Intimate Jesus Andy Angel (Living Out review here)

In the last episode of this series, Andrew and Ashleigh seek to understand the connection between LGBT+ and mental health and share some of their own experiences. They explore difficult issues like the social stress model, family rejection and insidences of suicide.

There are plenty of practical tips on supporting young people who wrestle with mental ill health and they show how the Christian gospel both makes sense of suffering and offers hope in the midst of it.

There is also an interview with Dr. Preston Sprinkle from the Center For Faith, Sexuality & Gender.

Discussion questions

For the episode:

• Do we have a good understanding of the main mental health issues our teens might be struggling with? (depression, anxiety, low self-esteem/self worth, self harm, eating disorders, suicidality, shame, addiction, etc.) If not, what’s our next step in learning?
• How can we provide a safe environment for teens to be honest about their pain/struggles?
• What practical things/resources should we put in place to equip us as a team and any youth who need help? (eg member of Ashleigh’s youth team did a bunch of research and created a brief document explaining various mental health problems and providing resources for helping with each)

For the series:

• What are your key takeaways?
• What should we continue to pray about?
• What’s your priority to do next? 

Resources mentioned and related

• Youth Leaders' Crash Course podcast page
• LGBT and Mental Health: What’s the Link? Andrew Bunt
• A Christian Perspective on LGBTQ+ Mental Health Andrew Bunt
• Does Christian Teaching Cause LGBT Mental Health Problems? (Questions No One Wants To Answer #5)
• The Mental Health and Well-Being of Celibate Gay Christians Mark Yarhouse and Olya Zaporozhets
• Does Living Out Support ‘Gay Cure’ or ‘Reparative Therapy’? Ed Shaw
• LGBTQ+ Suicide Andrew Bunt
• It’s Time to Stop Weaponising Suicide Andrew Bunt
• Suicide Facts and Myths Transgender Trend
• Center For Faith, Sexuality & Gender
• Does the Bible Support Same-Sex Marriage? Preston Sprinkle
• Stats For Gender
• Headstrong: Mental wellbeing for young people
• Alumina: 7 week course for young people struggling with self-harm
• Mind.org.uk

In this show we're looking at how to support young people who are struggling with their gender identity. We define the terms and share our own stories of gender confusion before discussing some of the reasons why increasing numbers of young people might be identifying as transgender.

In the second half we get practical with advice about how to support young people experiencing distress about their gender, including how to respond with compassion, how to talk about identity and how to offer hope in suffering.

This episode also features an interview with community paediatrician Dr. Julie Maxwell.

Discussion questions

• Do we have a good understanding of sex, gender and transgender? If not, what’s our next step in learning?
• Do we have a good understanding of what the Bible says about sex, gender and identity? If not, what’s our next step in learning?
• Are we a welcoming, safe environment for teens who are trans-identifying, who have questions about gender generally or their own specifically? How can we become more so?
• What practical conversations (e.g. around names, pronouns, bathrooms, sleeping spaces) do we need to have?

Resources mentioned and related

• Youth Leaders' Crash Course podcast page
• To know how some LGBT people are using the language – see Stonewall’s ‘List of LGBTQ+ Terms’
• Parents guide to LGBTQ teens and our review of the resource
• Living Out Church leaders' webinar on trans-identification amongst teens
• Embodied Preston Sprinkle and our review
• Finding Your Best Identity Andrew Bunt and our review
• People Not Pronouns Andrew Bunt and our review
• What God Has To Say About Our Bodies Sam Allberry and our review
• CMF Quick Guide - Gender identity & trans identification - for youth workers
• Transgender: An Introduction for Parents and Youth Leaders Andrew Bunt
• Theology in the Raw podcast #768 – Where Should Trans Students Sleep at Summer Camp? And Other Questions
• Theology in the Raw podcast #870 – Another Take on the Pronoun Debate: Dr. Julie Maxwell
• More resources here...

In this show we discuss how to support young people who are experiencing same-sex attraction or questioning their sexuality. We look at how to understand the young person's experience and how to respond when they come out to you.

In the second half of the episode we look at how we disciple and offer ongoing support to young people who are struggling with their sexuality.

Discussion questions

• Has there been a time when you have had to share something deeply personal with someone else? Were you uncertain or afraid about how they might respond? What about those experiences might help us to respond well to teens who come out to us?
• How have we responded to teens who have come out to us in the past? What can we learn from these experiences?
• How are we discipling our teens on an ongoing basis? What else could we do?

Resources mentioned and related

• Youth Leaders' Crash Course podcast page
• Coming Out – Some Advice for Christians Andrew Bunt
• What to say if a young person ‘comes out’ in conversation with you Andrew Bunt
• Living In A Gray World Preston Sprinkle
• Living In A Gray World: A Review Ashleigh Hull
• What Does God Really Say About Sexuality? (Explore Questions #1) The Living Out Team
• Should Conversion Therapy Be Banned? (Questions No One Wants To Answer #1) The Living Out Team

We talk about how we as youth leaders can prepare ourselves and our churches to care for all young people, especially in the area of sexuality. We discusss the importance of modelling godly discipleship ourselves and creating an honest and safe culture for young people to share their struggles.

We also look at how we can engage well with parents and church leaders, communicate sensitively and ensure that youth work is an integral part of the whole life of the church.

This episode features a bonus interview with Tim Alford, National Director of Limitless, the youth and children’s movement of the Elim Pentecostal Churches. He is also youth leader at The Source Church in Malvern and a Youth Ministry Specialist Lecturer.

Discussion questions

• What do we need to do to prepare ourselves as youth leaders?
• What do we need to do to prepare our youth group?
• How can we engage well with parents and carers?
• How can we engage well with our church leaders?

Resources mentioned and related

• Youth Leaders' Crash Course podcast page
• 10 Questions Every Teen Should Ask (and Answer) about Christianity Rebecca McLaughlin
• 10 Questions Every Teen Should Ask (and Answer) About Christianity: A Review Andrew Bunt
• When Children Come Out – A Guide for Christian Parents Mark A. Yarhouse and Olya Zaporozhets

In this show the team discuss how we can teach on biblical sexuality to our young people. We talk about the importance of painting the bigger picture of sexuality throughout Scripture and setting it in the context of God's heart for his people and the gospel which is good news for everyone.

We discuss how to tackle the passages that specifically mention homosexuality and give some ideas of things to think about when teaching young people about sex. We also discuss lots of tricky questions that we've been asked and think about how to handle them in a clear, biblical and compassionate way.

Discussion questions

• Do you have a good understanding of what the Bible says about sexuality? If not, what’s your next step in learning?
• How can you teach this in a way that doesn’t compromise on truth, but also extends grace and sensitivity to your various listeners?
• How would you answer the common questions raised in this episode? (Perhaps practice on each other!)

Resources mentioned and related

• Youth Leaders' Crash Course podcast page
• What Is Sexuality for? Ed Shaw
• What Does God Really Say About Sexuality? (Explore Questions #1)
• Straight Youth Leader, Please Teach on Sexuality Ashleigh Hull
• Evaluating the Top Biblical Affirming Arguments Andrew Bunt
• Isn’t the Christian Sexual Ethic Harmful and Repressive? Andrew Bunt
• Isn’t God Being Unfair?
• Christian + Same-Sex Attracted: Is It Doable?
• Is My Sexuality Who I Am? Andrew Bunt
• Aren’t We Just Picking Which Bits of the Old Testament Law Apply Today? Sam Allberry
• Lessons from a Week Teaching Teenagers About Sex Andrew Bunt
• Living in a Gray World Preston Sprinkle
• Purposeful Sexuality Ed Shaw
• Marriage as a Trailer
• The Prodigal Prophet Tim Keller (quote from p.138)