Bless you for putting to words the anguish I feel watching Begg stutter through the aftermath of his horrible advice to this grandmother. As a mother of a gay son who was engaged, I had to tell my son and his 'fiance' that I would not be at their wedding. It was the single most difficult conversation of my adult life. There was a lot of crying, my son raged at me, his boyfriend sat stone silent. Wishing I could say I handled it better, through a wall of tears and halting words all I could do was keep affirming my love for my son and yet a higher love for my God.
After this moment, I didn't know if my son would stay connected -- I didn't know if this closed a door between us. 6 months later, he called to say he had broken up with the boyfriend and was moving out into his own apartment. Did my refusal to bless this sin have anything to do with the breakup? I have no idea. My son is still wandering in a far off country. But at least this godless union has been broken. He and I have never missed a beat with communication. God in his mercy continues to bless our relationship.
Parents and grandparents everywhere are struggling through a sea of confusion and desperate for godly pastors to AFFIRM their stand on the Word. Begg (I believe without realizing the implication) has now made this dilemma even more difficult. Bring a gift? Be in the wedding photos with the couple? Stand beside them and raise a glass to what breaks the heart of God? How does one stretch that far between two polar opposite beliefs?
It is an agonizing thing to watch the LGBTQ+ agenda bring such division and confusion to the body of Christ. I will continue to pray for Mr. Begg who has such tremendous influence and has always been such a gifted expositor of the bible. May God use it all for good as only He can.
I know people who are dealing with these situations in their own families. Waiting and praying while remaining on the porch is the hardest thing. How great the temptation to either slam the door against the prodigal or pursue him into the far country in a way that enables!
Thank you Anne for struggling with the pain and hurt of these issues, and for taking the time (how you do it all I do not understand) to use your gift to help us to better see how to navigate them. And, perhaps more importantly, for helping us to better express our own sorrows and discouragements in the midst of this battle we are daily gifted to fight. I too love--and have been greatly encouraged and blessed by--Alistair Begg, and I hurt for him-- and hurt for the Christian families I see struggling with how to navigate this issue in the manner Jesus would have us to. I am from Binghamton and sometimes wonder if my decades of prayers for my hometown, family and friends (and my spiritual weakness at not being able to endure the grey skies and streets and buildings--and the cold and snow until May --to be there myself) are not partly responsible for you and Matt being there😕. I at least do have the “strength” to pray for you all daily, for your church, for the ACNA and for your family-- from my relatively warm (and usually sunny 🫤) home here in Grayson, Georgia. Blessings.
It might be well for us all to grab a copy of C. S. Lewis's _Reflections on the Psalms_ and read the chapter entitled "Connivance". Lewis points to a thread that runs thru the psalter, the idea that at times we must distance ourselves from certain people who are sinning in particularly conspicuous ways. No decent person wants to be estranged from a beloved child but we were warned: everything about us, including family ties, must be subject to Christ
Bless you for putting to words the anguish I feel watching Begg stutter through the aftermath of his horrible advice to this grandmother. As a mother of a gay son who was engaged, I had to tell my son and his 'fiance' that I would not be at their wedding. It was the single most difficult conversation of my adult life. There was a lot of crying, my son raged at me, his boyfriend sat stone silent. Wishing I could say I handled it better, through a wall of tears and halting words all I could do was keep affirming my love for my son and yet a higher love for my God.
After this moment, I didn't know if my son would stay connected -- I didn't know if this closed a door between us. 6 months later, he called to say he had broken up with the boyfriend and was moving out into his own apartment. Did my refusal to bless this sin have anything to do with the breakup? I have no idea. My son is still wandering in a far off country. But at least this godless union has been broken. He and I have never missed a beat with communication. God in his mercy continues to bless our relationship.
Parents and grandparents everywhere are struggling through a sea of confusion and desperate for godly pastors to AFFIRM their stand on the Word. Begg (I believe without realizing the implication) has now made this dilemma even more difficult. Bring a gift? Be in the wedding photos with the couple? Stand beside them and raise a glass to what breaks the heart of God? How does one stretch that far between two polar opposite beliefs?
It is an agonizing thing to watch the LGBTQ+ agenda bring such division and confusion to the body of Christ. I will continue to pray for Mr. Begg who has such tremendous influence and has always been such a gifted expositor of the bible. May God use it all for good as only He can.
I know people who are dealing with these situations in their own families. Waiting and praying while remaining on the porch is the hardest thing. How great the temptation to either slam the door against the prodigal or pursue him into the far country in a way that enables!
Thank you Anne for struggling with the pain and hurt of these issues, and for taking the time (how you do it all I do not understand) to use your gift to help us to better see how to navigate them. And, perhaps more importantly, for helping us to better express our own sorrows and discouragements in the midst of this battle we are daily gifted to fight. I too love--and have been greatly encouraged and blessed by--Alistair Begg, and I hurt for him-- and hurt for the Christian families I see struggling with how to navigate this issue in the manner Jesus would have us to. I am from Binghamton and sometimes wonder if my decades of prayers for my hometown, family and friends (and my spiritual weakness at not being able to endure the grey skies and streets and buildings--and the cold and snow until May --to be there myself) are not partly responsible for you and Matt being there😕. I at least do have the “strength” to pray for you all daily, for your church, for the ACNA and for your family-- from my relatively warm (and usually sunny 🫤) home here in Grayson, Georgia. Blessings.
...let goods and kindred go. This mortal life also. The body they may kill. God's truth abideth still. His Kingdom is forever.
...sitting on the porch in anguish and hope...
Pray. Fast. Make reparations for sin. That’s the way forward for all of us. But at the same time, we can’t lie to those on a path to destruction.
I grieve with you, Anne. He seems befuddled.
It might be well for us all to grab a copy of C. S. Lewis's _Reflections on the Psalms_ and read the chapter entitled "Connivance". Lewis points to a thread that runs thru the psalter, the idea that at times we must distance ourselves from certain people who are sinning in particularly conspicuous ways. No decent person wants to be estranged from a beloved child but we were warned: everything about us, including family ties, must be subject to Christ