Place In This World

I was inspired to write this blog post from reading The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins. Currently, I am halfway through the book. As a side note: If anyone would want to recommend books that they have really enjoyed, feel free to post them in the comments or e-mail me at gayeveryday@gmail.com. Even if it is a gay-themed novel, feel free to share it. The reason that I love reading is to gain life lessons from the stories and apply them to my own life. I love learning about the human condition – every aspect of it. From the happiness and joy of life to the sadness and despair of life. If my readers would like to see my review of The Hunger Games, I would be more than happy to review it, give my take on it.

One thing that I was hit by while reading The Hunger Games is Collins’ element of the Capitol. The 13 districts waged war previously with the Capitol to essentially overthrow it as their government and to create a new one but they failed. The 13th District was even obliterated to show that the Capitol is in control.  The Capitol is always reminding them in different ways that they will always rule over the people made me connect it with the United States today and Christians today. Currently, the United States is crumbling slowly whether people see it or not. I compared the Capitol to the United States now but more so in it’s heyday. Do other countries look at us like the people of Panem (the world of The Hunger Games) view the Capitol? We have all of this prosperity and luxury yet we are not willing to share it with the hurting people of the world? Katniss, the main character of the novel from whose perspective it is written, talks about never riding in a car or never taking a shower before being selected to be a part of the Hunger Games. Also in the novel, the Capitol created Tracker Jackers (a mutation of a bee that basically tracks a person down and kills them if bothered) to remind it’s people that they will always be under the Capitol. Do we have things in our lives that we look it that just discourage us? Maybe it is even thoughts that we are always coming back to that just discourage us from progressing, from moving forward. It encouraged me to have positive things in my life that give me strength. It could be a quote taped up on your bathroom mirror that can be looked at every morning getting ready but something that would be there to remind us that life is not all bad and to keep pressing on. Are we as Christians today the Capitol towards the world? Do we force our beliefs on everyone and tell them that that is just the way things are? Do we let people suffer of treatable diseases and hunger simply because we are lazy living in our “land of luxury” the United States? Are we just accumulating all this wealth just to say we have it when there are hurting people that could really use it but it is locked away in a huge bank account?

I look at famous Christian preachers and pastors and think why do they need the big houses and all these extra items that are expensive purchases. Hopefully one day, God willing, I can influence people all over the world with the love of Jesus to gay men specifically. Honestly, most of the money will go to the cause and not to my salary. There is a difference between living comfortably and living in luxury. I do not need luxury when there are people in the world stricken with all different difficult situations. I cannot even justify having it. Though, I look up at them and point my finger and I am not in their shoes so I could not say if I would be like them but I honestly strive not to be. There has been great efforts done to help the world but there is still work to be done. There is money just sitting in a luxurious home that would be better spend giving aid to hurting people.

As Christians, I think that it is okay for us to look nice and have nice things. God wants to bless us because we are His children and He loves us but when we have to have the biggest and the best, that is when it gets out of hand. If we are Christians, we have the Holy Spirit living inside of us and God calls our bodies temples. We need to take care of our bodies and one way to do that is to look your best. With looking our best, we should also have a kind and compassionate heart. Let us not be nice and clean on the outside but dirty on the inside.

Hopefully I make sense in this post. Sometimes I can get high and lofty when I make a connection. It makes sense in my mind but it might not be conveyed as clearly as it is for me.

I am reminded too through having started a blog that it is so easy to tell others what they need to be doing and not be doing it myself. I want to set the example and be living out the life that I challenge my readers to pursue. One of the ways I reach out and help is this blog to give hope and encouragement to gay men. I contacted my Pastor to have an evening of discussion with my church about simply sharing my testimony and living as a man who is a Christian and also attracted to other men. He is currently out of town but said he would definitely get back to me. As many of my readers know, dialogue is so important when it comes to the topic of gay people. One of the quotes I would like to start is “Honest communication is the key to healing.” It drives me to do what I do. Please pray that God would work in that area of my life and I would have the opportunity to share with my church my story as a gay Christian man and that they would see how some of  their beliefs are corrupt about gay people. I honestly believe that there are straight Christians out there that just make stuff up about gay people and spread it deceiving people when they are unwilling to even have an open conversation with a gay man. This is disheartening and sad to me.

Today, I had the urge to pray for gay men and gay teens. I just asked God to not let any gay man kill themselves today because they are gay. Though there probably will be gay teens that we still lose, I would encourage my readers to also pray that prayer with me. Also, pray for opportunities to comfort and encourage gay man and gay teens when they just need someone to be there for them.

I hope all of my readers have a blessed and wonderful week ahead!

-Josh

Response to Erik Rhodes’ Death

It has come to my attention, and the gay community’s attention, that Erik Rhodes has died of a heart attack at the age of 30. No official cause of death has been released at this time but he did use drugs and bodybuilding steroids. He was a gay porn star. Many Christians today would not want me talking about a porn star, let alone a gay porn star. I open myself up to attack in order to be real and honest about life. Problems will never be solved unless there is open and honest communication. We live in a world today where many different things happen, whether we believe they are acceptable acts or not. God uses tragic incidents in the lives of people for good. Though we always do not see them at first, there is a reason for bad things in our lives.

I ask myself what can we learn from Erik’s death. We do know a lot from the blog he kept about what was going on in his life before he died. Being in the spotlight from his career, it was hard for him to find the help that he truly needed. Some people were there to help but only in return for sex. No one was really genuine and honestly cared. Let us be genuine and real in our relationships with other people. When we ask someone how they are doing honestly want to know how they are doing, not just say it as empty words because that is what everyone else says. Let us take the time to truly care for one another. To my gay brothers, we need to be better than that. We should never use anyone for the return we can get. If that is our goal and our motive, we should not be a part of that person’s life. As gay men, we are more than just penises and sex. Let’s act like it.

It also reminds me to continuously reach out to hurting people who need our help. One way that I reach out is through this blog. I hope all of you are enjoying it and being encouraged. Always know anyone can e-mail me at gayeveryday@gmail.com if they need to talk about anything that is going on in their life or anything at all. I hear the cry for help from the gay community, the cry of oppression, pain, hurt, and hopelessness. I strive to reach out and help the hurting people. Though starting off with just a blog is a start, hopefully it will grow into an organization and impact many lives in a positive way.

Recently I have been going through some rough times in my life. When we are down about our life or our circumstances, though we may not always want to or feel like it, seek out someone for comfort and encouragement. That is why as a gay man it is so important to have a support system. Life is rough but we can all get through it with each other’s help. Have some good friends that can be there to be open and honest with. Erik was crying out for help but he did not have a support system so eventually he collapsed.

My heart goes out to Erik and his family. He did not need to die. This all could have been avoided. In the end though it happened for a reason. Months for now the gay community will have moved on, remember nothing of Erik Rhodes. I hope that in his death we would be more aware to be on the lookout for hurting people and genuinely help them – no strings attached.

What Would You Like To See?

Since I feel this blog should be applicable and relevant to its readers, I would like to ask: What would you like to see from this blog? What topics would you like me to cover? Being a 19 year old gay Christian man who has only been in a relationship for a week so far, I do not have much knowledge on many topics when it comes to being a gay Christian but I would love to come at these from an open and honest perspective. I would love to learn about these topics alongside you.

Feel free to post a comment on your ideas or feel free to e-mail me your ideas at gayeveryday@gmail.com. Thanks!

I will have a new post added tomorrow.

-Josh