A BLOG BY ALAN CHAMBERS

Coverage of Exodus Conference

Check out some of the stories on the Exodus West Coast Regional Freedom Conference:

ABC News 30 in Fresno and Again

KSee 24 NBC

KMPH FOX 26 and Again

The Fresno Bee

 

Great Thread at ExGay Watch

I was very excited to see Wendy Gritter do a guest post on XGW and believe that it marks an important shift in Exodus' evolution.

There is way too much in that thread to respond to, but I will simply say, I invited Wendy to share her heart at the Exodus Leadership Conference in January knowing that she was going to bring new life and ideas to the table for consideration. I was one of the ones nodding positively as she spoke. I know there were many others with the same response.

I agree wholeheartedly that clarifications need to be made on confusing terminology that at times has been used incompletely or misused. The 'change’ factor is one that has confused many.  In one of my talks at Love Won Out I have begun saying, "When we use words like 'change' the burden is on us to clearly state what that means in our lives. Some have used the word 'change' hoping that it meant something it doesn't."

I echo Wendy's apology to those that have been unintentionally, but at times recklessly, misled by poorly defined labels and words used to describe the process out of homosexuality. It is no secret that I dislike the label ‘ex-gay’. For so many people I know, it doesn’t apply—though they struggle with same-sex attraction they never identified as ‘gay’. Is it applicable to some? Yes. But, it isn’t a label I choose to use for myself or for Exodus International. For that matter, I don’t think it should be a label that anyone uses primarily to describe themselves. We are all so much more than our sexual expressions.

There are a lot of challenging things written in the XGW thread (post and comments) on Wendy that I am thinking and praying about. What is said by gay activists is not lost on me. I do care how people are impacted by my words, actions and ministry. Ironically, I know the Lord uses every voice, suggestion, encouragement and criticism to shape me.

It is a New Day at Exodus International and despite our irreconcilable differences with some, I pray that we find new opportunities to dialogue with others, learn and grow in Christ’s image.

Thanks, Wendy, and all of you who contributed to the discussion at ExGayWatch.

Christianity Today on Exodus

If you haven't already, at least read the last three paragraphs from Tim Stafford's article in Christianity Today. We couldn't really ask for a more honest accolade of the work God is doing through Exodus. (An Older, Wiser Ex-Gay Movement: The 30-year-old ministry now offers realistic hope for homosexuals, Oct 07)

Which sums up much of ex-gay ministry today. No hype. Limited faith in techniques. No gay bashing. No detectable triumphalism, religious or political. Just serious discipleship. This may be the only group in America that realizes all the way to the bottom that when you decide to follow Jesus, you don't always get to do what you want to do.*

The ex-gay movement runs against the cultural tide. Given adverse public opinion, the ambivalent support of conservative churches, and the common assertion that ex-gays condemn themselves to a life of frustration, you would think the movement would shrivel. Yet Exodus affiliates have doubled in number over the last 18 years. Many of its leaders have been in the public eye for 20 to 30 years. They show every sign of stability.

They live by radical ideas about sexuality—that we are not, as our culture would have it, defined by our desires, heterosexual or homosexual. Rather, we are defined by our Creator and Savior. Our attractions, always disordered to some extent, must be submitted to Christ, who alone can redeem us. For those who feel strong same-sex attractions, that task is especially difficult. But it is the same basic struggle every Christian must face.

* Emphasis added.

Entire Article: http://www.christianitytoday.com/ct/2007/october/6.48.html

Anti Bullying Statement

A few years back my friend Mike Bussee and a friend of his were attacked in Los Angeles.  They were victims of a senseless act of violence simply because they were gay.  Mike's friend died as a result of that attack.  I know he grieves the loss of his friend every day and has many times encouraged me to speak out against such violence as well as milder forms of violence that we call bullying.

I was a victim of bullying in middle school.  Sixth grade for me was so horrific that I once told my wife that I wouldn't go back to that year for millions of dollars.  Tragically, kids who are "different" are targeted every day by bullies from the playground to the locker room and I want to be someone that helps to end that form of abuse.

At Exodus we do seek to educate those who are ignorant about homosexuality.  That education isn't short on biblical truth about the issue, but neither is it short on the biblical truth surrounding treating your neighbor as you'd like to be treated.   Exodus Youth is taking these truths to the schools and churches and to anyone willing to listen.

It is because of our extreme opposition to bullying and violence and our desire to see it stopped that we approved this statement today.  It will appear on the positions page of the Exodus website starting tomorrow.            

             Exodus Position Statement on Bullying

“Exodus International affirms that gay-identified individuals and those who struggle with same-sex attraction are persons for whom Jesus Christ died and loves equally. Therefore, we strongly oppose bullying, name calling and acts of aggression against any individual or group of individuals for any reason. These actions have no place in our society and we must, instead, affirm behavior that validates the personal worth and dignity God bestows upon every human being.

“In addition, every individual deserves equal protection and every offender should receive equal punishment. We call upon other organizations concerned with preserving the essential equality of all individuals to exhibit impartiality in their policies, rather than singling out some for special treatment.”

Mike, thanks for your patience and encouragement to get this done.  I am sorry for what you have been through, my friend.

Nominee Miers & 'Exodus'

Picture this, me sitting in my office yesterday morning at 7:30am when all of a sudden my wife, Leslie, calls to not only inform me that President Bush has done what the AP reported he would do (nominate Harriet Miers), but also listed that his nominee has volunteered for 'Exodus Ministries'.  Leslie and I laughed and she said, "Get ready for the phone to start ringing off the hook."

Leslie was right.  Every major and minor, local and national, media outlet known to man called us.  Not to mention many of our friends on Capital Hill, other pro-family groups and our own constituents at Exodus International.

It was an enormous encouragement to know that so many people knew of Exodus International and that their first thought was of us.  Whether their respective opinion of Exodus International is positive or negative, at least people knew of our existence. In fact we even got honorable mention in the noon time White House Briefing.

One friend on Capital Hill said, "At least we now know the press’ lack of reporting on the “ex-gay” community is willful resistance and not just lack of knowledge whatsoever." 

So, if you are still sitting on the edge of your seat wondering if future Justice Harriet Miers did actually volunteer for Exodus International...she did not.  You can read our statement here.  Though, we would welcome her involvement.

Exodus Aids in Victorious Transgender Case

The Herald-Star

Ruling made in case of gender identity

STEUBENVILLE - A Jefferson County common pleas court judge has ordered a male child must remain a male, despite the desire of the mother to diagnose her son as having gender identity disorder. A Jefferson County woman and her ex-husband, who lives in Colliers, are involved in a custody battle for their 9-year-old son. At the heart of the custody case was the boy's desire to wear women's clothing, at least when he is with his mother.

The boy's mother had taken the child to a couple doctors, who diagnosed him with gender identity disorder. Then, the boy's father took him to different doctors, who did not diagnose him with the disorder.

GID is a disorder in which a male or female exhibits characteristics of, insists they are and enjoys the activities of the opposite sex. To be diagnosed with GID, a person must exhibit four of five main criteria listed by the Harry Benjamin Study, the benchmark of GID studies.

Common Pleas Judge Joseph Bruzzese Jr. issued his ruling on the case Friday ruling in favor of the father. In the judge's order, he stated the mother embraced the idea of GID long before she took her son to the first doctor.

Bruzzese states in the order that when her son was 4 she told him "he could grow up and be a girl" and has been taking the son to transgender support groups. The order states the mother's boyfriend is an apparent male, who used to be a female, that she met at one of these support groups.

"(The) mother has not only been supportive of (name deleted)'s female identity, but has actually charged headlong into it with the apparent objective of making it come true," Bruzzese's order states.

During hearings on the case, testimony was presented the mother enrolled her son as a transgender at a Niles school. The mother said she was enrolling her son as a transgender partly on the advice of two doctors. The doctors suggested the boy undergo a real-life experience, during which he would dress and live as a girl for an extended period of time.

However, both doctors said a real-life experience should be done in the community the child lives in, based on the guidelines of the American Psychiatric Association's Diagnostic Statistical Manual 4, which is a manual of mental and emotional conditions that lists criteria for diagnosing conditions.

The court stopped the enrollment when the father found out. This is also when the court ordered the boy to be dressed as a boy and referred to as such.

In July, the mother took the boy to Geauga Lake in a bikini, despite the court order. The mother also violated the court order by referring to her son as "she" and "transgender."

The parents have a shared parenting plan, where they are both the residential parent during different days of the week. Before the ruling, the mother was the majority residential parent.

Bruzzese ruled the mother will have the couples' two children from Sunday evening through Tuesday evening and the father will have the children the remaining five days. The judge also ordered the child not be permitted to wear girl clothes or go by a girl's name.

Bruzzese said the boy cannot attend transgender support groups. He warned the mother that, given her prior history of disobeying court orders, any small infraction of the orders may result her receiving only supervised visitation.

Bruzzese also said both parents should undergo psychological evaluations and the child shall receive counseling.

Hovershot

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Exodus is Influencing

Last week I continued my work with the Marriage Amendment Project in Washington, DC. The MAP is a diverse coalition of leaders from around the nation dedicated to preserving marriage as it was intended: one man and one woman for one lifetime. For more information on the MAP: Protect Marriage and For Marriage

While in DC, Leslie and I had the incredible opportunity to attend a number of events commemorating The National Day of Prayer, including a small gathering at the White House where President Bush spoke about prayer and its importance.

Below are some fun photos with new and old friends including: Lt. Colonel Oliver North, Vonette Bright (Co-Founder of Campus Crusade for Christ), Dennis and Melinda Jernigan and one of President Bush praying.

Massachusetts Marriage Affirmation & Protection Amendment

Alan Chambers Testifies Before the Massachusetts Judiciary Committee

Honorable Co-Chairs and Members of the Massachusetts Judiciary Committee:

My name is Alan Chambers. I am an independence loving and voting citizen of the United States of America. I am a lover of freedom and a defender to the death of every person's God created right to choose for themselves what kind of life they desire to lead, liberties they strive to take and happiness's they yearn to pursue. It is every individual's right to govern themselves in a manner in which they best see fit. Making right and wrong choices is a developmental part of becoming a responsible adult able to think for oneself.

A wise friend once said that rules are for babies; mature adults are able to moderate themselves. The United States of America is becoming a nation of court mandated do's and don'ts. Our culture is redefining right and wrong based on these new directives. As we come to rely on and live by these new rules, Americans are digressing in their maturity and ability to assume personal responsibility. Forcing every big and small battle into the courts is creating an increasingly childish society dependent on the court to parent us. We are signing away our God given freedom to choose, a right that our forefathers died to give us. Maturity is most tangibly seen when, although we have been empowered by God with the freedom to choose to do anything we please, we live by a code of self-governed restraint.

As you all know, Goodridge v. the Massachusetts Department of Public Health is a case before the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court in which 7 same sex couples are demanding marriage licenses. That court's response to this case will either continue to whittle away our freedoms or strengthen them; contribute to our cultural need for a baby sitter or empower us to live within the already sufficient set of boundaries that has defined marriage since the beginning of time. I hope that the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court will deny these 7 couples marriage licenses thus guarding this state, and quite possibly our entire nation, against frivolous lawsuits, which ultimately restrict our overall freedoms. These couples have every right to be together, but their behavioral, not genetic, choices should not be allowed to infringe on society as a whole.

Today, I exhort you: vote in favor of the Marriage Affirmation and Protection Amendment; reaffirm what every culture in history has held sacred: marriage between one man and one woman. A vote in favor of this amendment is a public declaration in support of the bedrock of this great nation. A vote against this amendment is a bullet fired at the family. Corporately, you have the ability to head off a decision that could forever negatively alter the hallowed and deified uniting of one man and one woman by redefining holy matrimony. I urge you to uphold what is moral, legal and right and what honors those leaders who have gone before you.

Finally, having grown up with a homosexual orientation, having lived as an openly gay man, I once dreamed of living in a monogamous same sex marriage relationship. Today, having experienced sexual reorientation, now living a heterosexual lifestyle for the past 11 years and enjoying the bonds of heterosexual marriage for over 5 years, I can attest firsthand to the fact that same-sex marriage is not needed. I can also attest to the fact that same-sex marriage is not what those seeking it are ultimately after. I implore you all to ask yourselves the question, "What's next?" If marriage is redefined to include homosexuals, then what will the next battle be? I guarantee this is only the beginning of wide sweeping legislation changes that seek to limit the freedoms of many in the name of expanding the freedoms of a few. No other behaviorally defined group in history has sought to redefine our culture like the Gay and Lesbian Elite. Re-affirm today that our current freedoms are sufficient for all, that Gay and Lesbian people already have the God created right to choose for themselves what kind of life they desire to lead, liberties they strive to take and happiness's they yearn to pursue. Re-affirm that more rules are not necessary and that the morality of a few is not enough to redefine morality for us all.

Vote yes to protecting the children of today. Vote yes to protecting children of tomorrow. Vote yes to protecting the family. Vote yes on the Marriage Affirmation and Protection Amendment.