The Tale of Two Prides
Pastor’s Perspective, Stevens County Times
June 2024
By Pastor Tim White
June is here. I love this month, but honestly, I have been struggling with this month’s column, considering the proliferation and ongoing promotion of “Pride Month” by LGBTQ advocates. I am curious that a 2023 Gallup poll finds that “about 68% of Americans identify with a Christian religion (including 33% who are Protestant, 22% Catholic, and 13% who identify with another Christian religion or simply as a ‘Christian’)” compared to anywhere from 2% to maybe 8% of Americans who identify with one or more of the letters of associated with gay behavior. I am curious why the comparative representation between the two groups is so disproportionate.
How did a “super-minority” (2-8%) of those whose identity centers on one’s unnatural sexual desires and behaviors take center stage in a society with a “super-majority” (68%) claiming to be Christian? I know that not all self-described “Christians” are following the Bible, and we had an example of that last Easter. Our self-professing Catholic President might as well have spit on the most sacred day of the Christian calendar when he proclaimed it “Transgender Day of Visibility” (TDV)! In 2009, Trans Student Educational Resources chose March 31st to be TDV. The worldwide Easter Celebration began about 2,000 years ago – just saying.
Pause for a moment and hear me out. I am asking for your patience and understanding as I simply ask a question others may be afraid to ask for fear of being verbally attacked or worse.
To those who support homosexual relationships, June is called “Pride Month,” formerly “Gay Pride.” But it would not be an exaggeration to say that the LGBTQ community has more of the annual calendar – including three complete months (March, October, and June) as well as several weeks in certain other months – than any other faith, ideology, or organization. Why?
“Pride Month” (according to Boutique Bellesa’s website) refers to “… the unapologetic pride that comes with being true to oneself. That’s at the very heart of Pride Month.” However, seeking one’s worth and significance by yielding to one’s feelings, desires, and passions is like wandering through a forest with a broken compass. You are bound to get lost entirely.
Feelings change like a typical politician’s “core values.” The “tools” we use in the search for our identity will determine our success or failure. Those tools must be accurate and set to consistent standards based on reality. In this case, the reality of biology, science, and the witness of nature (and I would include the Bible).
Sadly, the growing number of “de-transitioning” young people and adults gives testimony to the broken compass others encouraged them to use, which led them into the darkness they are now escaping. They find no “Pride” in what they found and consequently lost along the way.
The American Psychiatric Association’s website lists multiple reports of the disproportionate number of accounts of emotional instability, depression, and suicide among those identifying as any one of those letters. The disproportionate emotional fragility within the LGBTQ lifestyle should reveal the falsehood that one’s identity (value and purpose) is found in giving into one’s feelings or passions.
How many video clips have we already seen about the anger and incivility toward someone who would not use grammatically incorrect pronouns or deny biology by saying a man can get pregnant if he feels that he is a woman? Furthermore, anyone who claims to have “found their true self” and yet demands the affirmation of others to be happy in this life has found a counterfeit, which is evident by its constant need to be propped up by others' approval.
I have come to some unscientific conclusions from my observations over the 52 years I have been following Christ: As a follower of Christ, Jesus told us that rejection by the unbelieving world is to be expected, but to “take heart, I have overcome the world.” My status as a Child of God, a follower of Christ, is secured in heaven “where moth and rust cannot destroy.” If someone doesn’t affirm my faith – that’s too bad, but it changes nothing regarding who I am – a forgiven and free Child of God.
I am also proud of my American heritage, which is filled with people who came from all walks of life and became national heroes and role models for every generation that followed. I know they were not perfect, but what set them apart was their commitment to the conviction that “all men are created equal and are endowed by their Creator with certain inalienable rights.” By that conviction and the oppression from a tyrant King, they willingly “pledged their lives, their fortunes, and their sacred honor” to establish liberty for generations to come – including ours.
Some of our most significant national holidays are in June: World War II D-Day Remembrance Day on June 6th, Flag Day on the 14th, and Father’s Day on Sunday the 16th. These holidays, only weeks before our National Birthday on July 4th, remind us of the cost of freedom and the need for each generation to be ready to follow our ancestors’ example. Our pride in being American centers upon honoring and upholding the godly history and courageous acts of brave men in battle and strong women who stood for what was right and proper no matter the cost.
I include Father’s Day because today’s need for godly men and fathers cannot be overstated. Statistics reveal how communities and people groups suffer significantly from the lack of fathers in the home. When godly men of integrity work to provide for their families, honor and love their wives, and lead their families in faith and life, communities and societies become stronger and healthier – history proves this. And so, on Father’s Day, we say we are proud of them for their actions and how, in their imperfection, they demonstrated true masculinity. This expression of pride is fitting and proper.
There is hope for those experiencing the emptiness and regrets of misguided decisions. Your life is of great worth and incredible potential. Your “true self” will be discovered when you bring all of yourself to the Father in Heaven. He has provided everything for your forgiveness, salvation, and deliverance through your repentance and faith in Christ as Savior and Lord.
Instead, the ultimate fulfillment in this life is found in knowing the Creator and Father, where our identity is as a child of God, forgiven and free from all shame and guilt. A fulfilled life is about finding and entering His purposes as one grows in a transforming relationship with their Heavenly Father through it all. Strength and confidence come from learning to control our passions and temptations (instead of giving in to them), which builds a stronger person and creates better marriages, families, and societies.
We can be proud to have this record in our nation’s history, even though we recognize that not everything was done perfectly. What prevents one from becoming arrogant and obnoxious is holding close to one’s heart the tremendous cost many paid that we may be free. I would expand the meaning of this kind of pride to mean one who is “gratefully unashamed.” With this historical perspective, one cannot become arrogant or think “more highly of oneself than one ought, but rather with sober judgment…” (Rom 12:3).
And now, each succeeding generation must awake to their need to faithfully steward the gift of liberty placed in their hands – with no less resolve – gratefully unashamed and willing to defend and protect the God-given rights for which so many gave “their last full measure of devotion.” Character traits such as dignity, honor, integrity, valor, morality, and self-control are what heroes are made of. These individuals do not need or want affirmation from others. Such character traits developed and lived out in one’s life are their own reward.
Proverbs 11:2 (NIV84) states: “When pride comes, then comes disgrace, but with humility comes wisdom.”
C.S. Lewis stated in his book, “Mere Christianity,” “As long as you are proud, you cannot know God. A proud man is always looking down on things and people, and, of course, as long as you are looking down, you cannot see something that is above you.” I lovingly invite my LGBTQ neighbors to look up. He loves you and is ready to save you as He saved me and many others!