Embracing Release

In my circles there's a lot of talk these days about serious issues. The top two doozies these days are homosexuality and gender roles. A lot of these conversations boil down to trying to figure out who's in and who's out (pun sort of intended).

• What is the correct, loving, and biblically accurate response to the gay community?
• What kind of woman do I want to be/what is the Christian community expecting me to be?
• Is it ok to be a stay-at-home mom and still want my husband to help do the dishes, parent the kids, and fold the laundry on a daily basis?
• How should a lesbian be involved in the life of the church?
• What does a "date-night" have to include?
• Should I love or despise Proverbs 31?
• Is it ok to be a woman and a pastor?
• Can I simultaneously want to look good on the outside/feel good on the inside, but cringe at the thought of maximizing my beauty for my man?
• Does love have limits - what did Jesus say?

I wish I had definitive, well thought out, well-researched answers for all of these questions. Take anyone of them and it's bound to either get you in trouble, snared in hypocrisy, or left feeling insane as you try and sort out facts from opinions. But wait, don't forget your own personal baggage, family of origin issues, and human brokenness. There are so many voices these days trying to come up with the "right" answers. And frankly it leaves me feeling flustered. One of the best/worst things about my personality is my ability to see things from different points of view. I'm reminded of that country song that says, "You've got to stand for something or you'll fall for anything." Is that what I am, a gutless, wishy-washy flip-flopper?

Last weekend I directed a Women's Retreat with the theme "Lay Down Your Burden." I think in light of the knot in my stomach it would be best to lay down the battle zone that seems to be going on in my head and heart. I pray that for now an acceptable answer to a lot of those tricky questions above is "I dunno." We might not be able to discern Truth here and now....but one glorious day it will be made clear. For all of us who claim to know God, to trust in Jesus Christ, and who seek the revelation of the Holy Spirit in our lives, may we embrace release.