Gestation periods are often longer than we think. When the Berlin wall came down it appeared that Communism had fallen suddenly, however the winds of change had been blowing for a long time.
For many people in their ordinary individual lives, change also takes time- sometimes a long time.
For many Christian people,in relation to their sexuality, there can be many years of denial, shame and anxiety, before there is an admission that maybe its o.k to be gay- or however you finally refer to yourself.
For me, amongst other things there was a fear of facing up to my sexuality, and of being put on the outside of a Church and away from friends which I held so dear. In the end , my fear and denial meant I made wrong choices which put me on the outside anyway.
The thing is, my main identity is as a child of God. I know that Jesus loves me and gave himself for me. That's the grounding of my life, in the Grace of God.
How good it is then to know that Jesus was put outside the camp,(Hebrews).... he died an outsider, or so they thought! Even the great Church leader Paul, spent so much of his time, in prison and without the friends he really cherished, some of whom left him. Not everyone was fine about Paul in the beginning. Read Philippians eg
Maybe there are times to live on the outside, and in vulnerability and uncertainty, learn to trust in the one who holds us in the palm of his hand.
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