After lunch we were asked to take about 15
minutes for a special time of prayer for “for our LBGTQI+ siblings” in the auditorium and
around the world. Special prayers because they feel the full weight of the
matters before this General Conference and excluded by a church leaving them
out.
Delegates were invited to move to the center
of the room where a cluster of folk had already circled-up around a rainbow
flag. Some did, but the circle remained rather small.
People were also encouraged to pray with the
“LBGTQI+ siblings” who were at the tables, and there were some table prayers, I
am sure, and more than I could discern, but I could almost feel a spirit of “whataboutism”
that seems to bow-up every time anything is mentioned.
"Whatabout" is a subtext of almost every conversation
here: "But what about the Bible?" "What about Love." Every statement or request
seems to raise a “but what about…?”
At this moment I could almost sense a “But
what about the delegates who feel their church is leaving them? Are we going to
have special prayers for them?”
The whole while the praise team was singing
the Hezekiah Walker song that most of us have heard. I Need You to Survive:
I need you, you need me.
We're all a part of God's body.
Stand with me, agree with me.
We're all a part of God's body.
It is his will, that every need be supplied.
You are important to me, I need you to survive.
I pray for you, you pray for me.
I love you, I need you to survive.
I won't harm you with words from my mouth.
I love you, I need you to survive.
It is his will, that every need be supplied.
You are important to me, I need you to survive.
We're all a part of God's body.
Stand with me, agree with me.
We're all a part of God's body.
It is his will, that every need be supplied.
You are important to me, I need you to survive.
I pray for you, you pray for me.
I love you, I need you to survive.
I won't harm you with words from my mouth.
I love you, I need you to survive.
It is his will, that every need be supplied.
You are important to me, I need you to survive.
The line that most jumped out at me were
these: I won’t harm you with words from
my mouth.
Certainly that is wonderful intent, but
unless no words are said at all this week (and even that is a kind of hurt to
those who need to hear blessing), I am not sure how the words that are being
and will be said this weekend can not hurt
someone. Such is our dilemma.
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