Why the government is not our goal

by Laurie Krieg

For years, I have been watching changes in the government. Some states approve same-sex marriage, while others do not.

When I see the changes, I don’t get angry and I don’t celebrate. I simply think, Of course. Of course they would want to approve it. Of course they would want equality. 

I love God, I believe that marriage is supposed to be set apart for one man and woman, but I look at the world’s perspective on LGBT issues like I look at my at-risk students: 

Many of them don’t know Jesus, and have no clue about what the Bible says. The majority have no relationship with their fathers, and their mothers (if they are in the picture at all) are either strung out on drugs or are busting their tails, working 14-hour days to make ends-meet.*

When I watch some of them transform in a matter of days from a happy kid to a head-to-toe, red-wearing thug, part of my heart breaks, but another part thinks, Of course. Of course they would want to join a gang. 

They are lonely. The gangs promise “familia,” protection, money, significance, and a sense of belonging. Of course a kid who feels abandoned, insignificant, and sad would want to partner with people who see him or her. It literally feels right. It makes sense.

Why would they even have in their mind a Biblical moral code outside of us telling them it? Yes, they can see the truth in creation, but Paul says that he didn't know what was sinful until he read about it in the law. 

So what do I do with these students? Do I tell them their sins? Do I go to the teen center with a sign saying, “Gangsters go to hell!"

No. They’re just doing what seems right to them. 

Yes, there are those who are called to work in the government to make laws that protect us from violence, drug use, etc., but I know Matt and I are not called to that.  

For the last three years we have been focused on knowing these kids, understanding the reasons why they do what they do, and finding the wound in their hearts that make gang life (or any other myriad of things) so tempting. 

And then, we offer them an alternate solution that truly lasts. That truly satisfies.

This is why we are not focused on the government when it comes to marriage equality. 

Some of you may be called to work peaceably in Washington to change or maintain laws.  But in my opinion, I think we have too many believers in that category, and too many believers in no category at all.

The majority of Christians seem to be either voraciously fighting or silently sitting. 

That’s not biblical.

Jesus stood up for the woman caught in adultery. He could have picked up a stone and pitched it at her while the crowds cheered. Instead, he called out the Pharisees on their hypocrisy, and lovingly called her to more. He spoke into the hole or wound in her heart by treating her like a human, by coming to her defense, and by lovingly saying, I see you—not just your sin. 

That’s how I want to be seen. That’s how these at-risk kids want to be seen. That’s actually the only way they will ever hear me.

Yes, some may be called to work on government issues, but all of us are called to love.




*Please note that I am not saying this is the upbringing of LGBT people. I am simply making a comparison about how logical it is for some people to make the decisions they do.

Saying that, I am also not saying that same-sex attractions are a choice. What we do with them is.