Open Door Community Church is OPEN to ALL who will come. That includes those from the gay community as well as non-gays. I NEVER EVER thought I would be in a church like this, but once I visited, I wanted to come back. There is more love in this church than I have EVER experienced in any other church. Our pastor is anointed to preach the Word of God and our wonderful praise team leads us in worship together.
The reason we started attending Open Door was our son. Wayne told us about 7 years ago that he was gay. Jackie and I were devastated, to say the least!!!!! We didn't talk to him for about 2 weeks. We were both completely blown away by the news. We finally began to talk to each other a little bit and the relationship was eventually restored. We began to realize that he was the same son we raised, very loving, kind, considerate and giving. His partner, Darren, is also a wonderful young man. He is like another son to us.
I always believed what I was taught growing up......being gay is a sin. Jackie and I both finally realized that these people did NOT choose to be this way. Who would "CHOOSE" to live a life filled with being hated and misunderstood like they are?? I never knew that the word Christian and gay could be used in the same sentence as adjectives to describe a person until we got to know some of Wayne's friends and visited Open Door. These people have been outcast and hurt so badly by people who thought they were "right" in casting them out as rejects. God doesn't make mistakes and when I began to look back, I wondered, "Why didn't I see it?" The signs were there, but as a mother, I ignored them. There is something in their makeup (brain cells, genes, hormones or whatever) that make them "different" which is no fault of their own. If you stop and think about it, most of the people who are gay actually have some characteristics of the opposite sex. This is not something that they just made happen. Many have committed suicide because they were made to feel like they were not fit to live and breathe the same air. May God forgive us for ever causing another person to feel such rejection!
Jackie visited Open Door first and I was full of questions afterward. He told me that I would be amazed and really like it. He was right!! You can actually feel the presence of the Lord in this church and His unconditional love operates there loving people back to Him who have been so hurt and rejected. Jesus was always being ridiculed for those He associated with! He was always drawn to the outcast because they needed Him most.
Jackie and I still don't "understand" it all, but one day we will. This controversial subject makes me think about the problem with racism. As I think back to what it was like even 50 years ago, I can see what a very slow but steady progress there has been to bring us to where we are today....knowing that God created us ALL in His image and that He loves us ALL....no exceptions.
We thank God for helping us to see beyond the “expected” to the “exceptional” creation of His children!
This testimonial is from Lauretta Tedford, a member of Open Door Community Church.