1. It's possible to have a healthy relationship with your LGBTQ+ child.

Many Christian parents have told me that when their child came out to them, they were crippled by the fear of having to choose between their child and their faith.

This is a false binary.

Personally, I fall on the affirming side of the Christian debate around sexuality. This means that I affirm the belief that God can and does bless faithful, monogamous, same-sex relationships. However, I don’t shame conservative, Christian parents who aren’t in that same place.

For those parents on the traditional side of this debate, I’d say this: You can still hold to your faith perspective and have a healthy relationship with your LGBTQ child.

Will it be easy? No.

Will it take some effort to make it work? Yes.

Will your child still struggle with your non-affirming stance? Most likely.

But if you’re committed to lavishly loving your child NO MATTER WHAT, it’s possible. If you’re committed to listening to your child’s story with the intent of understanding (not correcting), it’s possible.

I know this is true, because this is the relational dynamic that exists between my mom and me. It took us a long time to get there, but we have a great relationship now. And I’ve seen many other parents do the same thing.  

Remember, no matter your theology, it’s possible to have a healthy relationship with your child.