September 11, 2012

(ExodusInternational.org) Excerpts from Ethan Martin’s real story: “She [mother] called me and asked me if I was gay, and in a moment of honesty, I told her that I was. I told her that I had been struggling since middle school and no amount of church activities, praying, fasting, leading, etc. helped take away my attractions. She said something to me in that phone conversation that I will never forget. She said ‘Ethan, I will love you no matter what you choose for your life.’ This was shocking to me.”

“Let me explain why. I was raised in church where I constantly heard that homosexuality was an abomination. When the pastors would list sins, homosexuality would be the most prominent. There seemed to be an unspoken message that homosexuality was a worse sin than any other. And when I was struggling with temptation, it was really difficult to constantly hear that MY temptation might be worse than others.” … “Looking back at that moment in my life almost 10 years ago, I attribute the softening of my heart to the unconditional love of my mom. It brought me back to the love of Jesus.” Link to Ethan Martin’s real story on the Exodus International website.