The Issue: Gender and Sexuality

• What Is Transgenderism?
• Transgender Policies
• How Do Christians Respond to Cultural Efforts to Redefine Gender?
• What Do Those Who Wish to Redefine Gender Really Want? 
• Personal Stories

Transgenderism is an umbrella term defining a person who does not self-identify (in thought, feeling, behavior, or identity--or any combination thereof) with the sex they are born with. Terms encompassed by the word "transgender" include: cross-dresser, transvestite, gender-bender, "two-spirit," gender-blender, and gender-queer. 

The push for "transgender rights" flows from the gay rights movement and is based upon the premises that gender is merely a social construct and that the sexes are interchangeable.

The transgender movement undermines the fundamental order divinely established by God, to reflect who He is and who we were created to be.

LGBT activists are working overtime to pass transgender policies in any arena they can--schools, athletic associations, insurance policies, and more.

It is important to understand that these policies are simply the latest effort by LGBT activists to completely redefine gender and sexuality--forcing everyone to accept and celebrate their new definition along the way.

As believers who rejoice in God's perfect design, men and women who are reflections of God Himself, we have a duty to speak the truth in love on this issue, to vocally and actively oppose these transgender policies before it is too late, and to affirm God's good design and plan for His people wherever we can.

• Check out ways to get involved HERE!
• Learn what's TRUE & FALSE about transgender policy proposals!
• Wonder what happened with MN State High School League's transgender athlete policy, and what you can do about it?

That’s easy—LOVE.  The Christian response should always be one of love because we serve the God who IS Love and Who BECAME Love in the flesh.

 And Love doesn’t lie. Being loving means always speaking the truth—in love (Eph. 4:15). Love never rejoices in wrongdoing—it rejoices in TRUTH (1 Cor. 13:6).

 Responding in love means there’s no room for the follower of Jesus to disregard the pain of those struggling with their gender identity.

Responding in love certainly also means that there’s no room for the follower of Jesus to help spread the lie that because you “feel deeply internally” that you are a girl makes you a girl when God fearfully and wonderfully made you a boy in His own image (Psalm 139:14)!

 And, when it comes to children, we have an even greater duty to protect and ensure that they are not being fed lies that will harm them. Jesus said it would be better for us to drown than to cause one of His children to stumble and sin!  (Matthew 18:5-6)

 Part of Turning the Lights Back On in Minnesota means letting YOUR light shine—speaking the truth in LOVE.

 Join us as we help shed light and truth on the harm that rejecting God's design for our basic biology will cause to our kids, our schools, and our ability to speak the Truth about who God designed us to be.

#LightsOnMN     #TruthInLove

*Read more on this topic from former Senior Pastor of Bethlehem Baptist Church and founder of DesiringGod.org John Piper who describes how just as physical nature reveals the truth about God, physical nature also reveals the truth about sexual identity.

Whom we should worship is not left to our preferences, and who we are sexually is not left to our preferences. Both are dictated by God's revelation in nature. 

1. Complete redefinition of gender & acceptance of a "gender continuum."

GLSEN, the Gay, Lesbian & Straight Education Network, wants people to start moving beyond "binary" thinking. 

• TRANSLATION (provided by our ally, Focus on the Family): The message is clear–God-designed biological genders have absolutely no meaning, so people can create their own gender and sexuality any way they see fit. According to GLSEN’s definitions, people are not born with a biological gender, they are merely “assigned” it by a narrow-minded society.

Indeed, GLSEN's "Jump Start Guide," their guide to making Gay-Straight Alliance student clubs more "trans friendly," lists exactly 22 different terms, complete with gender-neutral pronouns "zie" and "hir"  people need to know to "move beyond the binary." The organization TRANS*ATHLETE lists 26 terms with which we must be familiar. 

• For those wondering what LGBT activists label someone who is biologically male and self-identifies as male (or vice versa), the term is "cisgender."
   
• And we can't forget the school in Nebraska hoping to avoid all this confusion by labeling their students "Purple Penguins."  (Not a joke. CLICK HERE.)

Complete redefinition of gender (including new nouns, adjectives and pronouns) is just the beginning. LGBT activists also want everyone to accept "gender continuum or gender fluidity" which is defined as "a wider, more flexible range of gender expression, with interests and behaviors that may even change from day to day (TRANS*ATHLETE); and "people who identify their gender to be somewhere on the continuum, in between, or outside the binary gender system altogether" (GLSEN).

• TRANSLATION: The message is clear that not only should God-designed biological genders have no meaning, but God had the entirely wrong classification system in place from the beginning. "Male and female He created them" is completely rejected and replaced with an emphasis on human behavior that changes day-to-day over the Creator.

Take a first-hand look at this Brave New World below. These are actual screenshots from GLSEN's website. Notice what's missing?  Apparently being a MAN or a WOMAN is now meaningless.

By the way, for those who reject redefinition of gender and affirm the uniqueness of MAN and WOMAN as God created them, we are labeled by  LGBT activists as "transphobic," which is defined as:  “Forcing people to select ‘female’ or ‘male’ on forms … Having the sex one was assigned at birth printed on one’s driver’s license …” (GLSEN)

• TRANSLATION: Name-calling ("homophobic," "transphobic," "bigot," "ignorant," etc.) in order to label opposition is a common tactic to intimidate people into silence. 
  
  But, as Dale O'Leary (longtime author &journalist who has researched & written on gender issues) says:  "As Christians we cannot lie...We have to be courageous enough to tell the truth. We have to get the message out. It's so important. Even if we lose the first 20 times, we've got to keep going."

2. A society where gender is meaningless.

3. Access to transgender "health care" and insurance coverage.

LGBT activists are demanding access to transgender "health care" and insurance coverage, as a matter of "right."

It is important to know what types of "therapies" and procedures are included--especially for children-- in the term "transgender health care." 

HORMONE "THERAPY" (advocated for use on children, as well as adults):

1. Step 1:  GnRH Hormone Blockers
   
   In this stage of "treatment" (we use that term very loosely) doctors actually inject (or implant) prepubescent or early pubescent children with drugs that stop the onset of puberty so that they do not naturally develop their secondary sex characteristics (e.g., facial hair for men, menstruation for women, etc.)--giving children "more time to decide" if they identify as male or female. 
   
   No sufficient long-term studies have been done on the effect of this on children.
    
2. Step 2: Cross-Sex Hormones
   
   This stage of "treatment" (again, used loosely) is recommended for children BEFORE they even develop their secondary sex characteristics. During this stage, children receive cross-sex hormones. In other words, if a child is male, he receives Estrogen. If a child is female, she receives Testosterone. This is seen as part of the process to "transition" a child to help their bodies "match their gender identity."
   
   As if this weren't bad enough, these transgender "health specialists" recommend that transgender children receive this treatment BEFORE puberty (We're talking 9, 10, 11, 12-year-olds here.), yet prolonged use of these cross-sex hormones will "make biological children very unlikely for these transgender children in the future."  TRANSLATION: These doctors are rendering children INFERTILE before they even reach high school!
   
   Not surprisingly, these "health experts" also note that for men taking Estrogen, Viagra® is often also prescribed for significant sexual dysfunction... Hard to believe this stuff passes for academic and medical isn't it?
   
   The "doctors" also warn that a woman taking testosterone to "transition to a man" is still at risk of becoming pregnant if she has sex with a biological man. 
   
   Again, no sufficient long-term studies have been done on these "treatments." 
    

SEXUAL REASSIGNMENT SURGERY (not typically advocated for use on children):

1. Step 3: Sexual Reassignment Surgery
   
   The only good news about this section is that these transgender "health experts" do not (yet) advocate these procedures for use on children.
   
   Take a look at the various procedures recommended for a man struggling with gender identity and who wants to be a woman:  (1) removal of testes; (2) removal of penis; (3) breast augmentation; (4) reduction of thyroid cartilage; (5) voice surgery; (6) plastic surgery for facial feminization; (7) vaginoplasty (construction of a "vagina" to simulate female sexual function using tissue from the penis). 
   
   Take a look at the various procedures recommended for a woman struggling with gender identity and who wants to be a man:  (1) bilateral mastectomy; (2) hysterectomy; (3) metoidioplasty (creating a "penis" from the clitoris that is enlarged from testosterone use); (4) phalloplasty (creating a "penis" using tissue from another part of the body); (5) scrotoplasty (creating a "scrotum" from implants or other tissue); (6) urethoplasty (creating "urethral canal"); (7) vaginectomy (removal of vagina, aka female mutilation). 
    

As you read this, please take a moment to pray for those struggling with their gender identity and the "doctors" who might recommend these drugs and procedures. Pray for their protection and hunger to rejoice in the body our loving and all-knowing God gave them, not to permanently harm it. 

Sources:

• OutFront Minnesota: Insurance Coverage for Transgender Services
• Center of Excellence for Transgender Health: "Youth: Special Considerations"
• Lambda Legal: "Transition-Related Health Care"
• Center of Excellence for Transgender Health:  "Hormone Administration" 
• Center of Excellence for Transgender Health:  Surgical Options

Walt Heyer

It all started when Walt was very young.

Unbeknownst to his parents, when he'd stay at his grandma's house, she would dress him in a purple chiffon dress.  

She'd lavish him with praise and attention when he was dressed as a girl, while withholding her love when he was who he was--a boy.

This set in motion a lifetime of confusion and alcohol abuse, ultimately leading to sexual reassignment surgery in his mid-forties where he had his male genitalia removed to help him live as a woman.

Of course, this didn't resolve his underlying problems. 

Read Walt's story and learn how he was finally able to get the help he needed and transition back to a man. 

He asks:  "What will the trans-kids of 2015 be like sixty years from now?"

Indeed. 

What are we doing to our kids, and how many of these tragic stories must we create before we realize our own foolishness?

Denise Shick

When Denise was nine years old, her father told her a secret--he wanted to be a woman.

Over time, this led to him wearing Denise's clothes and abandoning their family. Meanwhile, Denise struggled with her own sexuality, alcohol, and thoughts of suicide.

On her wedding day, instead of showing her a father's love, Denise's father said: "I wish it were me in that dress" before he walked her down the aisle. 

But, Denise's story is also one of redemption through Christ, and how the love and true life found only in Jesus Christ was demonstrated to her through the love of her husband.

Denise now says:  "Today’s culture proclaims that a person who chooses to change gender is being honest and courageous—true to his or her nature. Truth? Truth is what aligns with reality, and the reality is my dad was abused as a child....  The “reality” TV shows that portray transgenderism as the new frontier in human freedom and self-fulfillment are not telling the whole story. I know from experience."

I think Denise and others who have experienced similar family situations would agree that their stories are far from "safe" and "healthy." 

Read her entire powerful testimony here.

Thomas

Thomas is being raised by a lesbian couple in CA. According to the couple, Thomas insisted he was a girl, so they found a doctor to prescribe hormone blockers to Thomas at age 11, to be continued till age 14. 

Hormone blockers halt the natural onset of puberty.

A professor of psychology at Johns Hopkins calls giving hormone inhibitors to children "child abuse." 

The long-term effects of this are unknown, but senior managing health editor at FoxNews.com says: "Potential long-term effects can include other abnormalities of hormones, vascular complications and even potential cancer."

Then, at age 14, if the lesbian couple permits Thomas to continue transitioning to "Tammy", cross-sex hormones will be prescribed.

The long-term effects of these are also largely unknown, but what IS known is that cross-sex hormones taken for a long period of time WILL lead to infertility.

Thus, this lesbian couple will take away their child's fertility starting at age 14.

Safe?  Healthy? 

Read the rest of the Fox News story on Thomas.

Jazz Jennings

Jazz Jennings has become the new face of the transgender movement.

Jazz is a 14-year-old boy who identifies as a girl. He is an activist for the transgender movement and an author--and recently landed a new reality show about his life on TLC channel. 

In a news article about Jazz's new show, Jazz says: "I like some boys in my class at school but no one likes me back. It upsets me. I worry it’s because I’m not pretty."

Jazz also noted that he plans to undergo gender reassignment surgery at age 18. This is the same surgery Walt Heyer (above) underwent.

The article does not note whether Jazz is taking hormone blockers or cross-sex hormones.

It bears asking: What will happen to Jazz in 50 years? What are Jazz's parents setting him up for for the rest of his life? What will the long-term medical and psychological effects be?

Is this path set out for him by his parents really safe and healthy?

Ryland

At age  2, Ryland, a biological girl, reportedly told her parents that she was a boy and started rejecting feminine things like dresses and "girly" toys, and wanted to cut her hair. Her parents decided to affirm the toddler's "gender choice" at age 5.

As blogger Matt Walsh says:

"She’s a child with a child’s brain saying childish things. Her parents took advantage, and now they’re using her to earn the attention and admiration of our progressive society.

Harsh? Not nearly harsh enough. This girl is being abused, and we’re all watching and applauding."

Read more.

Matthew Attonley

Largely funded by Britain public healthcare, Matthew received breast implants, underwent genital mutilation surgery, and called himself "Chelsea." Now, he is pushing to receive public funding to reverse the surgery, stating:

"I have always longed to be a woman, but no amount of surgery can give me an actual female body and I feel like I am living a lie.

It is exhausting putting on make-up and wearing heels all the time. Even then I don't feel I look like a proper woman.

I suffered from depression and anxiety as a result of the hormones too.

I have realised it would be easier to stop fighting the way I look naturally and accept that I was born a man physically."

Read more.

Caden (AKA "Kat") Boone

Born Caden Boone, he underwent gender mutilation surgery at the young age of 18 to "transition" to a girl after he went online and decided that his feelings of not fitting in during puberty were because he was "transgender." 

The NYT reported:

It was too late to change some things, like Kat’s tenor voice and facial hair. “I hate my voice,” she said. “I shave.” She chose not to save sperm — to her, a revolting reminder of masculinity — so she cannot have children, the one sacrifice that gave her father a pang.

The operation involved deconstructing her male genitals and repurposing the nerves and skin as female anatomy.

When it was over, Kat developed aspiration pneumonia and had vomiting and dry heaves for days, normal reactions to anesthesia, narcotics and antibiotics, but Dr. McGinn said Kat was hit harder than most.

Before the surgery, she had been impish and playful. Now she buried her nose in her Nintendo 3DS and cracked a rare smile at an old text message consisting entirely of “Meow,” “Meow.”

Her father felt helpless as she refused food and lost about 20 pounds. Dr. McGinn said it was not unusual for patients to become depressed after surgery and compared this to postpartum depression.

Kat was anxious about having enough privacy in college, since her new vagina needs constant care or it will close off like a wound. “The only thing I’m thinking about now is the room situation,” she said.

The National Review wraps up this story best:

"Words fail. At this moment, I’m reminded of Christ’s warnings to those who prey on children: “If anyone causes one of these little ones–those who believe in me–to stumble, it would be better for them to have a large millstone hung around their neck and to be drowned in the depths of the sea.” May God have mercy on their souls, and may God bless Kat Boone."

Read more.

Brad (AKA "Ria") Cooper

Born Brad Cooper, he made the news when he became the Britain's youngest sex-change patient in 2011 at the young age of 17.

Prior to beginning to take cross-sex hormones, Brad said this:

"I hate my body as it is now. I've known for years I'm a woman - I think and act like a woman, not a man. I don't want years of misery.

I want it done as soon as possible so I can be the person physically that I am on the inside.

People might think I'm too young to make such a huge decision but I know my own mind and this is what I want."

Brad now explains that living as a woman was "torment," that the hormones wrecked him emotionally, and he tried to commit suicide twice. He hopes to join the armed forces after he recovers.

Read more.