Published by Scottie
I am an older gay guy in a long-term wonderful relationship. My spouse and I are in our 36th year together. I love politics and news. I enjoy civil discussions and have no taboo subjects. My pronouns are he / him / his and my email is Scottiestoybox@gmail.com
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Scottie, this is an interesting question. I believe in God deeply, but I also believe faith should bring people together rather than become something we force upon one another. Freedom of religion also means respecting the freedom of others.
This is one of the reasons I wrote my book, Faith Beyond Labels. For me, faith isn’t about the label we carry—Christian, Muslim, Jewish, or anything else. It’s about our relationship with God and how that faith shows through our love, compassion, respect, and treatment of other human beings.
Maybe the bigger question isn’t only, “Is Jesus happy with America?” Maybe we should also ask: Are we treating one another in a way that would make God proud? 🙏❤️
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Hello Sean. Thank you for the comment. I am not sure if you know my life was saved by a highly religious man who found me beaten and suffering in his barn. I worked for him, but he had no idea of my abuse. I begged him to let me spend the summer in his barns while working for him, but he had a different idea. He cornered my abusers and got them to let me go to the church school; his faith ran. I left a few days later for that school. He paid for everything, never asking me for a cent. I spent the summer and my senior year of high school there. I have no idea what a year and a half in a private school cost this man, but it saved my life. He wanted to put me through college to be a preacher in their faith, but I couldn’t bear to tell him I was gay, and with my abuse, I knew I liked same-sex with men. So I went into the military. I think now their religion accepts gay people if they promise never to enjoy the touch of another, but that is so cold and unworkable.
But I am forever grateful that man stood up for me and saved my life. Hugs
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Scottie, thank you for trusting me enough to share something this personal. I did not know this part of your story.
What stands out to me most is the man who saw you suffering and chose to do something about it. He didn’t just speak about his faith—he lived it through compassion, protection, and generosity. He gave you an opportunity when you desperately needed one, without asking for anything in return.
I also respect that your life eventually took a different path than the one he imagined for you. We each have our own journey, experiences, and relationship with faith.
This is actually one reason I believe faith should never simply be about labels. To me, what matters is what faith produces in the way we treat another human being—especially someone who is hurting.
I’m glad that man was there at the moment you needed someone to stand up for you. And I’m glad you survived to be able to tell your story today.
Thank you for sharing it with me, Scottie. Hugs back, my friend. 🙏💙
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