Human sexuality is a gift from God. Not just heterosexuality; all sexuality.

I wish this was something that I heard when I was a child. I grew up thinking that sexuality was just sex, and this topic should never be discussed unless we were talking about sex within the confines of heterosexual marriage.

It wasn’t until I was in college that I fully embraced and saw myself as a beautiful, Queer creation of God. It was hard because I would hear negative voices in the back of my head; the two main things being that God didn’t love me and that I was going to hell.

I am grateful that I no longer lean into beliefs that do not uplift or affirm me. Instead, I wholeheartedly believe that I am unconditionally loved by God. All of me, including my Queerness, is a gift from God.

I am not going to hell, period. If you don’t agree, quite frankly, I don’t care. When the pearly white gates open and you see me dancing in, waving the rainbow flag, carnival style, you’ll agree with me then.

Honestly, I think that hell is right here on Earth. Hell is having to live in self-denial. Hell is waking up everyday and being everything but who you were created to be.

I experienced hell up until my early 20s when I finally believed that all of me was created in the image of God. Growing up, I was taught that God hated people like me, and I spent so many nights praying that God would take my gay away. Now, prayers consist of me thanking God for giving me my Queerness.

Actor and Singer Billy Porter says, “The first thing religious people try to do to Queer folk is strip them of their spirituality.” My spirituality can never be taken away because God lives within me. She will never leave me.

It is time for more Christians to put to death harmful, non-affirming theologies and accept, love and cherish people for who they truly are.

One of my favorite verses is First John 4:20 which reads, “Whoever claims to love God yet hates a sibling is a liar. For whoever does not love their siblings, whom they have seen, cannot love God, whom they have not seen.”

As Christians, we cannot hate our LGBTQ+ siblings. If we do, then we do not love our Creator.

Our Queer siblings are in a position here on Earth where we can touch, embrace and have an audible conversation with them. How can we say we hate our Queer siblings, yet love God, a spiritual force that we have never seen?

It is through faith that we believe in God. Therefore, we must embrace our Queer siblings.

My wife and I got married on June 17, 2022, right in the middle of Pride Month and right before our independence day, Juneteenth. Although unintentional, our wedding date sits amid two holidays that encompass huge parts of our identities.

I have no doubt that our Queer Black ancestors were full of joy as they celebrated with us as we declared our love for each other on this special day. Everyday, we live into what it means to be authentically Queer Black women.

My hope is that all Queer people will experience the true meaning of living authentically. We deserve it. In a society that made us believe otherwise, we deserve to be who we were created to be.

It’s not easy, especially in this world that we live in. To live out one’s Queer is to be bold. It is scary, but it is all worth it.

Editor’s note: This article is part of a series this week for Pride Month (June). The previous article in the series is:

Why the Peters Must Repent | Kali Cawthon-Freels

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