Transgender.
That word carries a lot of confusion, a lot of controversy, and a lot of sensitivity for most people. This blog is really honest, really truthful, and really filled with God’s kindness and grace. It is never my intention to offend anyone, but if my words make any kind of confusion or frustration arise in you, talk to me. Don’t allow bitterness to take root in your heart. I want people to have the freedom to come to me with honesty and vulnerability.
Cool? Cool. Now let’s talk about ladyboys.
Ladyboys are transgender women that are very common in Asia; especially in the Philippines. They are also part of the percentage of women who are sex trafficked. Used. Degraded. Ignored. Misunderstood. I knew VERY little about ladyboys until last week when I had the opportunity to work with an organization known as Wipe Every Tear.
What I’m about to write has nothing to do with my opinion of these women. I am simply here to tell you what the Lord has opened my eyes to. I want to boast about my weaknesses so that the power of Christ might be made known. As a Christian – a little Christ – that is my role.
Growing up (and still to this day), I didn’t really understand people who struggled with gender confusion. In the church, people talk about Creation and often refer to God creating man & woman. MAN and WOMAN. Period, end of discussion. No exceptions. That’s the way God created it to be, and anything that crosses that line is unacceptable.
This is not false. I’m not “out to get the Church.” God did create man. He did create woman. But sin also entered the world. And because of that, things didn’t exactly turn out how God intended them to. Ignoring sin, covering our sin with layers and layers of shame, can only lead to darkness. Sin reigns in our mortal bodies. Sin has a foothold. Sin isn’t okay, but it does exist. We have to stop ignoring it. We have to stop tip-toeing around it. We have to kneel before the throne of God and beg for eyes that see. Beg for grace, understanding, and perspective. We have to allow the light of Christ to wash over us. Light cannot wash over something that is hidden.
I have been prejudiced and hateful towards those who struggle with gender. For a REALLY long time. When I would go out in public and see transgenders, gays, etc, I would look the other way in disgust. I believed that there was something deeply wrong with them. I believed that they were less worthy and less loved. I was so blinded by my
own false opinion that I failed to see people for who they are – children of God.
Honestly, transgenders and gays make me super uncomfortable. It makes me uncomfortable to see them, to be around them, and to talk about them. For a really long time, I was okay with that. I thought I was doing God a favor by being disgusted and grieved for how they lived their lives.
But then I met Ace. Ace is one of the kindest, most sweet, outgoing, loving, fashionable people I’ve ever met. She is created in the image of God – the same God who created me. She is loved. And she is a ladyboy.
I met her while working with Wipe Every Tear. And if I’m being honest, it was really hard to see her as the Lord does. It was impossible for me to see her as the Lord does, actually. More than once, my flesh rose to the surface of my mind and won my thoughts. More than once, I was inwardly uncomfortable and prideful and prejudiced towards Ace.
But how dare I, a person who claims the title “daughter of the living God,” refuse to see a human being with Jesus’ eyes. How dare I not be like Jesus.
Ace is a beloved daughter of God. She is transgender. And for me to see her with any other perspective than the Lord’s is SO wrong. And when I say that, I am not saying, “transgenders are not sinners.” We are all sinners and fall short of the glory of God. But they don’t fall any shorter of God’s glory than I do. They are not any less deserving of the freedom and grace that Jesus died for. Second Corinthians 5:15 says that Christ died for ALL, so that we would live for him. Christ died for all to have life. He died for all to experience life abundantly. He died for all to know, down deep in their souls, that they are loved. He died for All to give us a CHOICE. He died for us all to know that we have a place, that we belong, and that there is forgiveness.
Transgenders are not exempt of the sacrifice that Christ made.
All sin is the same. I sin ALL the freaking time. Gosh, there is so much sin in my life. There is right now, and there will be tomorrow, and the next day, and the day after that. But – because Jesus defeated the grave and died for my sin – I no longer have to identify as a sinner. I get to identify as a child of God. I am clothed in a robe of righteousness, light, and freedom. My robe is white and my slate is clean. There are no stains on me, no sins that defines me, and nothing that separates me from Christ.
Me looking at a transgender and refusing to see them as loved, cherished, and holy is denying the power of the Gospel. It is robbing God of his glory. And honestly, it’s just really prideful of me.
God, in his perfection, is the only one who can rightfully judge. He is the only one. Not me, not you.
With the measure I use towards those around me, is the measure that will be used back to me. The way I choose to see people, the way I choose to treat people, is the same way I will be treated and seen.
I want to look at everyone with the eyes of Jesus himself. Yes, I am allowed to be grieved by sin. Yes, I am allowed to pray for revival and truth. But I am not allowed to refuse people the same grace that Christ as awarded to me.
Let us be Christians, not religious. Let us (for all that is good and right in this world) be honest about what we think so that the Lord can bring revival and truth. Let us not be passive, but speak the truth in love. Let us LOVE, period. Let us be little Christs — walking, talking, breathing all that Jesus is.
I want to come before the throne of Almighty God begging for eyes to see people like he does and for a heart that relentlessly loves and chases after people. I am welcoming you to do the same.
Sending lots of love to you all. Thanks for reading.
-Lyss
