GCN conference 2010

An upbeat post, a long time coming.

So I am a part of a community called the Gay Christian Network. It is an online community of GLBT Christians and allies who support and care for their christian brothers and sisters. Once a year they hold a conference, and this year Nashville was the setting. I attended and in short had an awesome time.

I took a bus (because i'm classy like that) up a day before on Wednesday to meet some friends and hang out before the conference actually started. I got a chance to meet my friend Matt who I'll be living with when I move in February. Just realizing that I have not noted my move on the blog...... :-/
So I'll be moving to..... (why not) Boston in February just for the hell of it. Alabama has played its part in my life and I need a change of scenery. So yeah, pretty much moving just because.

Though we've known each other for over a year we had never met in person. I enjoyed finding out that he was real and that we both got along well. Though his face is more oval shaped than I thought :P

I also met my friend david (you raised your eyebrow) and enjoyed getting to know him as a "real person" too. I knew he was real when he started to snore. :D

I got the chance to meet the man behind the blog Armored City

The sense of community that I found was new to me post coming out.
During the past year and a half I have separated myself from the Church because I had felt unwanted. Though I had not been personally asked to leave a church or been abandoned by my mother and father in a larger sense I have seen the Church's treatment of the GLBT community as a personal letter reading:
"Thanks for loving your creator and stuff,
but your patronage is no longer needed."

I saw this time with other gay Christians as a healing opportunity. It showed that my absence from large christian fellowship was necessary for a time but that time was over. Instead of being spiritually fed by friends and small groups of individuals I need to again reconnect with the body of Christ that is the Church.
I hope to really start practising that when I move.

During the weekend we heard great speakers such as Dr. Tony Campolo and Mother turned activist- Mary Lou Wallner. Derrick Webb played a concert on Friday night and was absolutely fantastic!

This conference has truly been life changing in all the cliche and not so cliche ways. I have been blessed with new friends and strengthened already existing bonds. I also hope this marks a turning point in my Christian faith too.

So yeah this weekend was great and I might write a second post when I think of more word vomit to put up here :)

-E