<\/p>\n
Arch Kennedy, an author and former meteorologist, once lived a gay lifestyle before an encounter with Jesus changed everything.<\/p>\n
Kennedy, author of \u201cThe Weather\u2019s Fine: My Method for Navigating Life\u2019s Challenges,\u201d told CBN News he \u201cgrew up in the church\u201d but went on to struggle with addiction and same-sex attraction.<\/p>\n
\u201cThey instilled Christian values in us as children,\u201d Kennedy said of his parents. \u201cI left that, as I moved through my life, through my 20s and 30s, and where I got into heavy alcohol addiction through a good \u2026 chunk of my life.\u201d<\/p>\n
A few years ago, though, something changed. Kennedy said his sister, who is six years older, had been prodding him to join a Bible study. He was reluctant due to commitment struggles, but eventually the Lord convinced him to join.<\/p>\n
\u201cI had never studied God\u2019s Word,\u201d Kennedy said. \u201cA lot of my life, I barely even got to church, but I called myself a Christian.\u201d<\/p>\n
Despite living a gay lifestyle, this backdrop of faith and devotion left Kennedy without negative views on faith and with an openness. At times, he had attempted to combine the Christian and gay lifestyles \u2014 but it was always a struggle to make that work.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen I also realized my same-sex attraction, I was trying to juggle the two for many years,\u201d he said. \u201cAnd I tried to reconcile the two and to be able to have my faith and also my lifestyle, which is something I knew I couldn\u2019t change as far as my attraction to males.\u201d<\/p>\n
Kennedy continued, \u201cSo \u2026 that was a big struggle for many years of my life, and \u2026 as I look back now, that\u2019s probably a reason why I didn\u2019t much go to church or didn\u2019t really pursue my faith through those turbulent years.\u201d<\/p>\n
But when his sister invited him to that Bible study in Atlanta three years ago, something changed. The men\u2019s group was the first time Kennedy truly studied God\u2019s word. Much deeper than the typical Bible verses or devotionals he had previously read, the men\u2019s group dove deep into Scripture.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat\u2019s where the transformation began,\u201d Kennedy said, explaining the impact of reading the Bible. \u201cI began to feel convicted. I was, for the first time in my life \u2014 and I believe \u2026 the Holy Spirit started working in me when I actually was studying God\u2019s Word \u2014 was convicting me of my sins.\u201d<\/p>\n
This conviction made him \u201chyper aware\u201d of what he had done wrong. Over time, biblical truth and the proper moral framework started to come into focus.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat is when the same-sex attraction and my faith really started to collide and where I started to realize that I had to make a change,\u201d Kennedy said, noting that, though he had abandoned earlier debauchery by that point in his life, he was still living in sin. \u201cI was still living in relationships \u2014 physical, sexual relationships, and I realized that had to change, that I could not continue to follow Christ, and have Christ in my heart, and carry on a physical relationship.\u201d<\/p>\n
Kennedy added, \u201cI couldn\u2019t change the feelings of same-sex attraction, but I could change how I acted on it, and I realized that celibacy is what God was calling me to do.\u201d<\/p>\n
He said the journey has been a powerful one and addressed some of the critiques made of celibacy for the LGBTQ community, notably the claim that it seems unfair.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat\u2019s where you get even Christians saying, \u2018Well, how unfair. God created this person and they can\u2019t help what they\u2019re attracted to and then \u2026 you can\u2019t be married, you can\u2019t have a physical relationship, you can\u2019t have the touch of someone you love,’\u201d Kennedy said. \u201cWell, this is what I say to it: I went through this all my life, so I know what it feels like. I can talk about this because I\u2019ve been there. But life\u2019s not fair. Nobody said that the Christian life was going to be an easy one.\u201d<\/p>\n
Kennedy, who has faced his own struggles, knows this all too well. He\u2019s in recovery for alcohol addiction and still battles same-sex attraction \u2014 but he said the Holy Spirit has given him strength to \u201cfight these sinful desires.\u201d<\/p>\n
In addition to the strength to persevere, he said he has also found peace from the Lord to guide him on his journey.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt also makes me love God more than the worldly pleasures,\u201d he said. \u201cSo that\u2019s where God gives you the peace. In these trials \u2026 the love of Him becomes more important.\u201d<\/p>\n
Kennedy is now hoping to help others facing similar struggles. To find out more about his story, read \u201cThe Weather\u2019s Fine: My Method for Navigating Life\u2019s Challenges.\u201d<\/p>\n
Please sign up for\u00a0Faithwire\u2019s daily newsletter\u00a0and download the\u00a0CBN News app\u00a0to stay up-to-date with the latest news from a distinctly Christian perspective.<\/strong><\/em><\/strong><\/em><\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Arch Kennedy, an author and former meteorologist, once lived a gay lifestyle before an encounter with Jesus changed everything. Kennedy, author of \u201cThe Weather\u2019s Fine: My Method for Navigating Life\u2019s Challenges,\u201d told CBN News he \u201cgrew up in the church\u201d but went on to struggle with addiction and same-sex attraction. \u201cThey instilled Christian values in<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":9723,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[36],"tags":[1493,481,331,1566,1567,138],"class_list":["post-9722","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-jesus","tag-exgay","tag-jesus","tag-life","tag-mans","tag-radically","tag-transformed"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/biblelon.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9722","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/biblelon.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/biblelon.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/biblelon.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/biblelon.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=9722"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/biblelon.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9722\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/biblelon.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/9723"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/biblelon.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=9722"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/biblelon.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=9722"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/biblelon.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=9722"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}