Unpacking My Recent Struggle with Gender Dysphoria

No, not my own…

Relax. Chill. Breathe.

(I am not in Terri’s closet trying on dresses) [Hah!]

I mean as in the subject of gender dysphoria, in general.

Recent events have made it plain to me how little I know about this topic.

Working at a Christian homeless outreach ministry, I’ve had increasingly greater exposure to people struggling with gender dysphoria. On any given day, we host guests who are born with a certain sex but identify as a different gender. [To be clear, I personally believe God created us male and female.]

Our outreach center serves as a hub for connecting Dallas homeless people with the resources and help they desperately need. Daily we ask our guests two questions: 1) Will you trust the Lord? and 2) Will you let us help you get off the streets?

On any given day we serve 200-300 individuals experiencing homelessness. Many of those we serve are chronically homeless and have lived on the streets for more than a year (in many cases, more than five years). People from all walks of life with a wide variety of backgrounds come to us because they trust us to care for them with dignity and to connect with them intentionally. Our space is a place of peace and a community of integrity.

My tryst with gender dysphoria culminated in an encounter I had with “C” after preaching a message during our Wednesday morning church service. My sermon, titled “Who They Say You Is?”, focused on 2 Corinthians 5:17 and how a relationship with Jesus transforms us.

Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation.The old has passed away; behold, the new has come.

2 Corinthians 5:17 (ESV)

“C”, a man in his forties, possibly fifties, wearing a dress over a pair of women’s slacks, waved me over to where he stood. He shared how it had been a long minute since he’d been affected by a sermon. I attempted to process the disconnect between what I was seeing from the words I was hearing. While I felt a little dumbstruck, I decided to lean in and listen.

While Jesus was having dinner at Matthew’s house, many tax collectors and sinners came and ate with him and his disciples.

Matthew 9:10 (NIV)

A quote from Herman Hesse about home that I had contemplated not using resonated deeply with “C.” Go figure. God always has a better plan than I do.

“C” shared how he had been attending church down in Deep Ellum and had given his life to Jesus. This raised even more questions. However, I continued leaning in and listening.

He hoped that we could sit down and have coffee and chat sometime (he had errands to run that morning). I told “C” that I would welcome an opportunity to talk more intentionally. I wondered what was happening and what God was revealing to me. While I generally thrive in ambiguity, I felt I might be overextending my skis.

The second is equally important: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ No other commandment is greater than these.”

Mark 12:31 (NLT)

Since I began working at a local Dallas homeless outreach, God has really stretched and expanded my concept of what it looks like to love my neighbor.

While I am not oblivious to it, I know nothing about gender dysphoria, cross-dressing, transgenderism or anything related to it. It’s a pretty foreign arena for me.

Of course, I am aware of the uproar in the media about transgender men participating in women’s sports. I am also aware of the hubris surrounding Dylan Mulvaney and the transition of Bruce to Caitlin.

But these are all people that I don’t know. The conversation changes when someone is standing in front of you, face to face, eye to eye. I’m called to minister to people—all people—not just the ones I like, agree with, relate to, or understand.

A rose by any other name would smell as sweet.

William Shakespeare

The thing is that I have to be more concerned about someone’s soul than their outside appearance, struggles, dilemmas, politics, or any litany of things that are strictly temporal. Souls are eternal.

Every individual has inherent worth and dignity. We are, after all, created by God in His image (Genesis 1:27). Jesus did not turn away those who were marginalized or misunderstood by society. Rather, He offered them hope and healing. Are we not called to do likewise?

My conversation with “C” has weighed on my heart and my mind. He hasn’t been back lately. I’m hoping he returns, soon. I’m looking forward to our chat.

I’m not sure what God has in mind, but (with the help of the Holy Spirit) I’ll figure it out.

What would you do?

Remember: Tell somebody about Jesus today!

Cheerfully,

Rainer Bantau —The Devotional Guy™