M E M B E R S P O T L I G H T
FEATURED MEMBER: KEITH SMITH / LOS ANGELES, CA
Welcome to our Member Spotlight! Every quarter, we showcase one of our members and we celebrate their personal journey with God, themselves, and the communities within our ministry. Our valued member this quarter, (also featured in our recent Newsletter) is Keith Smith (pictured above.) Here is his story!
“I had surrendered my life to Christ when I was 24 years old. One of the main reasons that lead me to accepting Christ was because I could not handle being gay. It was very tough growing up, having homosexual feelings.
Upon becoming a born-again Christian, I began attending a non-affirming church. Like the non-affirming church I attended, I thought my homosexuality would go away and I would be attracted to women. That did not happen, however, and my homosexual attractions only grew stronger. It has taken me a great deal of time to come to terms with my sexuality. Reconciling it with my faith has been a profound challenge, but PHOENIX has been tremendously instrumental in helping me achieve that accomplishment.
I first heard about PHOENIX MINISTRY through an app called Meet-Up. I had started using this app to meet other folks and was so glad to see PHOENIX offering a Gay Christian Bible Study Group. PHOENIX has been a great supplement to my Christian growth. I was in great need of this ministry for acceptance, support, and gaining a clearer understanding of my sexuality as a born-again believer. I really enjoy the bible studies because our teacher Gilbert, is a serious teacher of the Word of God. I am big on learning as much of the Word as possible and to do my best to live according to it.
At this time, I continue to go to a non-affirming church because I feel I am on an assignment to help the church accept those in my community who attend these churches. My prayer is for non-affirming churches to be replaced by one church, serving and loving people and bringing them to the knowledge of Jesus Christ, our Savior.
I am thrilled for fellowship with my Christian brothers and sisters who love God and
want to grow in His grace and make a huge impact on this world for His Kingdom.”
Keith Smith resides in Los Angeles, CA. He likes to run, hike, and enjoys great motion pictures. Keith loves the Bible and enjoys discussing it with new and seasoned believers.
For more information on our Member Spotlight Program, please message us here or send an email to secretary@phoenixministry.org
P R E V I O U S P O S T S
Nathan Hull has been a veteran of PHOENIX MINISTRY since 2015. At the time of finding us, Nathan was proactive in his search to find a community that he could feel safe in as a young gay man and so he began asking around to see if anyone knew of a “gay group” he could join. A Facebook friend of his that knew about us recommended PHOENIX MINISTRY to Nathan, hoping it would fulfill his need, and soon after, Nathan decided to try out our Bible Study later that same week. The rest, as they say, is history.
"My experience has been incredible at PHOENIX MINISTRY, getting the opportunity to hang out with generous, fun-loving people that share similar beliefs. I have enjoyed every single Bible Study that I have ever attended. The fun events that we often engage in have been a great experience to meet new friends and create close relationships with people that live close to me. The atmosphere of these events have even helped me get closer to God.
The type of studies I enjoy most deal with articulating and understanding homosexuality, and even “love” itself, in all its forms, especially in the context of being LGBT and Christian. The studies are very interesting and informative, and therefore, I am always learning new things.
I very much enjoy the fellowship time we have following every study. We usually go out to dinner (always having fun conversation), and we often end the evening with a game night back at the Church or a member’s home. It is always such a blast.
Having a safe and fun medium to interact with your peers and with God is what makes this a great Bible study group and organization, in general. I love every aspect of PHOENIX MINISTRY."
Nathan resides in Torrance, CA. He is particulary fond of old, classic movies and music from divas throughout the decades. He finds politics fascinating and enjoys hearing different points of view. Nathan is a sweet, understanding, and compassionate person and he is always is looking to make a new friend.