Our Story

This community came from a journey — one shaped by faith, identity, challenges, growth, and the gradual discovery of what it really means to be fully seen and loved.

​

For a time, I believed I was called to ministry. I enrolled in a Master of Theological Studies program, sat in church pews week after week, took on leadership roles, and genuinely tried to live a life that honored both God and the people around me. But even in those sacred spaces — especially the ones that promised community — I often felt like I didn’t quite belong.

​

While studying, I met others who identified as queer, but I still found myself on the margins. I didn’t present or “fit in” a certain way, and I wasn’t connected to a queer community. Somehow, that made me feel even more invisible. The pressure to adjust who I was — my theology, my personality, my story — in order to be accepted was always there. I felt like I had to tone down the light I believe God placed in me, just to fit into environments that talked about unconditional love but didn’t always practice it.

​

Adding to that, I was divorced — something that, in many Christian spaces, seemed to follow me like a shadow. It became another thing that made me feel disqualified or looked at with pity. I often walked into church feeling more like a cautionary tale than a beloved member of the community. It was hard not to internalize that — to wonder if my story somehow made me less worthy of grace.

​

Without a faith community where I could be fully myself, I started to question not my faith, but whether I still had a place within it. I noticed how scripture was often used to correct or exclude rather than to affirm and comfort. But I still believed — and continue to believe — in the potential of scripture to heal, to include, and to speak hope into people’s lives.

​

Things began to shift when I met my now husband. For the first time, I experienced the kind of love that didn’t ask me to leave parts of myself at the door. He embraced my past, my present, and everything in between. Through his love, I began to understand more deeply what divine love could look like — steady, compassionate, and fully accepting.

​

That experience stirred something in me. I realized I couldn’t be the only one who had felt this way. I knew there were others out there who’d been made to feel like they had to choose between their identity and their faith — and I wanted to help create something different.

​

That’s what led me to create the Inclusive Standard Version of the Bible — a sacred text where more people could see themselves reflected in the story of God. A Bible that uses inclusive language and theology, grounded in love and affirmation. And that’s why this community exists — to celebrate the beauty and uniqueness of queerness, to affirm each person’s spiritual journey, and to offer a safe space where people can feel loved, seen, and at home.

​

Here, you are welcome. You are enough. You are loved — exactly as you are.

​

This is our story. And if it sounds familiar, you’re not alone. You’re already part of it.

​

​

​