More than a couple conversations I've had with coworkers have started out, "So, you're religious, right?" after which proceeded some question that breeds controversy. This happened most recently during a conversation about the Orlando incidents.

I don't think of myself as "religious," but when people learn that I regularly attend church and that they've never heard me curse, I am affectionately dubbed the term and they are sometimes curious to hear what I think of [insert social issue here]. Since I care little for political correctness, my thoughts are usually blunt and as honest as I can be without giving offense (which means I'm not asked for my opinions too often...)

First, I'd like to ask my fellow born-again Christians (whether you go to church every Sunday or not), how do we react to our society's increasing acceptance of the gay, or LGBT, culture? When stores announce new bathroom rules, we protest, right? Same for legalized same-sex marriage. But what happens when a club open for practicing homosexuals to mingle and hook up gets massacred by a terrorist? Do we offer a prayer for the victims' families while sharing in our private circles that they got what was coming to them?

What if it had been a synagogue? Or a Hindu temple? What if it had been the church down the road whose members refuse to repent of their doctrinal practices that are different from yours? My point is that certain issues should take priority over others. An individual murdering dozens of unarmed civilians should arouse much more righteous anger in us than our segregational, albeit important, distinctions.

Now, many Americans view the Orlando shooting as a targeted attack against the LGBT community, so before I get into the religious aspect of this, I'd like to bring in the whole of America for a second. As a nation, it is very important that America rally around her own that are hurting. We must react strongly against all terrorist threats and actions. It should give us a hint that the shooter pledged allegiance to a known terrorist group; the fact that we are hesitant to associate with them does not take away the issue that this was an act of terror on America. The fact that the shooting was in a gay club does not make this solely a gay-rights issue: it was an attack on American soil, which makes it an American issue. It was an attack on American citizens, which makes it an American issue. You mess with the cubs, you mess with mama bear! That should be our attitude as the American nation.

So to get that out of the way, I do not view the Orlando shooting as an attack on gay-rights but as a terrorist attack on America. As Americans, we should take ownership of this country, and if you can't because you're ashamed of it, then do what you can to change it instead of distancing yourself from the problem. But as a "religious" Christian who believes homosexuality is wrong, what do I think about gays?

When my friend asked me this question, I could tell it was an honest inquiry. And so I answered her with my usual bluntness.

"They are wrong," I answered, "but I love them."

I have not and will not post rainbow-ed flags/images in support of the LGBT community because I do not agree with the LGBT community; however, I do wish to support the loved ones of victims and the almost-victims in Orlando. My heart breaks for the men and women killed, wounded and traumatized by a single individual who struck out against them. My heart also breaks for the men and women who practice homosexuality, are bisexual or are experimenting with transgender identities. These individuals are struggling deeply with identity and fulfillment issues that I've never experienced and cannot begin to critique apart from God's word. I know that homosexuality is biblically wrong and that being transgender is genetically impossible (and also biblically wrong), but people are made in the image of God — no matter their sinful choices —and must be respected as such.

I encourage each Christian to join me in the mindset of thinking, "How can I love this hurting individual standing in front of me?" rather than, "How can I prove to them they're wrong?" It's not a perfect solution to the self-righteous stigma Christians bear in this culture, but I believe it's a start down the road of being true disciples of Christ.