How could this come to be? She was raised attending a Baptist church and had asked Jesus Christ to come into her heart at age seven. However, author Candace M. Respress found herself slipping into the homosexual lifestyle and acting on thoughts/emotions that she began wondering about at a young age. In her autobiography, Coming Out: Coming Into Grace, Candace recalls that the attraction to both men and women began when she was only a girl, which became intensified after she and her brother were molested by an aunt. As Candace grew up, she tried to make sense of her feelings toward women in secret as she excelled in sports and had boyfriends that were more like good friends. Her secret attraction became a reality when Candace entered college and began a relationship with a fellow female teammate. She also became more involved in the gay community and even attended a gay-friendly church with another girlfriend. Deep inside though, Candace felt she was betraying the God who loved her and was subjecting herself to one trap after another, set by Satan to push her more into the homosexual lifestyle. Candace's story does begin to turn around, as she found herself attending a church that welcomed her with open arms, with no judgment toward her and her choices in life. She started to feel God's love surging inside of her, prompting her to re-dedicate her life to God again and live life following Christ. Her story is far from over, as she continues to strengthen her identity in Christ and display to others she no longer embraces the homosexual lifestyle, but Candace's hope is that her story will inspire others to choose God over sin and escape the eternal loneliness that homosexuality will always bring.
