If you are reading this blog, most likely someone you love has left relationship with God and is living a lifestyle that reflects either identity or sexual confusion. People often request prayer for someone they love who lives a life revealing a belief they are not the gender they were created to be.

The Bible is clear that participating in these activities is a sin against God:

• “For this reason God gave them up to vile passions. For even their women exchanged the natural use for what is against nature. Likewise also the men, leaving the natural use of the woman, burned in their lust for one another, men with men committing what is shameful, and receiving in themselves the penalty of their error which was due” (Romans 1:26-27 NKJV).
• “‘You shall not lie with a male as with a woman. It is an abomination’” (Leviticus 18:22).
• “‘A woman shall not wear anything that pertains to a man, nor shall a man put on a woman’s garment, for all who do so are an abomination to the Lord your God’” (Deuteronomy 22:5).
• “So God created man in His own image; in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them” (Genesis 1:27).

Every plan of Satan is meant to distort God’s plan for man, to destroy our relationship with the Lord.

God loves us and only thinks “thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give [us] a future and a hope” (Jeremiah 29:11 NKJV). When we depart in any way from His plans and go another way, it separates us from relationship with Him (see Psalm 5:4 and Isaiah 59:2), and that is Satan’s primary goal. He is definitely not thinking good thoughts toward us. In fact, he only comes “to steal, and to kill, and to destroy” us (John 10:10).

Satan also likes to destroy family relationships, working to separate people from godly influence. Many times this happens when prodigals ask their Christian families to lie by asking them to use pronouns and names that are actually lies, asking them to compromise their beliefs, and not accepting it when they don’t comply. Many times it results in estrangement.

God is life, and Satan’s plan is against life itself, since two men or two women cannot procreate, no matter what they believe about who they are.

While people tend to categorize sins into big and little, there are no big and little sins with God, making living lifestyles in false identities or sexualities no different with God than a “little white lie” or cheating on taxes or gossiping. While nothing can separate people from God’s love for them, all sin separates people from relationship with Him, as Isaiah 59:2 says: “But your iniquities have separated you from your God; And your sins have hidden His face from you, So that He will not hear.” And we know the Bible defines  sin as “the transgression of the law” (1 John 3:4 KJV).

It is heartbreaking to the families of those who’ve left living as they were created to live, but those families continue to pray, knowing “the Lord’s hand is not shortened, That it cannot save; Nor His ear heavy, That it cannot hear” (Isaiah 59:1). So, we continue to pray for all prodigals and against whatever sin is in their lives. These are good target prayers:

• Open eyes: Father, “open their eyes, in order to turn them from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan to God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins and an inheritance among those who are sanctified by faith in [You]’” (Acts 26:18).
• Guidance: Father, show them the way of escape and strengthen them to take it every time they are tempted to sin (1 Corinthians 10:13).
• Repentance: Lead them to repentance through Your goodness (Romans 2:4).
• Hope: Give them hope of a good life, an abundant life (John 10:10), knowing You only think “thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give [them] a future and a hope” (Jeremiah 29:11). God of hope, enlighten their eyes of understanding; “that [they] may know what is the hope of [Your] calling, what are the riches of the glory of [Your] inheritance in the saints, and what is the exceeding greatness of [Your] power toward us who believe, according to the working of [Your] mighty power” (Ephesians 1:18-19).
• Truth: “Lead [our prodigals] in Your truth and teach [them], For You are the God of [their] salvation” (Psalm 25:5).
• Walk with Christ: We pray prodigals will walk “according to the Spirit” and not “according to the flesh” (Romans 8:1).
• Protection: “For You have been a shelter for me, A strong tower from the enemy” (Psalm 61:3). Protect those who are transitioning from going too far.

There is great news: “There is therefore now no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus, who do not walk according to the flesh, but according to the Spirit. For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has made me free from the law of sin and death” (Romans 8:1-2).

Thank You, Lord!