In January, we reported that MFI achieved a victory for free speech and religious liberty in Chelmsford after a pastor story hour event was canceled by the local library due to woke pressure. Pastor Kendall Lankford of The Shepherd’s Church had been featured in a Daily Wire article that explained how he and many other pastors across the country have hosted these story hours to counteract the rampant LGBTQ+ agenda foisted on children through “Drag Queen Story Hours” (DQSH) and other events at public libraries. The pastor planned to offer a Biblical perspective on gender and sexuality, reading from two books entitled God Made Boys and Girls: Helping Children Understand the Gift of Gender and Jesus and My Gender. Fortunately, MFI acted quickly to get Pastor Lankford’s event reinstated, drafting a demand letter to the library, contacting the library directors, and reaching out to media outlets. Read the full story here.
MFI was grateful for the opportunity to support Pastor Lankford and defend his state and federal constitutional rights. Because of our swift action on his behalf, over 50 people, including at least 30 children, were able to attend the pastor’s event and listen to Lankford read two storybooks explaining how God creates boys and girls equal, both valued, but also distinctly different from one another. In media reports about the positive event, Pastor Lankford asserted that holding events like Pastor Story Hour is a natural thing for Christians to do because they love Jesus and wish to raise their children up in the faith and are also committed to sharing that faith publicly. He further stated, “The only thing I really regret is that it took us this long to figure out this is something we needed to do.” He went on to say, “If drag queens can book a public space and read to children, then why wouldn’t we take the opportunity to share our truth with children in a public way?”
We agree with Pastor Lankford. As people of faith, it is more important than ever that we bravely and without compromise share God’s truth regarding personhood and identity with others, most especially with children.
MA children are under attack. Our public schools are indoctrinating young students in transgender ideology. And once they are sufficiently confused about their gender at school, the state pays to medicalize them. Since 2012, the state of MA has spent 7.6 million of taxpayers’ money on sex reassignment and gender transition related services and drugs for children through MassHealth. Read our blog post about this shocking information MFI uncovered here.
Up to 98% of children who struggle with their sex as a boy or a girl come to accept their sex by adulthood. This makes sense when you see that the number of young adults desisting from a transgender identity is growing. But, unfortunately, when these detransitioners realize they have been living a lie, often reinforced by medical professionals, it can be difficult to return to living as they were created by God. Many still must face a lifetime of devastating consequences. Studies show that 100% of children who use puberty blockers will go on to use cross-sex hormones, leaving them sterile. With mutilated bodies and permanent side effects from harmful and potent transgender drugs, young people whose bodies have been irrevocably damaged are forced to grieve profound loss, including future dreams of having children. And they have to painfully come to terms with the fact that the adults in their lives who should have protected them instead betrayed them by sacrificing them on the altar of woke ideology.
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Communities of faith and their leaders must publicly counter the transgender lie that is victimizing our children with God’s truth that all children are fearfully and wonderfully made, created distinctly male and female and in the image of God.
We are happy to share that Pastor Lankford held a second well-attended story hour at the Chelmsford Library last month. The books he read covered the gospel of Christ and how the good news of that message brings us comfort. He intends to host Pastor Story Hour monthly.
It’s exciting to see that the action of one pastor has inspired other MA pastors to share God’s truth publicly with the children in their community as well. Two weeks ago, two Fall River faith leaders hosted a story hour at their local public library. Pastors Manny Silva of Evangelical Christian Fellowship and Michael Johnson of Baptist Temple Church organized the event for children that included reading the same book Pastor Kendall read to children in Chelmsford, Jesus and My Gender and another book entitled, The King and the Dragon, which contained a presentation of the gospel message. Pastor Silva affirmed in a statement to the media that children are a blessing from the Lord and that it is our duty as Christians to share God’s love with them and to tell them they are unique and precious, created male and female.
In the epistle of Ephesians, the apostle Paul admonishes believers to redeem the time because the days are evil. Like the ancient believers in Ephesus, we are also living in evil times as evidenced by adult sexual performers being allowed to read stories to impressionable children. DQSH is not what its proponents claim it to be–just a family friendly event to promote reading, tolerance, and inclusion. Its purpose is much more sinister. The goal of DQSH is to captivate the hearts and imagination of children to program them to accept new gender and sexual norms and subvert God’s design for sex, marriage, and family. To learn more, read this insightful Substack post, The Real Story Behind Drag Queen Story Hour.
What could be more evil than preying upon the innocence of children and grooming them to assume deviant sexual and gender identifications? As believers, we cannot sit idly by and allow them to be victimized by harmful sexual indoctrination. We must do the good work of teaching children that God designed them with intention and purpose and that they are loved and valued by Him. If pastors, parents, and the Christian community do not take up this sacred calling, drag queens will happily fill the void.
We must do the good work of teaching children that God designed them with intention and purpose and that they are loved and valued by Him.
MFI is grateful for, and encouraged by, the efforts of Pastors Lankford, Silva, and Johnson to stand in the gap for our children and to enter the public space to share God’s truth with them. We hope that their courage and conviction provokes other pastors to do the same. MFI stands ready to support and defend the constitutional right of any MA pastor who would like to host a Pastor Story Hour in their community. For more information about Pastor Story Hour, email our Director of Community Alliances, Michael King, [email protected].
Help us continue the important work of strengthening MA families and protecting children from sexualization and indoctrination. Donate to MFI today!
For our families,
Andrew Beckwith, President & General Counsel
