During my 32 years of ministry, I have talked and met with many men and women dealing with same-gender feelings and attractions. Without exception, each man and each woman experiences and battles many different influences which undeniably heightens the pull of temptation into homosexuality.

More than not, the individual’s first step into homosexual practice involves a breaking down of one’s resistance. That said, I do believe each and every one of us has an inbuilt barrier to any sinful activity.

This is our conscience which is the moral law of God Himself written on our hearts (Romans 1:19). This spiritual barrier often keeps a person from gay or lesbian sex, even when they begin to experience same-gender desires. However, the enemy of our soul has his ways and schemes of gradually eroding away this wall of protection.

Without a doubt, one way this has and continues to occur throughout American society is by the constant and continuous exposure to the gay subculture. When our attention is constantly being focused on the homosexual issue through magazines, news broadcasts, newspapers and specials on television, a sin which initially might have created intense repugnance has the potential of evolving to becoming less and less objectionable and ultimately attractive. The initial repulsion can turn to apathy, which has the capability of birthing curiosity.

When curiosity makes its home in one’s mind, God’s wall of protection is beginning to crumble.

The lure of the unknown regarding homosexuality has been enough in some cases for the individual to begin wondering, I wonder what homosexuality is really like? This question has the capability of developing into the visualizing of sexual acts which is often aided by the readily available wealth of gay pornography.

Once again, when anyone continues to ponder and daydream about same-gender activities, the erosion of one’s wall of resistance crumbles. As an individual that has traveled this road, I vividly recall that my novice and innocent approach to thinking homosexual practice as being exciting and ultimately fulfilling was terribly naïve and I did not consider the realities of what homosexual practice actually enables.

The costs of sexual involvement are extreme, and no one can anticipate the emotional and spiritual baggage that you drag along with you when you come away from or break away from an immoral relationship or being sexually active and once again embrace abstinence.

Frankly, today, I don’t know if it is at all possible to avoid full, complete sexual stimulation given our present culture – unless of course we hide at home with a bag over our heads. Today sexual stimulation is around every corner – television, movies, magazines and newspapers.

Therefore, I do believe an important question to ponder is – Is it a sin to have homosexual or lesbian feelings? Does God condemn an individual for being attracted to other members of the same sex?

No, being tempted is not the same as sin. God does not condemn anyone based on our feelings. All men and women experience sexual feelings. All of us experience sexual attractions every day. Married people may be attracted to individuals other than their spouse. Are these feelings sinful?

The Bible distinguishes carefully between such feelings and sin. Inappropriate feelings, in biblical terminology, fit the category of “temptation.” And temptations are not sin. Being sexually attracted to another person is not the same as “committing adultery in your heart” (Matthew 5:28). You have to act on the temptation, either in your mind or body, in order for it to become sin.

Hands-down, most men and women struggling with same-gender attraction tend to forget this huge and critically important distinction between temptation and sin. They walk around underneath a black cloud of continual condemnation and thinking that God is disapproving of them because of their same-gender attractions.

All Christians deal with inappropriate sexual feelings and attractions. Frankly, I don’t believe it’s a stretch to say that we are all sexually broken given this fallen world in which we live and the fact that we all combat a sinful nature. Therefore, those that are working toward overcoming homosexuality are not unique; they do not belong in a different subclass than the rest of the Church. For everyone, sexual struggles are part of being human.

Within the Church here in America, I have become increasingly concerned that many have all but dismissed the idea that the devil is a being that most certainly can influence our lives.

Scripture clearly and abundantly teaches that Satan is a fallen angel of great power, with direct access to our lives. I believe it is a huge mistake by ignoring his existence especially when Scripture clearly identifies him as a tempter “who leads the whole world astray” (1 Thessalonians 3:5, Revelation 12:9).

I strongly encourage anyone combating an issue of same-gender attraction to study the passage in Ephesians 6:10-18 which specifically lists the parts of our spiritual armor and challenges everyone to make specific applications with regard to combating and struggling with homosexual thoughts and temptations.

Looking back, I distinctly recall how my attitude and mindset regarding homosexuality was very tentative at first. However, little by little, thoughts and activities regarding homosexual practice as “ok” become more and more reinforced which ultimately enabled me to embrace the gay identity.

Now, I understand that I succumbed and fell prey to an unbiblical way of thinking about myself. For Christian men and women, their identity must center around what the Word of God says about them and their relationship with Jesus Christ.

Very soon after I surrendered my life to Christ in October of 1985, God clearly showed me that my temptations do not determine my identity. Unfortunately, this is a very, very common and dangerous error especially for Christians who are experiencing same-gender attractions. Our Christian mindset develops slowly but consistently over a long period of time. The Bible refers to this process as “renewing the mind” (Romans 12:2), which I believe is one of the most important principles of attaining significant freedom from both gay and lesbian thoughts and feelings.

Today, I remain alarmed that celibacy or sexual virginity continues to be ridiculed and scorned in American society. Rather than celibacy or sexual virginity being viewed and upheld as an admirable trait, it is too often viewed as old fashioned and even as an embarrassment. Sexual purity is an undeniable, wonderful gift from God. Please do not allow anyone to ever try and convince you that it’s not worth much.

Ultimately, when you and I are disobedient or rebellious to the holy boundary lines clearly defined for us within God’s Word, we do not get to choose the consequences that may come our way as a result of our being disobedient. Truly, “obedience is much better than sacrifice” (1 Samuel 15:22).

Pastor Phillip Lee
Executive Director
His Way Out Ministries

Please consider making a donation at www.hiswayout.com/donate. Thank you, Pastor Phillip Lee

To ‘The Church’ upholding the Lordship of Christ and the Authority of Scripture and not just a place where people gather…

With another birthday now behind me…special heartfelt thanks and appreciation to The Church. I would not have made it without you.

For years I have had a practice when speaking in a church or conference to eventually make my way to the back of sanctuary or auditorium, look toward the front, and think to myself – “This is good. This is decent. This makes sense.”

The years I lived as a gay-identified man within the gay communities of Los Angeles, San Francisco, and New York City produced anything but a good, decent, and sense-filled life. The futility of homosexual practice enabled and produced a false self, a half-person, and left me with a perpetual question mark.

Ultimately, it was the Church that helped me to face reality honestly, compassionately, and courageously. With time, a sense of value, a sense of being loved and accepted, and a sense of living a meaningful life produced the best value of all – human well-being.

Honesty requires I acknowledge there were times of moving into my new life, my new identity, and a new community that was by no means easy. Thankfully and gratefully, within the process, I received an abundance of wise counsel, encouragement, and support.

Today, if I allow myself to look back, I marvel at how easily I became consumed by and locked into a false identity not knowing and realizing I was hopelessly and endlessly searching for “me” in all the wrong places.

The Church that surrounded me treated me with dignity and respect while at the same time being abundantly clear in stating and showing me from Scripture that homosexual behavior is just one of the forms human fallenness can take with divine forgiveness and restoration available to all that surrender to the Lordship of Christ.

To this day, I remain grateful to the Church for helping me to distinguish between healthy and unhealthy desires. It is a fact that truth can hurt, if not cut deeply before it heals. However, truth offered and presented compassionately is more than liberating. When truth becomes known and acted upon, truth frees.

Yes, indeed, Church is good, decent, and makes sense. Where I came from made no sense whatsoever. Truth and reality dictate that until each person comes to grips with this central ethical question – whether and why anything is either right or wrong – they will wander needlessly, hopelessly and God forbid, disastrously adrift.

To speak the truth in love is not to condemn the one to whom it is spoken. Truth is good, truth is decent, truth makes sense and will defend itself. I remain grateful the Church spoke truth to me.

“Let love be without dissimulation…” (Romans 12:9)

Pastor Phillip Lee
Executive Director
His Way Out Ministries

Please consider making a donation at www.hiswayout.com/donate. Thank you, Pastor Phillip Lee

In this powerful and deeply personal message, Pastor Phillip Lee of His Way Out Ministries shares his testimony of deliverance from same-sex attraction and boldly declares the truth of God’s design for sexuality.

Speaking at Rock Harbor Church in Pastor Brandon Holthaus’s absence, Phillip delivers a message of hope, healing, and restoration for those wrestling with unwanted same-sex attraction—and for their families.

From his 17-year journey in the gay lifestyle to the transforming encounter with Jesus Christ on October 5, 1985, Phillip’s story reveals that God is still in the business of new beginnings.

With compassion and biblical conviction, he reminds the Church that the issue is not just homosexuality—it’s the “Authority of Scripture” and the “Lordship of Christ.”

Youtube
There Is a Way Out : Philip Lee

He said to them, “Go into all the world and preach the gospel to all creation.” – Mark 16:15

His Way Out Ministries partnered with Rock Harbor Church to pray and share the gospel at the San Francisco Pride Parade on Sunday, June 29, 2025, one of the largest events in the world for the LGBTQ+ community.

Our mission was to reach people’s hearts with a simple message:

“Jesus Christ, fully man and fully God, lived a perfect life no one else could. He willingly went to the cross, died, was buried, and was resurrected, offering eternal life to all who believe in Him.”

Led by God in our conversations, we prayed for numerous people, and four came to faith in Jesus.

Responses varied—some were open and kind, while others reacted with anger or hostility.

Despite this, our mission was accomplished.

Don’t you know my personal sharing with young men, “I was once a member of the LGBTQ community,” was each time met with, “What do you mean you once were?” sparked great conversation and debate.

No doubt each team member will be talking about and sharing details of our outreach to the LGBTQ community for a long time to come.

And, as the saying goes, “Often a picture is worth a thousand words.”

Pastor Phillip Lee
Executive Director
His Way Out Ministries

Please consider making a donation at www.hiswayout.com/donate. Thank you, Pastor Phillip Lee

“If you would be My disciple, give up your right to yourself to Me” (Matthew 16:24).

The greatest crisis in our lives just may be the surrendering of our will.

1. Jesus must be put first in all matters of life. (Mark 8:34-38) The homosexual struggler must take a purposed and deliberate step to be set apart from the world. The individual’s focus must be on the Lord Jesus and pleasing Him in every area of life. In other words, put off self-centeredness and put on Christ-centeredness.

2. Follow all the teachings of Jesus. (John 8:31-32) Our obedience to the Father must be like that of a child which enables our being doers of the Word. Obedience is the supreme test of faith in God (1 Samuel 28:18).

3. Expect change. (John 15:5-8) As a disciple (even those that combat same-gender attraction), our job is to abide in Christ, and “if” we do, the Holy Spirit will produce change, with change being the result of our obedience. As we become more obedient to the Lord and purposed to walk in all of His ways, our lives change. The biggest change will take place in our hearts resulting in new conduct (thoughts, words, and actions), all being representative of “change.” Ultimately, the change we all seek in our lives occurs from the inside out, through the power of the Holy Spirit.

4. Clearly, from 1 John 3:10 and 1 Corinthians 13:1-13, we see that love is not just an emotion; it is an action. We must be doing something and involved in the process of discipleship. The attitude for the homosexual struggler as well as those desiring to help or minister to those combating same-gender attraction must be fueled by the motivation of ‘love.’ When it comes to the complexities of life (including homosexuality and related issues), our ‘attitude’ should be the same as that of Christ Jesus.

5. Making disciples of others. (Matthew 28:18-20) Too often, the homosexual struggler and those that have left homosexuality are reluctant to share their faith and tell nonbelievers about the wonderful changes Jesus has made in their lives. No matter what our maturity level in Christian life, we have something to offer.

Frankly, some of the most enthusiastic representatives of Christian life are new believers who have just discovered the awesome love of God. While they may not know what they’re saying goodbye to “gay” fully means, they have experienced the love of God and want to share their newfound lives and identify in Christ with others.

Admittedly, deliverance from homosexuality or any habit, addiction or compulsive behavior, for that matter, comes from a Person and not a method.

That said, I am concerned we have gotten far away from the command and calling of our Lord to “disciple” – especially, to the homosexual struggler. Heaven knows Christians throughout the ages have had sinful habits to overcome and misbeliefs to replace with truth.

I submit that the same Christian ‘disciplines’ that have helped a multitude will also help those struggling with same-gender attraction.

The greatest crisis in our lives just may be the surrendering of our will.

Pastor Phillip Lee
Executive Director
His Way Out Ministries

Please consider making a donation at www.hiswayout.com/donate. Thank you, Pastor Phillip Lee

Today, the battle that rages, is not over just a person’s sexuality, but rather over which spirit will claim that person’s allegiance. There is no doubt, the cultural and political battle over homosexuality has become in many respects the defining moment for our society.

The more important aspect of this battle is not the political one; it is the one for the individual human soul.

“Love, and the unity it attests to, is the mark Christ gave to Christians to wear before the world. Only with this mark may the world know that Christians are indeed Christians, and that Jesus was sent by the Father.” – Francis Schaeffer

By speaking truth, you can impact and change the future for many.

Be a professing Christian who adheres to and applies the truths of Scripture to our world as never before.

When you and I became a Christian, we began a transformation process not just of what we disapprove, but also of how we disapprove.

The disapproval of any particular behavior including same-sex practice(s) does not particularly identify one as Christian.

Being a Christian is far more profound than changing and voicing what we disapprove of.

The Apostle Paul said, “I am debtor both to the Greeks, and to the barbarians” (Romans 1:14).

There is no doubt Paul understood and lived his life as a debtor to “everyone” on the face of the earth because of the Gospel of Jesus.

Do we, as Ambassadors for Christ, realize that same debtedness to every unsaved soul which includes the vast, enormous and virtually untouched mission field called “the gay community?”

Yes, the Bible is clear that homosexual practice is against God’s pattern for humankind, which should be all the more reason to be the bearer of good tidings to those with unwanted same-gender attraction and not just announce that a certain lifestyle is sinful.

The homosexual, along with many other people, do not know love, yet it is love that they seek more than anything else, by and large. If you and I can be vessels of God’s love, if we can be compelled by that love, that will get their attention, because it will be so starkly different from all of the counterfeit loves that they have experienced, that if there is a genuine desire in them for God, it will draw them to Christ.

The shedding of the false, “gay” identity will be a natural fruit of having discovered where love, true love truly lies.

Look beyond the “gay” or “lesbian” label to the whole person inside and share the transforming power of God’s love and forgiveness without compromising the truth.

Pastor Phillip Lee
Executive Director
His Way Out Ministries

Please consider making a donation at www.hiswayout.com/donate. Thank you, Pastor Phillip Lee

It is 1981, I am living in San Francisco and very much a member of the gay community. On a Sunday afternoon, I leave my apartment and walk down Powell Street toward Market Street, the main drag of downtown San Francisco.

The closer and closer I get to Market Street, clearly something is going on because the boulevard is lined with a huge crowd of people. I have happened upon my first Gay Pride Parade.

I cannot believe what I am witnessing. Frankly, the first thought that occurred to me was – “Why aren’t these people being arrested?” – largely due to the pornographic nature and displays that are parading by, one after another after another. And, I am thinking, “This is what I am to be proud of?”

It was my first and last gay pride parade. (See footnote at the end).

Today, far, far beyond equal rights for many groups in America in their attempts to reweave the social, cultural and political fabric of this country, is an unquenchable thirst for power.

Right on the heels of the power quest is a relentless crusade by many groups for acceptance and to gain society’s stamp of approval on a considerable list of various behaviors.

When same-sex marriage became legal throughout America (but not lawful in the Kingdom of God), the entire lid to Pandora’s Box came off. Various groups that had been for a very long time standing along the sidelines waiting their turn busted out of the box and began to be much more vocal and visible demanding to be recognized and accepted.

And, let me be perfectly clear by stating, we the Church did contribute to the past, and the on-going cultural vacuum that has allowed the redefinition of marriage, family, etc. to happen with so little resistance.

Frankly, the 17 years I spent as a gay-identified man, which included witnessing my first and last gay pride parade in 1981, I frequently found myself scratching my head and marveling at why the gay community adopted the rainbow as their emblem.

It was both confusing and perplexing then. But not now.

It is possible to desire, welcome and even invite the presence of God but ignore, if not totally dismiss any possible judgment of God.

But not so fast.

Genesis 9:13 says, “I have set my rainbow in the clouds, and it will be the sign of the covenant between me and the earth.”

Clearly, the rainbow signifies the promise of God regarding God’s judgment on the world.

Interesting, I was once so deceived to think I would not have to pass through the judgement of God.

And, lest we forget. The flood of God’s judgment came first. The rainbow of the presence of God then followed.

The exclamation, “don’t judge me!” is completely and totally misplaced and inaccurate.

Judgement will come – to each and every one of us.

Footnote: I will be joining a team from Rock Harbor Church to share the gospel during San Francisco’s Gay Pride on Sunday, June 29, 2025.

Pastor Phillip Lee
Executive Director
His Way Out Ministries

Please consider making a donation at www.hiswayout.com/donate. Thank you, Pastor Phillip Lee

Gay Pride Month dedicated to the celebration and commemoration of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and other sexualities held in June every year is fast approaching.

It seeks to honor LGBTQ history and the challenges the community faces, past and present and is now celebrated by many individuals and churches that affirm and cheer on LGBTQ Pride.

But what if the LGBTQ life hasn’t been or is now a season of pride or the party for some of our neighbors, loved ones, or ourselves – that the world says it is?

Personally speaking, it is not (pride) I remember and experienced that in some respects continues to haunt me even today.

There are some life realities gay pride could not even begin to heal. Completely and totally by God’s grace, I have survived homosexuality.

While those words correctly define my personal reality regarding homosexual practice, my friends did not survive.

If you are experiencing same-sex attraction and are considering embracing the feelings and attractions of such, before jumping into a behavior and identity with highly probable and serious consequences, please get the facts – all the facts.

Sexual pleasure, good in and of itself within the proper context, is nevertheless not an essential requirement for human well-being.

Today, there is no guarantee that social policy is exempt from foolishness. Ultimately, the social pressure that exists to protect “gay” from discrimination has resulted in a tragically dangerous code.

While I personally deplore any and all forms of “gay-bashing” and other hate crimes against homosexuals, the extreme medical risks and the fundamental psychological problems often associated with homosexual practice, cannot be undermined or dismissed.

Today, in America, very little is being offered which promotes the truth about homosexuality and the general public has and is slowly but certainly beginning to believe the many untruths with regard to the topic of homosexuality. This did not happen by accident.

In December 1973, by a narrow vote, homosexuality was removed from the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorder (DSM) by the American Psychiatric Association. The vote was not based on scientific research but on political pressure from homosexual activists. So much for an individual’s right of self-determination to address their unwanted homosexual feelings and behavior. In a nutshell, the problem is the politicization of psychiatry, psychology, and most definitely, the Bible, to the extent that the freedom to investigate and treat homosexuality has been and continues to be under serious attack.

For some of us, World AIDS Day is not just on December 1st of each year, but rather each and every day of the year.

The phone conversation occurred in 1995. Frank, my very best and only surviving friend of a group of 22 men, called from the hospital in San Francisco. Immediately, I knew something was very wrong.

In 1985, I moved from San Francisco back to Bakersfield, when in October of that year I surrendered my life to Christ and everything got turned upside-down – actually, right-side up.

There was nothing short of a miraculous desire to get to church and remain in church. The only thing I wanted to read was the Bible, attend classes and always be among Christian men and women, worship, and talk, talk, talk, talk, about Jesus.

Occasionally, I would talk to Frank on the phone to check on how life was going. However, our conversations became more and more strained because all I wanted to talk about was the Bible and what was going on at church. Frank, on the other hand, wanted to talk about the party last night and all that went on.

Drifting apart we most definitely were but continued to maintain a long-distance connection if only to hear one another’s voice for a few seconds. We had been close good friends for many years in San Francisco.

One afternoon I received a phone call at work from Frank. His voice was extremely weak, but he still managed to say…

“Phillip, we don’t understand what has happened to you, but you have found something, and whatever it is, keep it up. Keep it up because you have found something. Do it for me and the others. Whatever you do don’t ever come back to this. Promise me, Phillip.”

“I promise, Frank.”

Two days after my last phone conversation with Frank, his mother called to tell me he had passed away.

So, so many are gone, and they left much too soon. I miss each of my friends. I miss them terribly.

Nearly Thirty-nine years ago I made a promise. A promise I have kept, and I intend to keep.

During my 17 years as ‘gay,’ I personally witnessed far too many lives devastated and some taking their own lives over the celebration of ‘gay.’ In each and every case the ruin and carnage were not brought about by the individual trying to resolve their same-gender attraction.

Personally speaking, it is a fact because of very real discrimination, homosexual activists created a brilliant strategic plan to gain across-the-board acceptance. Yet their plan was and is based upon a flawed paradigm to persuade people they were born with same-gender attraction and they cannot change. This strategy has worked. But the biggest losers just may be homosexual men and women who may get everything they think they want, but will they be denied what they truly need?

The welfare of both individuals and society as a whole depends upon our facing reality honestly, compassionately, and courageously – which requires facts – all the facts.

Pastor Phillip Lee
Executive Director
His Way Out Ministries

Please consider making a donation at www.hiswayout.com/donate. Thank you, Pastor Phillip Lee

Everyone is asking questions, and it has been and continues to be detrimental to the Church for them to go unanswered.

For many, homosexuality is a subject that often goes without being completely understood. For years I lived what many refer to as the gay lifestyle without completely understanding the matter myself.

My confusion, like that of many other men and women, was not broken until Jesus shed His infinite truth and light on my life.

It is only with truth, God’s absolute truth, clear in our hearts, we can have conversations that speak clarity to change our culture and reveal the love of Christ to a sexually confused world.

We need not walk on eggshells to those with same-sex attraction nor to those who want to minister to men and women seeking freedom from same-sex attraction.

The principles of Scripture are to govern our lives regarding issues of morality and ethical living.

His Way Out Ministries “Educational Workshops” provide the right blend of information, practical steps, and guidelines for Christian ministry and renewal that often surround the controversies that frequently surround the topic of same-sex attraction.

For a detailed list of the various Educational Workshops offered by His Way Out Ministries, please visit:

hiswayout.com/workshops

Each workshop seeks to equip participants with understanding and language to converse about each topic in a truthful, loving, and insightful manner.

Turn the many controversies that surround same-sex attraction into ministry by offering a Christlike response and become much more relevant to a rapidly changing world.

Pastor Phillip Lee
Executive Director
His Way Out Ministries

Please consider making a donation at www.hiswayout.com/donate. Thank you, Pastor Phillip Lee