Undivided audiobook

I read this book from cover to cover in the span of 9 and a half hours. I stopped to make dinner but then forgot to eat it. In her book, Undivided, Vicky Beeching chronicles her life from growing up in the church, to her career as a Christian worship leader/singer/songwriter to her coming out, and all of the ups and downs in between. Vicky Beeching has been through hell and back.As a gay Christian who grew up in an evangelical mega church, SO MANY THINGS that Vicky experienced were things that I went through as well. (See the entire page 5.) Vicky is able to put to words things that I have felt all my life but never knew how to express. I wish that there had been a book like this when I was a teenager. Like Vicky, I feel as though I missed my teens and twenties as I spent them so far in the closet that I should have fallen into Narnia. I can only imagine the impact that this book is going to have on young LGBTQ+ kids, especially those struggling with their faith and sexuality. I am in awe of Vicky’s courage to publish this book in spite of the amount of hatred and vitriol spewed her way on a daily basis from so-called Christians. I follow her on Twitter and I have seen the cruelty that people throw at her “in the name of God.” The fact that she would be so open and vulnerable because she knows that our community is under represented, even in the face of the threats she receives... Vicky Beeching is an amazing woman. I feel that history will someday look back at Vicky as a hero for LGBTQ+ people of faith. That’s how I see her today. If you are a church leader, you should read this book. If you are a straight Christian who is against LGBTQ+ rights, you should read this book. If you are a parent of an LGBTQ+ kid, you should read this book. Most importantly, if you ARE an LGBTQ+ person who is struggling with faith, you should read this book. You’re not alone.

I've been waiting to read this for some time and bought a copy as soon as it was released. I wasn't disappointed. Beeching has been honest, vulnerable, even raw, and it is clear how much writing this must have cost her, but what a wonderful book. She tells her own journey with clarity and humility, describing the struggles she had in an evangelical culture whilst growing up gay. She recounts the teaching which brought her shame, a dreadful attempt at exorcism on a vulnerable teenager, the cost of the 'Kissing dating goodbye' purity culture, not only to herself but to straight friends as well, and the illness which finally brought her home to the UK after a career in the American evangelical subculture and led to her coming out in 2014. Mixed in with all this are accounts of her undergrad studies at Oxford, and then her later studies as she tried to come to terms with her sexuality and her academic abilities bring another side to her story. The story of her research although brief is welcome. This is someone who has been taught to think, to research and study as well as someone whose life is soaked in prayer and worship with an undivided heart for Jesus. The response to her coming out is something the church should weep over. Rape threats, death threats, gloating over her illness, praying for her to become iller, cursing and threatening her, purposefully trying to stop her from speaking and generally vilifying her...and all done by those who profess to be Christian. As Christians, we should be able to disagree without resorting to any of that. I know many will disagree with her message, and I suspect that soon there will be negative reviews here and elsewhere from people who haven't even read the book, just based on the subject matter. That also saddens me, because how we treat each other is far more important than our beliefs on sexuality.If you are undecided on the subject, if you know someone who is Christian and gay and wonder how the two mix, if you wonder about the effect of evangelical teaching on gay (and even straight) teenagers, if you are gay and wondering how to come out, if someone you know has recently come out, if you know you disagree with her point of view but are open to listening to her full story, if you know you agree and want to know more - and above all, if you are interested in people, then this book is well worth reading.

Very moving memoir - should be read by all evangelical Christians no matter what their beliefs on the sexuality debate.

I really didn’t have a clue what my gay Christian friends went through until I read this book. It’s not an easy read; so many sad things to deal with. I’m always puzzled by why some of my fellow evangelicals shower gays with so much hatred. Doesn’t seem very evangelical to me. Like many straight men of my age group, I’m on a journey with this. I’m grateful that this book was written; I think I understand better now.

This is a must-read for any Christian within a church culture which does not accept same sex relationships, and probably for any Christian generally - LGBTQ+ or not. It will build empathy and compassion, give insight, and grow love for those who are discriminated against on grounds of ‘the bible clearly says…’.

Very open and honest book.

This is an insightful and brave memoir. Forget the gay issue: by far the most shocking discovery I made in this book was to learn about the workaholic lifestyle demanded of a full time Christian Worship leader in the USA. Ten years of relentless air travel to enable a daily routine of performances in church after church and worship group after worship group. Notably absent: the vision and pastoral insight that might have caused a Church leader to ask whether the demands being made on the visiting worship leader were likely to be harmful/destructive rather than life giving.As for the gay issue: This is yet another honest memoir which should make us stop and think. It is shaming to read of the hate-filled treatment the author has been subjected to as a result of her honesty in coming out. We have a lot to learn about how to disagree well and how to make those we disagree with welcome. No matter whether one agrees with Vicky B or not, one can only feel sorrow she has been and is trolled and vilified for who she is and what she believes. "By this shall all people know that you are my disciples, if you have love one for another." (Jn 13:35)

This book was obviously written for a particular audience - not me! However, I would still recommend it highly for its honesty and vulnerability and to get a glimpse into the kind of homophobia that is still too prevelant in churches.

Vicky's story is a powerful description of a faith that refuses to be silent, and an identity that refuses to be denied. In reading it we find that neither are needed; instead, we encounter a God who walks us all through intimate questions on being.

Great memoir. Looking at reviews, I can tell a lot of people have misunderstood this to be a theological exegesis, which the author clearly states it is not.I really related to Vicky Beeching's experience, especially where she talks about the toll suppressing herself took on her mind and body. When I came out it was because I was at a place where I had to choose between life and death; I chose life, and I'm glad Vicky did as well.

A memoir to read. LGBTQ community you are not alone. I read this in one weekend. A quick read and a story everyoen in church should hear about. Love is love

I first came across Vicky Beeching about six or seven years ago, when I heard her speak about social media at the Greenbelt Festival. Her talk was full of positivity, passion and energy, and unlike many others within the Christian community at the time, she was excited by the possibilities offered by new technology. This echoed my own feelings, as I'd been a blogger for a long time by then, and had made many new friends through it. The talk made me interested in her work, so I kept an eye on what she was doing after that.Not long afterwards, she spoke out publicly about same-sex marriage for the first time, voicing her support, which led to a lot of anger from more traditional Christians. Not long after that, in 2014, she came out, explaining she was gay, and had known about this since she was a teenager.Coming-out stories are less of a big deal than they once were, and that's exactly the way it should be - most people now are far more comfortable with gay people than they were in the past, and I'm glad to have seen that change over the past thirty years or so. However, for Vicky it was an extremely big deal - she was an evangelical Christian, who made her living leading worship and making Christian music in American mega-churches. In this environment, being gay was just about the worst possible thing you could do. After Vicky came out, in her words "all hell broke loose" and her life was turned upside down. Many of her former friends and colleagues rejected her, she was swamped with hate mail, and had many threats made against her. The book is the story of how she worked out she was gay, how the church treated the issue, how she came to terms with it, and how she hopes things might change for gay Christians in the future.It's a very sobering read. I'll admit that in my teens and twenties, when I was a fervent evangelical Christian, I was very black and white in my thinking about this and was absolutely convinced that homosexuality was very, very wrong. Unfortunately, this led me to treat a Christian friend who came out extremely badly indeed - it was abusive and homophobic, and although at the time I thought I was right, it was subsequently a turning point in my life as I realised how utterly wrong I'd been. It made me realise that my faith in a God of love had directly led me to act in a hateful, judgemental and aggressive way. Almost twenty years on, this is one of the biggest regrets of my life, and I learned some very important lessons. If faith in a loving God leads you to act in such a horrible way, there's a big problem somewhere.A lot has happened since then, and I've subsequently left the church. However, I still have a lot of Christian friends, and my years in the church have certainly shaped me, so the book was hugely interesting. Vicky suffered very badly, and explains why very clearly - a lot of Christians are extremely uncompromising and very hung up about sex, and it can do a lot of damage. She demonstrates that it can be extremely damaging to straight people too. While she understands the need to "defend the gospel", she shows that Christian thought on many issues has changed over the years, and could change here too.Despite everything, Vicky remains remarkably positive. She's had plenty of anger to work through, but she's very gracious and forgiving to people who, quite frankly, deserve to be named and shamed for what they've done. She's hopeful that same-sex marriage might be accepted among mainstream evangelicalism one day. I think that day is a long way off, but her decision to come out has clearly helped a lot of people that have suffered at the hands of the church. I think this book will help many more, but sadly I don't think the people who need to read it most will ever touch it. These are the people who need to see what their uncompromising, militant stance on sexuality does to people like Vicky. These are the people who spout hatred towards people who dare to question orthodoxy on sex and relationships, while the church turns a blind eye to the horrific suffering and injustice in the world. Talk about screwed up priorities - that's why I'm not there any more.I think this is a very important book for a very wide audience, and long may the discussion around it continue. Personally, though, I think it confirms for me that I was right to turn my back on the church, and I won't be going back any time soon. Any institution that claims to act in love, yet destroys so many lives, doesn't deserve the respect the author gives it.

Despite growing up in the conservative Christian and evangelical communities, I had not heard of Vicky Beeching, but I listened to a few of her songs after reading this and got sucker punched back in time when that style of music was very familiar to me. I rated this a 5 star even though I think it dragged a bit at the end, and could have used a bit more editorial tightening, and there were a few phrases and writing cliques were repeated and scattered through out the book that presumably editors are suppose to catch? Vicky details with grace and clarity her life as a prominent member of the CCM world and her struggle to hide and overcome her gayness. Her explanations of the church's traditional teachings and specifically those if the evangelicals are clear and simple for those who are unfamiliar with them. She walks us through her long and painful reconciliation of her faith with her sexuality through her theological studies. She also addresses some of the harmful practices of the church, including the "Purity Movement", and the damaging views of the church holds regarding mental health, depression and chronic illness. I think what stuck with me most is the encouraged practice of conservative and evangelical Christians to not seek further afield than their own groups for answers or questions and to maintain a circle of confirmation bias. Vicky explains how she went to Oxford and chose an evangelical collage, group of friend and peers in an attempt to protect herself and her faith from all the "others" that would surely have false doctrine and sinful lifestyles. She exposes a theology and practice of fear and hate among so many, but specifically the evangelicals, while maintaining grace and love for the many people she still loves and respects among them.