Undivided

Coming Out, Becoming Whole, and Living Free from Shame

By: Vicky Beeching

Narrated by: Billie Fulford-Brown

Length: 9 hrs and 1 min

Publisher's summary

Vicky Beeching, called “arguably the most influential Christian of her generation” in The Guardian, began writing songs for the church in her teens. By the time she reached her early thirties, Vicky was a household name in churches on both sides of the pond. Recording multiple albums and singing in America’s largest megachurches, her music was used weekly around the globe and translated into numerous languages.

But this poster girl for evangelical Christianity lived with a debilitating inner battle: she was gay. The tens of thousands of traditional Christians she sang in front of were unanimous in their view - they staunchly opposed same-sex relationships and saw homosexuality as a grievous sin. Vicky knew if she ever spoke up about her identity it would cost her everything.

Faced with a major health crisis, at the age of 35 she decided to tell the world that she was gay. As a result, all hell broke loose. She lost her music career and livelihood, faced threats and vitriol from traditionalists, developed further health issues from the immense stress, and had to rebuild her life almost from scratch.

But despite losing so much she gained far more: she was finally able to live from a place of wholeness, vulnerability, and authenticity. She finally found peace. What’s more, Vicky became a champion for others, fighting for LGBT equality in the church and in the corporate sector. Her courageous work is creating change in the US and the UK, as she urges people to celebrate diversity, live authentically, and become undivided.

©2018 Victoria Beeching (P)2018 HarperCollins Publishers

Bearing Witness to God's Love

Bearing witness is a deeply Christian practice. In her beautifully vulnerable, hopeful book, Vicky Beeching bears witness both to the wideness and depth of God's love for all humanity, and to the injustices and harm done to the most vulnerable. It takes deep courage to speak truth to power--and make no mistake, the evangelical-Christian machine is Power. The tenderness in which she comes to hold her own story, offer it to others, and continue making meaning is both riveting and inspriational. A great read. Highly recommended.

Genuine love of God

I loved the way the author was able to explain how she felt about the situations in her life and how she so eloquently dealt with them. She was great as the narrator and felt like it was straightforward from the heart.

Inspiring Memoir

In this memoir, the author explains the complexities she faced as a successful, evangelical singer-songwriter hiding a huge secret - her sexuality. Her story illuminates how the chasm between the LGBTQ+ and the Evangelical communities does more damage than meets the eye, from dividing hearts to damaging souls and deteriorating faith.

Throughout the narrative she describes her love of music and the bible, archaic conversion attempts, intense internal conflicts, the cost of all the covering up, her coming out and the consequences thereof. Despite vested interests in staying silent to protect her career, she picked the side of love. A voice that has the most to lose by speaking the truth but speaks out anyway is invaluable in today's world.

PERSONAL OPINION:

For those deeply involved in the evangelical/religious world and have not come out but are considering it - READ THIS BOOK. For those already out and looking for more information on the topic in general - I'd skip it. This book is honest, compassionate and thoughtful. I originally purchased this hoping it would offer a lot more info about her research and reasoning backing her change in stance on the topic of homosexuality in the bible. I wanted more of a theology/self-help book and didnt realize it was really just a memoir. I am not disappointed though. My only critique is the sections on her medical history and health issues were a little drawn out and I would have loved to hear more of her beliefs and opinions on LGBTQA+ inclusion and religion/spirituality.

Way more than just a memoir

So appreciated this book. It speaks to so much more than just sexual identity, but also the whole messy after effects of the purity movement, breaking the shame cycle around mental health, looking at how we work and pursue holiness in ministry. So much in this book! It looks honestly at the church without becoming judgemental or apologetic. It’s so obvious that Vicky Beeching loves the church despite how hurt she’s been by it and hopes this book will continue to shift things towards affirming and grace filled communities. I pray it will too.

Profound and moving

No matter what side of the fence you prefer regarding LGBTQ+, this book is worth its weight in precious gems. Quite profound and utterly moving.

The most interesting book I've ever read

I love this book. So much of Vicky's story is like mine. This is a thoughtful and compelling work showing how one person reconciled their faith and sexuality. For so many of us who have been through the process, this work is extremely lifegiving and full of hope. If you are queer and Christian, God loves you!

Inspring Story, highly recommend

Vicky Beeching was a Christian musician and songwriter, who wrote a lot of worship songs that were used in churches around the world. Her background was Pentecostal/conservative evangelical in England. But she knew she was attracted to girls and not boys from a young age. She also knew that her church community declared same-sex relationships to be sinful. So like so many others in her position, she tried to shove that part of herself away in a box, thinking it was evil. Vicky studied Bible and Theology at Oxford as she continued with her music ministry. After that, she moved to Nashville when the opportunity presented itself. Living with such a big secret, trying to suppress such a big part of herself was having a heavy impact on her. She came to a breaking point where she knew she could no longer stay in the closet. I would encourage anyone and everyone to read Vicky's story, to gain insight and empathy into just one example of what it was like for her as a gay Christian, trying to navigate the complexities of being in the closet and then coming out.

#ComingOut #LGBTQ #Inspiring #tagsgiving #sweepstakes

Awesome

I absolutely loved this book. It was very well written. And the story hit home for me on many levels. I’m so grateful to VB for being brave enough to write this, despite the now years of hateful lash-back. It’s an appropriate book for LGBTQ ppl and Christians of all denominations, ages, and backgrounds.

Courage and grace

Wonderful and inspiring. Vicky’s story brings hope and healing for so many who have been told that being gay is reason for God’s rejection. A message of inclusion and love.