your family and changing your beliefs

"Changing Your Beliefs" cartoon by nakedpastor David Hayward HERE. > The other day I told someone who was going through a change in their beliefs that I experienced it in stages.

• The first step was me. Interior. I changed my mind.
• The second step was letting those who really love me know. Like my wife Lisa and my kids.
• The third step was people I thought supported me, like friends and acquaintances.
• The fourth step was family.
• The fifth step was the world.

The most difficult steps, socially, were with friends and family. My change disrupted many friendships and acquaintances. It also confused many of my family members. Family is difficult because they've known you from the beginning. They have a very specifically shaped idea of who you are. Like a mold. It's hard to break out of that. I know many people who will totally understand this cartoon. They feel demonized by their families, totally misunderstood, and under unbearable pressure to conform to their families' expectations of them and come back into the fold. Change is not an easy thing to do. Being true to yourself is costly. There are consequences. But it is better to live with integrity and a clear conscience than spend the rest of our lives pleasing others. Hey! We talk about this stuff a lot in our online community, The Lasting Supper. You just might find the support you've been looking for. Please join us. I'm sure you'll love it.