Position 1: some people are born with a sexual preference for people of the same sex - they haven't done anything to bring this about

Position 2: for some sin they committed when they are very young, a child grows up to be only attracted to people of the same sex. (variation - because of the sin of another - but that's probably moot)

In both cases there's nothing the person can do about it. They cannot simply choose to start being attracted to a person of the opposite sex; it just doesn't work like that. There are a very few testimonies of people who do experience a radical change of orientation, and a lot more of people getting married to a person of the opposite sex and finding that there is sexual attraction there - but equally there are horror stories where it doesn't happen. However unless a healer is prepared to demonstrate to me that he can heal all the blind people who come to him, I'm not going to accept that he can heal all the gays who come to him unless they aren't willing.

It's as a result of this logic that I tend to go for the 'handicap' model, seeing being gay, or a BL, as a form of disability. A problem with this approach is that it can encourage the argument that we should allow homosexual relationships to be endorsed by the church, in the same way that widespread divorce has led to the church endorsing remarriage, despite Jesus' strong condemnation of it. However I think it is the most accurate interpretation of the data both biblically and experientially.

In this context we are left to fight the temptation towards sexual expression that is outside the will of God. Apart from the fact that it will NEVER be possible for us to have such a relationship, we actually aren't that different from every other person who has to address sexual temptation - and all sides need to stop pretending its qualitatively different on that front line. The object of the temptation may be different; the reality of having to fight the battle is identical.