The Gospel is politically neutral

 but United Methodists are not. They demonstrate that the Greek philosopher was correct when he said, "Man by nature is a political animal."

As a UMC Certified Lay Servant, I am expected to be some kind of a leader in the UMC. Yet, I do not know how I can serve the general public in that position if I become associated with any kind of politics.

One reason why I joined the UMC was so that my church affiliation would not hinder my ability to talk to members of the LGBTQ community.

As I see it, me embracing political causes as a United Methodist would hinder my ability to talk to members of the general public who might not agree with the UMC General Conference's political statements.

Those statements are in the Social Principles section of the UMC Book of Discipline.

Granted, those Social Principles are not UMC law, nor are the statements in the UMC Book of Resolutions.