They identify Christianity with the Bible thumping televangelists who fill the airwaves with their gay bashing rhetoric. To many of them, bigotry wrapped in the pages of the Bible was the wedge that drove them from their families and faith. To them, the very idea that there could be gay Christians requires a big paradigm shift. I keep my answer simple. I have decided to follow Jesus, and He asks of that I tend his sheep, love my fellows, and live an abundant life.
Most questions stop there.
Satisfied that I am serious, most of my friends will accept my answer and move on to another topic. In a few cases they follow up with another question. My answer to that is far more complex. To me that means embracing all the aspects of my being and living my life with joy. If I do not do this I find myself back in those boxes again, and a person broken into pieces and stuffed away can't find much joy.