OMAHA, Neb. -- Is being gay a choice?

A conference held in Omaha on Saturday sought to show that there is a way for homosexuals to become ex-gays. In a conference called "Love Won Out," Focus on the Family promoted what it calls, "The truth that change is possible for those who experience same-sex attractions," on its Web site.

The day of speakers and plenary sessions included a testimony from keynote speaker Melissa Fryrear.

"Maybe in the bigger picture, the journey of overcoming homosexuality is such a similar journey to other followers of Christ," she said. "One of our hopes of this conference is to help men and women who are dissatisfied living homosexually."

Fryrear said that for her, God's love won out in the end and changed her after 10 years of being a lesbian.

"I saw that living homosexually is incompatible with my understanding of the Bible," she said.

About 1,000 people turned out at Trinity Interdenominational Church to hear the speakers. About half were family and friends of homosexuals.

Twaina Carpenter is a Christian counseling student at Grace University. She said she learned something that will benefit her in her work.

"We do have to meet them where they are. We can't push the Bible in their face. We can't continue to bash them over the head with scripture," Carpenter said.

But many others say conferences like Love Won Out are detrimental to homosexuals. Local gay activist Mike Patrick said Love Won Out only serves to make gays feel isolated. Patrick was one of about 40 protestors at the conference.

"If you're constantly telling people that they have this condition that need to be fixed, then that's not going to lead them to be happy," Patrick said. "We just wanted to be a visible presence of gay and gay-friendly people who are happy and don't have a problem with it."

Another protestor, Shawn O'Donnell, calls himself an "ex-ex-gay."

"I really tried to change myself," O'Donnell said. "I mean, I spent ten years trying to change myself, change my sexuality, praying, reading the Bible, constantly devoting to changing myself and I couldn't do it."

O'Donnell said trying to be straight emotionally damaged him and caused him to try to commit suicide twice. He now follows Love Won Out to its different locations to protest the conference's practices.

"Can people really change? I don't think so," he said.

Fryrear said she disagrees.

"It's a pursuit in your heart for holiness," she said.

Several churches joined together to bring the conference to Omaha.