Today
is a day that I will never forget. Today,
for the first time, I stood in front of an abortion clinic with other
Christians and prayed for an end to abortion.
Oh, I had prayed this before on my own privately, but there was
something different about it this time, praying in unity with other believers
right in front of a place where the most innocent of lives were being taken. Something deep inside of me was awakened
today. I feel like someone who has been
slowly dozing off to sleep, only to have cold water thrown in their face. I’ve always considered myself to be very
pro-life, but if anyone had asked me before today what I was doing about it, I
wouldn’t have known what to say. I’ve
always known abortion clinics were bad news, but they were always something far
away in the distance, something that I didn’t know too much about. I had often wondered where they were located in
my area, and what kinds of things they were actually telling the women who
entered their doors. Now I can no longer
claim ignorance. I’ve jumped into the pro-life
battlefield with both feet, and what I am learning is absolutely shocking. The deception and lies surrounding the
abortion industry are enough to make your head spin.
But
I’m getting ahead of myself. Let me back
up and paint a picture of what happened today….
After
parking across the street in the church parking lot (we are strictly forbidden
by the abortion clinic to use their parking lot or walk on their property), I grabbed
my umbrella, crossed the street, and joined the line of Christians
praying. During the 40 Days for Life
event, this is what women see as they drive into the building complex, heading
to the late-term abortion clinic in Dallas: a line of people standing outside, quietly
praying for them and the decision they will make. Today, we were a sea of umbrellas, since it
had been steadily raining all day. Sometimes, like today, there are sidewalk
counselors there who try to speak to the women and give them information as
they enter the complex. One thing that
stuck out to me was the fact that when you drive in, you see a post with two
signs, one pointing to the left and one pointing to the right. The sign pointing to the left directs women
to the abortion clinic, while the sign pointing to the right directs them to a
crisis pregnancy center. The cold hard
truth is that abortion clinics make their money by performing abortions, and
many women claim to have been pressured into getting an abortion by these clinics. On the other hand, crisis pregnancy centers are
often faith-based, and provide their counseling and medical services
(sonograms) free of charge. Crisis
pregnancy centers give out factual information about the development of the
unborn child (all facts, backed up by medical science), as well as many
resources on where a woman can obtain financial, medical, and emotional aid
during this time in her life. The difference
between the two is like night and day. It
immediately made me think of Moses speaking to the Israelites, clearly laying
their options out before them: “See, I have set before you today life and good,
death and evil.” Obedience to God always
leads to life.
As
soon as I walked up and took my place, the first thing I felt was a heaviness
all around me. In the gently falling
rain, there was a deep sadness and yet an indescribable hope, intermingling
into one. It quickly became apparent to
me that God Himself was there among us, in a very real way. I found that praying came easily – things were
entering into my mind to pray that I had never even thought of praying before. We were merely vessels, and the Lord was
using us to pray mighty prayers on behalf of the unborn, young women, older
women, fathers, doctors, nurses, and clinic workers. There was no doubt in my mind that God was
moving in that place in ways we ourselves couldn’t even fathom. We were standing on the public sidewalk
outside the clinic, next to a very busy street, and I noticed several times
cars would honk as they drove by.
Honking in favor of us or against us, I’m not sure. I kept my head down, trying to block out the
traffic noise and focus on why I was there.
At one point, one of the sidewalk counselors came up to us and said, “A
woman just chose life!! Thank you for
your prayers!” Wow!! God was already answering our prayers, even
as we stood there on that sidewalk. The
woman had driven into the complex planning to get an abortion, but couldn’t
bring herself to go through with it. She
was weeping as she spoke with the sidewalk counselor. I prayed that the Lord would surround that
tearful woman with His songs of deliverance, showing her a glimpse of the
beautiful plan He has for her life. The
time flew by quickly, and before I knew it, it was time to leave. Others had shown up since I had arrived, and still
others would be coming later to pray through the night hours.
I
walked away knowing I would be back. It
felt good being a part of something that is changing lives, one person at
time. Since the first year when 40 Days
began in 2007, there have been at least 5,928 young lives spared from abortion,
69 abortion clinic workers have quit their jobs and walked away from the
abortion industry, and 24 abortion facilities have completely shut down
following local 40 Days for Life campaigns.*
Prayer is more powerful than we could possibly imagine, because the God who
hears us is infinitely powerful!
I
want to encourage everyone to read a book that has greatly opened my eyes to
the abortion industry, as well as the pro-life movement. The book is “Unplanned,” by Abby
Johnson. Abby worked for Planned
Parenthood for several years, eventually moving up to the role of Director of
one of their clinics. She left shortly
after assisting in an actual abortion procedure for the first time. The book reveals her personal journey from “pro-choice
advocate” to “pro-life advocate.” I
honestly cannot put this book down! It has
really helped me to better understand the thought processes behind those on the
pro-choice side, and also given me a peek inside the world of an abortion
clinic worker. It makes it easier to
know how to pray for them, as well as the women contemplating having an
abortion.
I
prayed a simple prayer a few weeks ago, and it was this: “God, will You please
use me?” He has been answering that
prayer in amazing ways, not only leading me to pray in front of abortion
clinics, but also now allowing me to be trained as a crisis pregnancy center
counselor. The battle for life is a tough
one, but one that is infinitely worthwhile.
I double dog dare anyone reading this to pray the same prayer I did, and
watch to see what God will do. It might
not be pro-life ministry in particular – it could be any number of other
things. But one thing I know for certain…
God WILL use you if you ask Him! So
buckle up and get ready for the ride!
“And the King will answer
and say to them, ‘Assuredly, I say to you, inasmuch as you did it to one of the
least of these My brethren, you did it to Me.’” Matthew 25:40
*Statistics
from: http://www.40daysforlife.com/.
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