Where God leads us we go
Since starting Choose Life Ministries we have been looking into different ways in which we can connect with other pro-life organisations. One of the organisations we connected with was 40 days for life. Although we had never got involved with any of their campaigns we were quite familiar with the ministry and the work they actively do within the pro-life movement so when we heard that 40 days for life were holding a prayer vigil at an abortion centre nearby we decided to join them for a few dates to pray late last year.
Now fast forward to the beginning of March this year (Just before the lockdown and social distancing came into effect) we were praying and we asked the Lord to direct us on what He wanted us to focus on that day, and within a few minutes after praying the Holy Spirit told us to go down to pray outside the abortion clinic ( we did say we wanted to do this when the next vigil came around but we had forgotten about it) when we got this word from God, without even hesitating we signed up and went down that same afternoon.
The first couple of times we went to pray we met a few other pro-lifers who were praying outside the clinic at the same time as us; we were also joined by some pro-choicers who did their best to let their presence be known but that didn’t stop us. However this time around our experience was a little different as no one else was there; no pro-choicers, no other pro-lifers just us.
Although this was a different experience, we knew we were there for a purpose and we just wanted to be obedient to the Lord’s instruction, and we knew it didn’t require a group to do that. As the scripture says in Matthew 18:20 “For where two or three are gathered together in my name, there I am in the midst” this is so true, whether it's two or three God was there with us and we felt his presence as we prayed. (Looking back now I am glad we went when we did as a few days after that the vigil had to be cancelled due to the spread of the corona virus).
So moving on now to when we arrived at the clinic we were deciding where to stand and whilst deciding we notice a man in a car next to where we were stood (from first impressions he looked like he was waiting for someone inside the clinic but we didn’t know for sure) Anyway we moved along the pathway and started to pray, but as we were praying I couldn’t help but wonder about the man in the car and his situation......
"For where two or three are gathered together in my name, there I am in the midst" - Matthew 18:20
Not long after thinking these thoughts, the same man appeared outside the car with his small toddlers (one of them didn’t look much older than 2 or 3 years old and the one he was carrying in his arms about 8 or 9 months) Instantly my mind then started to wonder if the reason him and his partner wanted an abortion was because they had two very small children already; Maybe they thought it would be too much to cope with another baby? or perhaps they couldn’t financially afford to have another child and the thought of the circumstance’s made them anxious? or was it because they believed abortion was their only option? All these thoughts race through my mind; I wondered if the mother was being coerced into having the abortion or if it was her choice. It could be that they don’t have a support network i.e. family or friends close by, this could be why the dad couldn’t go in with his partner to support his partner? (instead he had the job of trying to keep the children entertained in a car for a couple of hours).
What a shame if any of the latter is the case. If only they knew that God had a plan for that child’s life; I believe God would have sent the right people to support them, even though it may seem like there is no way out, there is a way even when there seems to be no way.
A pile of rubbish with a deeper meaning
One of the first things I noticed when I got out of the car when we arrived at the clinic was a big pile of rubbish that someone had dumped in the middle of the street. (Now this particular street is a backstreet so I am sure many people use it as a dumping area) However although this might often be the case, I felt like God had drawn my attention to it for a reason. When I notice the rubbish piled in the middle of the road, It bothered me to see it it just piled up like that; not just because a pile of rubbish is annoying but because it felt like it was a representation of something else much deeper.
Soon after noticing it God said to me “This rubbish represents a throw-away/disposable society mind-set and until society views change and people start to appreciate what they have, things won’t change” Wow, God was so right! the problem nowadays is everything is easy to dump; throw away, discard, dispose of whether its food, furniture, clothes, money, etc. Even during this Pandemic many people started to panic buy food only to end up throwing it out which is ridiculous.
Sadly sometimes people treat possessions and people irresponsibly; as if they are disposable and when they are done with them they just dump them into the rubbish and forget about them, because of this there are lots of hurt and broken people in the world hence why mental health is a huge problem.
The most hurtful part is this is exactly how unwanted precious innocent human life is treated and disposed of; somebody had used the street as a wasteland area for general rubbish but inside one of the buildings on that same street human life was being thrown away and put out with the rubbish (most likely a medical waste bin) nonetheless they are taken away to be destroyed as if their life doesn’t matter.
As I visualise this, it brings me back to the scene in the Unplanned movie when the medical waste operatives came to collect the unborn babies from the medical waste barrels. Up until this very moment I had never seen or even allowed my mind to think about what the disposal of aborted babies would look like; I mean why would I? It’s not exactly a pretty site.
In spite of this, here I was watching this movie that shows you the harsh, callous and cold reality of what abortion really looks like. And It’s so sad to think that this side of Heaven human lives are being treated like nothing more than a mistake, an inconvenience and medical waste. Don’t the unborn deserve the same chance in life as any other living breathing human being?
“This rubbish represents a throw-away/disposable society mind-set and until society views change and people start to appreciate what they have, things won’t change”
The walk of relief or regret?
After no more than 30 minutes of praying we saw a lady coming out of the clinic heading towards the car to greet her family (the one’s I mentioned earlier) as she walked over to them she smiled and put her thumbs up to them, as if to say “all done!” can you imagine? Here’s me thinking she may come out looking distraught with a sombre expression on her face (I guess the response will be different for each person) For a lack of a better word the only word I can use to describe how her reaction made us feel is uncomfortable.
Now we don’t know for sure if that lady had just had an abortion; but my instincts tells me she did, it’s just sad to think that her first reaction to her partner was a ‘thumb’s up’ although her first feelings were initial relief it is highly possible that feeling can turn into a lifetime of pain and regret.
More than anything I feel sorry for this lady, especially if her reasoning was what we suspected (i.e. feeling like it would be a burden to have three children so close in age and/or financial reasons) I wish she would have given herself time to explore her options and seek out someone who could help her make an informed decision. This could have been through pregnancy counselling or another pathway, if this was the case we may not have crossed paths that day – The thing is, there is support out there but the abortionists don’t offer you any other choices…just abortion.
We prayed for every woman who had received an abortion there. We prayed for the unborn lives lost, and for the clinic staff. It was quite upsetting being there and I shed a few tears during the hour we’d been praying, I still have hope though, because I know that God is the God of the turnaround; He can turn any bad situations around for Good.
Unplanned Movie – reflection, Impact & change
Praying at the 40 days for life vigil reminded me of the Abby Johnson story that inspired her to write a book about her experience working in Planned Parenthood this led to a film being created called ‘Unplanned’ in the Spring of 2019; This film reflects the true reality of abortion. In the film ex abortion worker Abby Johnson who used to work as a manager at Planned Parenthood (up until she discovered the real truth about abortion when she had to assist in one) shares her story on how she went from pro-choice to pro-life.
Although this movie didn’t get much positive media coverage (due to the nature of the film) it has had a huge impact around the world especially in America. This movie has had the power to change many people’s mind on the issue of abortion and it has even saved lives.
One example of a life saved through the film we happened to hear about through a ‘good news’ story shared by the 40 days for life organisation. In this particular story a young woman found out she was pregnant and she didn’t want to keep the baby. She decide the best thing for her would be to book to have an abortion; she was adamant that this was what she wanted to do.
Meanwhile in the midst of her awaiting to have this abortion appointment a friend of hers had been trying to talk her out of it. But the girl wasn't having any of it; she was determined to go through with the abortion. So much so, she even convinced her friend that nothing could change her mind and to prove this, she told her friend “I will even go and see the Unplanned movie with you to prove that I won’t change my mind” (can you imagine she was even willing to see a film about abortion to prove her point!) anyway, that Friday night they went to see the movie (the day before her abortion).
But something happened during the movie, something switched in her mind to the point where after seeing the real truth about the impact of abortion the young girl decided on the date of her abortion to not attend the appointment; the pregnant young girl decided to stand outside the abortion clinic and join the 40 days for life prayer vigil instead! How awesome is that? This lady decided to keep her baby and stand on the other side of the fence to pray for the babies that were about to be aborted in that clinic! Now if this doesn’t make you think this movie is worth watching then I don’t know what else to tell you.
Some of you might be thinking “oh I don’t know how a film can change my mind about abortion” or you may even be thinking “it’s not making any difference so I won’t bother supporting it” – if that’s you, then think again! this girls testimony is proof that this film can and is saving lives! Not many films have the power to save someone’s life but this one has and I believe there will be more. Because of this film a beautiful baby is alive today and has a chance to live a fulfilled life.
You may not have heard about the film if you are from the UK as it wasn’t released in cinemas over here. However it is now available on DVD. You can purchase a copy here. It was my first time watching the movie just recently, I watched it with my Mum and I knew it wouldn’t be an easy film to watch as it’s such a despairing subject, but it was actually more impacting than I thought and we both got very upset as it was quite triggering. But don’t let that deter you.
You may be reading this blog and maybe you are someone who doesn’t have a clear stance on abortion; you may consider yourself as pro-choice or you may be someone who wouldn’t personally have an abortion but think it’s fine for others to do so; either way whatever your stance, I challenge you to get a copy and see what society doesn’t want you to see; the true reality of abortion - Will you accept the challenge?
Love & Blessings,
Choose Life Ministries
xxx
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