Choose Life
Deuteronomy 30:19-20 TLB
"I call heaven and earth to witness against you that today I have set before you life or death, blessing or curse. Oh, that you would choose life; that you and your children might live! Choose to love the Lord your God and to obey him and to cling to him, for he is your life and the length of your days. You will then be able to live safely in the land the Lord promised your ancestors, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob."
We recently passed the 38th Anniversary of Roe v. Wade and Doe v. Dalton, two landmark rulings from the Supreme Court regarding abortion. Since that time, over fifty million babies have been aborted in the United States. It is terrible to think about a population greater than the entire country of Canada simply being wiped out for convenience, economics, pride, or shame.
As dreadful as the realization of the magnitude of the number, however, is the realization that there are twice as many people whose lives have been irrevocably changed as the result of one decision: the natural parents of those babies have been changed as well.
A decision made in the panic of the moment, where it seemed there was no other choice, has lifelong consequences. For these men and women, they chose to destroy a part of themselves. Even if they didn't view the baby as such, even if they chose to call it an embryo or a fetus, the fact remains that it was created from them.
As these men and women went on to possibly marry and choose to start a family, the decision they made in years prior most likely came back to haunt them. As they look lovingly into the faces of their children and grandchildren, the eyes of the aborted look back at them. And for those women who were physically scarred from the procedure, unable to ever bear children, every birth announcement from happy friends and family must feel like a stab in their hearts and souls.
As we reflect on the impact on this country over the loss of an entire generation, we must also reflect on the "walking wounded" around us. Because abortion is a secret shame, hidden from judgment, we may never know if the person we are sitting next to in church, or praying with in a small group, or who is teaching our children in Sunday School, may be a victim of abortion.
Continue to pray for the eyes of our government and our law makers to be opened to the truth of Scripture – that all life is precious, is sanctified by God for a special purpose, and is to be respected. Pray for the survivors of abortion, for those who choose to perform abortions, and for those scared men and women who are trying to make the right choice. Stand in the gap for abstinence programs, for chastity, and for high morals for our young people.
Most of all, choose Life. Jesus said He is the Way, the Truth, and the Life. When we choose Him, each and every day, in everything we say and do, then others will see that Life in us, and they will want to know Who we know.
Share Jesus this week in this dark world, and watch new Life spring up everywhere around you.
Heavenly Father, forgive us for the bad choices we make, when we turn to some other solution than to You. Thank you for Your grace and mercy that is new every morning. Help us to be a light unto someone else's darkness today, in Jesus' name, Amen.
Deuteronomy 30:19-20 TLB
"I call heaven and earth to witness against you that today I have set before you life or death, blessing or curse. Oh, that you would choose life; that you and your children might live! Choose to love the Lord your God and to obey him and to cling to him, for he is your life and the length of your days. You will then be able to live safely in the land the Lord promised your ancestors, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob."
We recently passed the 38th Anniversary of Roe v. Wade and Doe v. Dalton, two landmark rulings from the Supreme Court regarding abortion. Since that time, over fifty million babies have been aborted in the United States. It is terrible to think about a population greater than the entire country of Canada simply being wiped out for convenience, economics, pride, or shame.
As dreadful as the realization of the magnitude of the number, however, is the realization that there are twice as many people whose lives have been irrevocably changed as the result of one decision: the natural parents of those babies have been changed as well.
A decision made in the panic of the moment, where it seemed there was no other choice, has lifelong consequences. For these men and women, they chose to destroy a part of themselves. Even if they didn't view the baby as such, even if they chose to call it an embryo or a fetus, the fact remains that it was created from them.
As these men and women went on to possibly marry and choose to start a family, the decision they made in years prior most likely came back to haunt them. As they look lovingly into the faces of their children and grandchildren, the eyes of the aborted look back at them. And for those women who were physically scarred from the procedure, unable to ever bear children, every birth announcement from happy friends and family must feel like a stab in their hearts and souls.
As we reflect on the impact on this country over the loss of an entire generation, we must also reflect on the "walking wounded" around us. Because abortion is a secret shame, hidden from judgment, we may never know if the person we are sitting next to in church, or praying with in a small group, or who is teaching our children in Sunday School, may be a victim of abortion.
Continue to pray for the eyes of our government and our law makers to be opened to the truth of Scripture – that all life is precious, is sanctified by God for a special purpose, and is to be respected. Pray for the survivors of abortion, for those who choose to perform abortions, and for those scared men and women who are trying to make the right choice. Stand in the gap for abstinence programs, for chastity, and for high morals for our young people.
Most of all, choose Life. Jesus said He is the Way, the Truth, and the Life. When we choose Him, each and every day, in everything we say and do, then others will see that Life in us, and they will want to know Who we know.
Share Jesus this week in this dark world, and watch new Life spring up everywhere around you.
Heavenly Father, forgive us for the bad choices we make, when we turn to some other solution than to You. Thank you for Your grace and mercy that is new every morning. Help us to be a light unto someone else's darkness today, in Jesus' name, Amen.
BRAVO!!! Great to hear about the silent victims and taking this whole thing in a different direction!
ReplyDeleteLoved the remark about how we don't know about people sitting next to us.....