... the Miracle of Life... let's shout it from the rooftops..

... today I watched a few of the videos we have in our resource library for the volunteers..
so far I have not felt the need to watch some of the more graphic videos, but today I just felt I wanted to...
so I did..
I did not steel myself against what would come my way.. it is kind of interesting how I am now able to just relax and open my arms to let the pain that comes my way just come...
I have had an abortion and I have worked through a long process of depression, shame, guilt and finally forgiveness and healing..
I didn't know what I was going to feel seeing those images, but I just knew I needed to watch it now...
the images were graphic and it was painful to see just what happens every time a baby is aborted.
I was surprised that these images still failed to make me feel guilt again.. it proved to me that I definitely have been set free..
what it did though was to clarify something for me...
since I embarked on that path that I am on now I have had a passion for women to find healing for a past abortion, I have become passionate about praying for the pregnant women to choose life over abortion, I am passionate about reaching out in love and support with the unconditional love of Jesus..
in all this I am fully aware just how controversial this topic is and how the Christian community has shied away from boldly standing up for what is the truth..
political correctness and tiptoeing around the issue as to not offend anyone... I am becoming more and more sure about that this is not the way to change the world..
Jesus when He saw the moneylenders in the temple did not pussyfoot around it... He was angry and He took care of the situation.. He made His point of view clear to all around... yes, He paid with His life.. but this was God's plan all along.. in it He redeemed all those that were His Father's...
so... after what Jesus has done we cannot hide, we cannot try to be politically correct Christians... we cannot hide the reason we are doing what we are doing..
it is all about Hope for Life, Hope for Eternal Life...it is about getting the word out that Life is sacred, that it starts the moment of conception... it is a human being in that womb and having an abortion is killing it...
as followers of Christ we are not condemning , we don't even act out of anger.. but we do not hide the truth, we love and support and we tell the truth.
this is why today I purchased the rights to publish the little video clip "The Miracle of Life" and uploaded it to the website...
maybe someone who is shaking and leaning towards abortion will not come to Hope for Life because she can find out on our website who we are and what we stand for... but she will have been exposed to the truth... and the truth is what sets us free..
as I am walking on the path that God has called me on,  walking on it with the precious women God has brought together for such a time as this, I am more sure than ever that it is not about pleasing men but about pleasing God... and He called me to stand up for what is right... no matter the cost.. and His will will be done at Hope for Life Pregnancy Care Center as it is in Heaven... Trusting Him and choosing to step out in faith rather than hiding in fear...

.. Pro Life...

last night 18 of us... (14 active Hope for Life people, one of us not there, away on vacation, and 4 friends and future volunteers ) went to the Halton Pro Life Annual Banquet...

our display table ... beautifully showing what we are all about... our babies, books, DVDs, one pink and one yellow layette... brochures and posters... pregnancy test etc...

great food and fun, silent auction bidding.... graciously promoted by the great people of Halton Pro Life... this night brought tears to my eyes not just once...

 a young girl singing,  a beautiful voice and an even more beautiful heart never fails to resonate with my inner most being..

the speaker, a man after God's own heart...  always impressed by someone who has the ability to state facts and argue truth in simple words, that's the black and white person in me..

this man, Scott Klusendorf, is the founder and president of Life Training Institute (LTI).  he travels throughout the United States and Canada training pro-life advocates to defend their views in the public square and to make their case persuasively in the marketplace of ideas.

a humble man of God, he gave us all a great tool to counter the arguments of people that have totally bought into the culture of relativism, a theory holding that truth or moral or aesthetic value, etc., is not universal or absolute but may differ between individuals or cultures ... a culture in which it is okay to do and believe whatever you like, as long as you do not claim that your theory or belief is truth, is the right way of looking at an issue.... there is tolerance for everything and everyone under the sun, but not for the one that, like we as Christians say that there indeed is Truth... and the opposite of it.. lies..

it is okay to believe that killing the unborn is wrong, and to never do it yourself, but you cannot "push" this on anyone else...  this has been the couple reactions we got from people that were offended by us saying there was an absolute truth here...
the truth that it is wrong to kill, and just because an embryo is very small (Size) it's  level of development is in it's beginning (Level of development) it's environment is inside the womb (Environment) and it fully depends on the mother for everything it needs (Dependency) is still the truth...the embryo still is a human being... it will grow, it's development will go on, it will change it's "address" after 9 months of growing from inside to outside of the womb, and it will slowly continue to be less dependent on the mother after those 9 months of total dependency...

Scott stated that if those categories 4 categories (SLED) should determine someone's right to life.. what about a newborn, still pretty small and very dependent.. or a toddler, a little bigger but not very independent yet..

he went on to speak about our duty... to love the unborn and it's mother as our neighbours... deep and profound, this is what Hope for Life and any other Pregnancy Center is all about...  loving the unborn and to love the mother with truth that can transform her... only the Exchange, Christ's Righteousness for our Sinfulness is going to help any of us, no matter what we are facing...

a blessing to be at the Halton Pro Life Banquet last night... a blessing to be called to extend this love and wisdom from God to those that He is bringing to us....
tears welling up from my soul once again... feeling at home and in the right place last night.. God is so very good.... He blessed us once again!

..... Praises to Him....

.. I received a reprimand for posting on Facebook on Monday that we had our first client and then didn't follow up with more information....... so today I am more faithful and on the ball to fill everyone who wants to know in on what has been happening at Hope for Life...

so Monday afternoon, a young mother with her little girl and her little baby boy came in to use the Care Closet.. you should have seen me get out of my chair... she was so blessed and thankful for all the stuff she found for her little son.. the little girl had fun playing in the Nursery while her mom was "shopping"...

she had seen one of our posters and said she would pass the info on to some of her friends...

also on Monday Doreen and I went to the High school and dropped off two layettes, for the two teenage girls we knew are going to have their babies this month..
The lady there was very excited that we just came and brought our gifts...
in the meantime, that evening we found out about another teenage girl that had her baby girl that night...

tomorrow we are going to go by her house to bring her a layette with all pink things for her little one.. she gave us her cell phone number and her address... a connection made through my youngest daughter, who knows someone who knows her...

someone else dropped in today and shared about her abortions, going to follow up with her...
another lady called and is going to come by with her daughter, who she said is a new mom, to find out more about what we can offer a young teenage mother...

isn't God just so amazing?
just a little while ago I received an email from a lady from Halton Pro Life that they would like us to have a  display table  for Hope for Life at the banquet we are going to go to on Friday..

connected with a Physician in town who is more than excited to have a Pregnancy Care Center in Georgetown, she is a very outspoken Pro Life supporter and will be able to connect us to some other supporters..

had a great meeting with our "Staff Liaison" and some wonderful vision for what God has for us and the church...

another day of Praises lifted up to the God of the Universe, the Lord God Almighty, who is faithful and true and who has planned all these things in advance, so that we would be allowed to bring Glory to Him who is worthy of our Praise.. yesterday, today and forevermore..

.... the Lord goes before us...

the pastor awaiting the verdict in Iran, will he be executed for being a Christian...
the US Airforce Academy being forced to retract their email announcement endorsing Operation Christmas Child, because it is a Christian charity...
our own "rebuff" we experienced this week when sharing about Hope for Life...
I guess I am just realizing that we indeed have entered into the battle... not for our lives... thankfully we cannot be executed for what we believe, but our sincere desire to help and reach out is not necessarily welcomed in all places...

this is what the Lord says to us:
The LORD himself goes before you and will be with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged. (Deut. 31:8)

now, this was only one of many places... and God, knowing how fragile we are has again made sure that there were more exciting stories to tell than discouraging ones...

the lady and her daughter entering the church through the "wrong" ( the Hope for Life entrance) even though she has come here before a few times to prepare for banquets held at the church.. seeing our signs and getting so very excited about us she is now displaying our posters and brochures at her restaurant in Georgetown...
a very supportive pastor passing on some crucial information about an upcoming Community event we are now registered for...
putting together the baskets for the 2 girls we know of that are going to give birth very soon...
one of the ladies we are praying for, that we know are post abortive, opening up in a way she never has before...
my exuberant friend sharing with her hairdresser and now they too are displaying our brochures ...
God is at work!

.... a calling confirmed...

....another exciting day at Hope for Life... we always have such a great time together...
started out this morning with me meeting with pastors representing most of the churches in Georgetown, sharing with them our heart for the women of this town...
stopping by and dropping off some posters and brochures at the Catholic church in town... a new volunteer coming for a walk through and much work done in getting even better prepared...

confirmed today the calling we have received to bring this "issue" back or should I say to the forefront in churches...

abortion and teenage pregnancy still a taboo in churches today...  the fall out from that: women hiding in shame, never sharing their past .. in bondage, because of a lack of transparency ...

made a few people uncomfortable today... (Doreen said we will pray that God would keep them miserable... I just love this woman...)  maybe He used me today to convict some that had not been wanting to look at this "issue"... fact is that 78% of the women that had an abortion say that they are either Protestant or Catholic and that 18% of those claim they are born again....

I remember when I shared this fact at my church for the first time in June, I had some member of the congregation ( a man) come up to me and tell me that this couldn't be true... born again Christian women wouldn't do something like that... I asked him if he had never sinned?
He wasn't too impressed with me.... oopsies...

it is a fact and we need to admit to ourselves, as sure as there are born again Christian men and women addicted to pornography, as sure as they cheat on each other and walk away from marriages, as sure as there are gossipers and envious people, there are women that have a relationship with Christ, that have had an abortion before or are even considering one today...

in order for those women to feel the freedom to come forward and confess their sin and find forgiveness, we need to bring the issue to the forefront... and that is what I tried to do today...
we will continue to pray for favour in the hearts of the pastors, that we would be allowed to come to their churches and share our testimonies...Doreen and I... our "His" stories... to show the women what God can do... how we can be freed from the bondage.. how we can step out from the darkness and how He will forgive and heal our hearts... that is what this is all about... to be there for women facing a tough situation and to give them hope, all the information and support they need to make a life affirming decision and to encourage those carrying the guilt and shame of a past abortion to come forward and find healing...
so that He could be glorified!!