Maternity Homes: A Safe Haven for Pregnant Women

Posted on February 17, 2018 by Kathy Widenhouse

For You From The Word

I was a stranger and you invited me in. (Matthew 25:35)

For You To Think About

door opening into clean hotel roomIn 1882, wealthy New Yorker Charles Crittenton lost his 4-year-old daughter Florence to scarlet fever.  The tragedy moved him to start the Florence Night Mission in New York, a safe haven for women who were hurting, lost, or pregnant.

After that, Charles Crittenton traveled across the country in a railroad car, donating $500 to each town willing to start a home for young women and children in need.  More than seventy homes in total were opened. They were America’s first maternity homes.

Today, one of the biggest needs among women who face an unplanned pregnancy is housing.

Our nation’s 120+ maternity homes simply cannot provide enough beds for abandoned pregnant women and their new babies … not unlike 2,000 years ago, when a pregnant woman named Mary needed a place to stay.

For You To Pray

Heavenly Father,
You promise to supply all our needs according to Your riches in Christ Jesus. Move in able hearts to start more maternity homes. Touch Your people to provide shelter for women who face an unplanned pregnancy.
In Jesus’ name, Amen.

More about Maternity Homes

Birthmothers Partners with PCC and Maternity Home to Save a Life

Ways Lives Are Saved: Maternity Homes Help Women Choose Life

What Pregnant College Students Need to Choose Life: Housing or a Maternity Home

 

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Ministry Partner Makes Lifesaving Referral to Birthmothers

Posted on February 17, 2018 by Kathy Widenhouse

Mary Hager, Rockville (MD) Pregnancy Center Assistant Director, tells the story of a lifesaving referral to Birthmothers

Rosa’s pregnancy test was positive. She was abortion-minded, and I knew it was extremely important for her to have an ultrasound right away. But our center’s ultrasound schedule was full. Fortunately, another center had an available appointment just two days later.

A pregnant woman sitting on a sofa looking at her unborn baby's ultrasound scan.“If we can find transportation, will you be willing to go to another center for an ultrasound?” I asked Rosa.  She nodded.

That’s when I called Birthmothers. I knew they could match Rosa with a caring person who would take her to the appointment.

The Birthmothers staff were friendly and helpful.  I was so pleased they were able to match Rosa immediately.  Her Birthmothers Friend took her to the appointment, where Rosa saw her baby on the screen and chose life.

Our ministry is focused on helping a woman at her moment of crisis … when she’s undecided about what to do. Birthmothers complements us beautifully.  They help a woman long-term. We don’t have the volunteers or staff to help women with specifics outside our center (such as transportation, in this case) – nor do our clients expect that from us.

A one-on-one, long-term relationship with a volunteer Birthmothers Friend is exactly what many pregnant women need.  We refer women to Birthmothers with complete assurance that they’ll be loved and mentored over the coming weeks and months.  I don’t know of any other ministry like it.

Birthmothers was the first and only ministry I contacted for assistance with Rosa. I’m so glad we can work together to help women. I hope our ministry partnership can continue to grow for a long time.

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Birthmothers Partners With PCC and Maternity Home to Save a Life

Posted on February 16, 2018 by Kathy Widenhouse

Birthmothers Friend teams up with partners to find housing for woman threatened with abortion

Anita was living with a relative when she discovered she was pregnant and referred to Birthmothers by Assist Pregnancy Center (Annandale, VA). They’d help Anita confirm her pregnancy. The birth father was no longer in the picture.

pregnant woman“I cannot tell my family that I’m pregnant,” said Anita. “They will be ashamed of me and disown me.”

Or, as she later shared with Birthmothers Friend Melinda Cagle, they could force her to have an abortion.

“I love God,” said Anita. “I cannot abort this baby.”

The Next Step: A Maternity Home

The pregnancy care center didn’t have the resources to connect her to a safe living situation and Anita didn’t make enough money at her bowling alley job to support herself on her own. So Melinda, representing Birthmothers, met with Anita and an Assist staff member to figure out the next step.

It turned out that a residential maternity home was the best place for Anita to live safely and carry her baby to term.

Melinda, as Anita’s Friend, helped her through the application process. As the time neared for Anita to move and she got cold feet, the two women prayed together. Melinda made a list of Anita’s fears and personally spoke with the maternity home director to get satisfactory answers to each of Anita’s concerns.

A Friend Stays With You Long-Term

When the day came for Anita to move, Melinda collected Anita, drove her to the maternity home, sat with her through orientation, and made sure Anita was settled in.

“When can I call Anita and come visit her?” Melinda asked the maternity home director before she left.

“You’re not just here to drop her off?” the maternity home director answered in disbelief. Melinda explained that Birthmothers Friends provide a supportive, one-on-one relationship for as long as the woman needs or chooses.

Today, Anita is living at the maternity home, attending college classes, and awaiting the baby’s arrival. She is considering adoption.

“The big story here is a wonderful 3-way partnership between Birthmothers, the pregnancy care center, and the maternity home,” said Melinda. “We worked together to help save a life.”

Find out how you can be trained to be a Birthmothers Friend.

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A Friend’s Story: “People Supported Me and I Want to Give Back”

Posted on February 14, 2018 by Kathy Widenhouse

By Rebecca B.*

One day as I waited for my order at a local coffee shop, I saw a Birthmothers business card tacked to the bulletin board. Intrigued, I took it. When I got home, I sent off a quick email to the contact, saying that I’d recently had some time open up at work and would like to be involved in the ministry.

Need a Friend? cardI had faced my own unplanned pregnancy just a couple of years ago, I explained, and a couple of people encouraged me and helped me throughout the process. So the idea of helping a pregnant woman is very appealing to me.

It was during a turbulent time that I discovered I was pregnant. My parents were in the process of getting divorced. My sister was getting married. In order to sort out my thoughts, I traveled to a different state to visit some friends.

God orchestrated my decisions

Through a series of events, God led me to stay and put down roots.

I’d grown up in a Christian home. But in my early years, I had seen so many people live a relationship with Christ out of fear. Now, in this new place, I saw people love Him. I wanted that. I began attending a vibrant local church. Friends let me have a place to stay rent-free. Some took care of food bills. Others simply helped me consider my options.

It has been exciting to see how God orchestrated my decision to make an adoption plan. I met a family through church to whom I became close. They have an international writing and speaking ministry. Later, God led them to the same adoption agency I chose.  They became my child’s adoptive parents. Because we have an open adoption, I see my birth son nearly every week. We regularly have “dates.” I often sit with the adoptive family in church and attend family get-togethers.

What I would tell a pregnant woman

If I had the opportunity to talk to a woman who faces an unplanned pregnancy, I would point out to her that she is courageous. Whatever decision she makes takes confidence and bravery.  Then, I would encourage her to get the support of at least one person during pregnancy. My parents and grandparents have struggled with my situation. But my sister has stood by me, even though she lives hundreds of miles away. Friends and my pregnancy center counselor walked with me. Personal support made all the difference.

That’s what has spurred me to get involved with Birthmothers and train as a Friend – the support I received from those who loved me unconditionally during my own unplanned pregnancy.

As I get know the Birthmothers team, I’ve learned that they share my passion. They are involved purely because they want to be. It will be exciting to see what doors God will open to me to help another woman through this ministry … and how the ripple-effect from others’ love to me will spread.

*Name changed for confidentiality

Learn more about becoming a Birthmothers Friend.

More Stories of Support

Virginia’s Story: All-Star Player Supports Pregnant Teenager

Katey’s Story: “Support Gave Me Options”

Alanna’s Story: “Support Helped Me Choose Life”

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A Friend Walks In When Everyone Walks Out

Posted on February 9, 2018 by Kathy Widenhouse

For You From The Word

A friend loves at all times. (Proverbs 17:17)

For You To Think About

woman receiving cell phone callWalter Winchell (1897-1972), an American newspaper columnist and radio commentator, faced a series of personal tragedies: a fall from popularity, rejection by his journalist peers, losing his young daughter to pneumonia, his son’s suicide, and ultimately a personal battle with cancer.

He once said, “A real friend is one who walks in when the rest of the world walks out.”

At some point, each of us has experienced our world crashing down. It could be a medical crisis … a pink slip … a wayward child … a crumbling marriage. Pressure mounts if we feel abandoned or rejected while grappling with adversity.

Those who face an unplanned pregnancy say what they need most is a special person who gives them support while their world comes crashing down. They need a friend who walks in when the rest of the world walks out.

That’s why Birthmothers Friends were created. And that’s why a Friends motto is, “A Friend Loves At All Times.”

For You To Pray

Lord God,
Thank You for the gift of friendship. Show me someone who faces an unplanned pregnancy. Use me to give them support when everyone else walks out. Let me be a Friend that loves at all times.
In Jesus’ name, Amen

More about Friends

A Friend’s Love Is Loyal

A Friend’s Love Is Helpful

A Friend Shares Your Burden

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Unplanned Pregnancy: God Sees You … When No One Else Does

Posted on February 8, 2018 by Kathy Widenhouse

For You From The Word

You are the God who sees me. (Genesis 16:13)

For You To Think About

Why hadn’t I seen it? Trina agonized. She had been alone in a new city until she met Sam.

pregnant woman outside in winterOne thing led to another between them, but now Trina knew their dates and romantic trysts were all a charade. Once she told Sam she had become pregnant, he wanted nothing to do with her. Even worse, Trina discovered Sam was married – and he and his wife were trying to have a baby.

Trina had never felt so alone in her life. No friends. No family. New city. It was as if she was invisible.

Her situation was not unlike that of Hagar, an Egyptian maid who became pregnant by the great Hebrew patriarch Abraham. Abraham and his wife were struggling to conceive. But when Hagar became pregnant, she was mistreated by Abraham’s wife and rejected by Abraham. She had no social standing and no one to confide in. Feeling discarded and invisible, Hagar fled to the desert.

But it was there in her most isolated hour that God came to Hagar and spoke to her. “You are now with child and you will have a son,” he said to her (Genesis 16:11).  He sees me, Hagar rejoiced. I am not invisible.

Hagar mattered to God. Trina matters to God. Every pregnant woman matters to God. It is a truth God wants every pregnant woman to know – no matter what her circumstances: He sees her even when no one else does.

For You to Pray

Gracious Father,
Let me not gloss over those who face excruciatingly difficult circumstances in an unplanned pregnancy. Help these men and women experience God’s presence through me and others. Let me see them when they feel no one else does.
In Jesus’ name, Amen.

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A Friend’s Love: A Friend Chooses to Share Your Burden

Posted on February 8, 2018 by Kathy Widenhouse

For You From The Word

Friends always show their love. What are relatives for if not to share trouble? (Proverbs 17:17, GNT)

For You To Think About

2 girls crossing stream togetherA friend relationship is modeled on the unconditional love of Jesus Christ.  That’s why the Birthmothers ministry motto is derived from Proverbs 17:17: A Friend loves at all times™.

Scripture explains that one way a friend shows love is in the choice to share your burdens and joys.

Ruth, a godly woman in the Old Testament, shouldered her mother-in-law’s struggle with loneliness to the point that she joined with the older woman in moving to a different land.

Likewise, a friend walks with you in times of trouble. Rather than reflecting an unhealthy co-dependent relationship, a friend’s love shares your burden freely. She maintains the ability to live autonomously, but chooses to share pain and joy alongside you.

It is this free choice that makes a friend’s love so powerful … and even reminiscent of the choice Jesus made in going to the cross.

For You to Pray

Heavenly Father,

Thank You for using us to show Your love. Help me demonstrate the love of a friend by choosing to shoulder burdens and joys – freely – with a woman or man who faces an unplanned pregnancy. Amen.

More About Friends and Friendship During an Unplanned Pregnancy

A Friend’s Love Is Helpful

A Friend Loves at All Times – and Is Sent By God

Story of a Match: A Friend Is a Tangible Reminder of God

 

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Choosing Life: Every Child Is a Wanted Child

Posted on February 7, 2018 by Kathy Widenhouse

For You From The Word

But now, this is what the Lord says —
He who created you, O Jacob; He who formed you, O Israel:
“Fear not, for I have redeemed you; I have summoned you by name; you are mine.” (Isaiah 41:1)

For You To Think About

mom and newborn baby on her lapEach year in the United States, about 51,000 American children and 6,500 foreign children are placed for adoption, totaling about 58,000 adoptions.

In contrast, each year in the U.S. there are about 1.3 million abortions … while only 4% of American women who face an unplanned pregnancy make an adoption plan.

Experts estimate it is somewhere between 1-2 million couples (the Family Research Council) and 10 million couples (National Council for Adoption) seeking to adopt.

Imagine another scenario …
Suppose somehow the numbers of pregnant women who chose adoption over abortion grew from 4% to 50% tomorrow. Even at that rate, with no bureaucratic snafus, it would take up to 4 years before the minimum numbers of families seeking to adopt (1-2 million) would level out. That’s not counting the numbers of families who begin to seek adoption in those intervening 4 years.

Pro-choice organizations often justify terminations with the slogan, “Every child a wanted child,” inferring that unplanned children are not wanted. That’s a false assumption. The numbers show a profound truth: Every child is wanted, and wanted desperately.

For You to Pray

Gracious Father,
Move in hearts of pregnant women to consider choosing life.
In Jesus’ name, Amen.

More about Choosing Life

Choosing Life: This Birth Mom Simply Needed an Advocate

Choosing Life: This Birth Mom Was Abortion-Minded 

Choosing Life: This Woman’s Choice Left an Amazing Legacy

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Choosing Life: Babies Go To Congress

Posted on February 5, 2018 by Kathy Widenhouse

For You From The Word

From the lips of children and infants you have ordained praise. (Psalm 8:2)

For You To Think About

mom and baby girlShelley was financially insecure, unmarried, and expecting her third child. She didn’t think she could handle another child and abortion seemed to be the only option. But the encouragement and support she received at a visit to a pregnancy care center led Shelley to choose life for her baby daughter, Kiree. Since then, Shelley has had the opportunity to share her story with two abortion-minded friends, who also ended up choosing life.

Recently Shelley and Kiree traveled to Washington, D.C. to share their story again – this time with members of Congress. Their trip was part of Heartbeat International’s Babies Go to Congress® campaign, a proactive one-on-one effort designed to show lawmakers the impact of pregnancy care centers as a true alternative to abortion.

Twice a year, mothers and babies like Shelley and Kiree represent the many people who are helped by pregnancy centers each year across the U.S. during designated Babies Go to Congress trips. To date, more than 100 moms and babies have visited more than 150 congressional offices.

The very presence of these precious babies in the halls of the U.S. Capitol speaks volumes to lawmakers. “It’s very eye-opening for legislators,” says Peggy Hartshorn, Heartbeat president. “They see the actual moms and babies that are helped in their own congressional districts or in their states.”

For You To Pray

Gracious Father,
Move the hearts of our lawmakers to see the impact of pregnancy care centers as an alternative to abortion and as a way to provide support for those who face an unplanned pregnancy.
In Jesus’ name, Amen

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Diary of a Mom-To-Be: “I’ve Never Felt So Alone in My Life”

Posted on January 26, 2018 by Kathy Widenhouse

For You From The Word

Do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God.
I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.
(Isaiah 41:10)

For You To Think About

Day 1
woman writing and on phoneMy hands are shaking. I just took the pregnancy test and it was positive. I’m so scared. I don’t know what I’m going to do. I’ve never felt so alone in my life.
Day 3
I told the guy I’ve been dating. He told me to do whatever I want – that he didn’t want to be responsible for making a decision. Then he hung up on me.
Day 8
What if they find out at work?
Day 14
Should I go to the doctor? Or a clinic? I just moved here 2 months ago. I don’t know my way around and there’s no one I can ask.
Day 19
I found a number in the phone book and called and was connected with a really nice lady named Anne. We met at Starbucks. She gave me a list of pregnancy centers and said she’d go with me.
Day 24
I saw the baby on an ultrasound. Anne was with me. I don’t have to go through this alone. It’s going to be OK.

For You To Pray

Loving Father,

Help pregnant women who need a Friend reach out and get support. Let them know they don’t have to be alone.

In Jesus’ name, Amen.

Loneliness During an Unplanned Pregnancy

A Friend Shares the Burden of Loneliness During Unplanned Pregnancy

“I Was Lonely, But My Friend Gave Me Courage to Carry My Baby”

Loneliness Puts Pregnant Women More at Risk

 

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