“I’m Just One Person” – Joining With Thousands During 40 Days for Life

Posted on March 3, 2017 by Kathy Widenhouse

For You From The Word

“Where two or three gather in my name, there am I with them.” (Matthew 18:20, NIV)

For You To Think About

40 Days for Life Vigil

40 Days for Life

“I’m just one person!”

Yes, but when you join with others in your community during a 40 Days for Life campaign – even just two or three people together – you can help turn hearts and minds to a culture of life.

And nationwide you join tens of thousands in –

  • praying and fasting for women to choose life
  • participating in a vigil outside a local abortion clinic
  • providing community outreach, such as spreading the word about Birthmothers’ one-on-one, life-affirming, adoption-informing services for pregnant women

Reports from previous campaigns document hundreds of lives saved from abortion. You can help change minds and save lives in your own backyard when you take a stand for life with others.

Even just two or three of you.

For You To Pray

Almighty God,

Move many to take a stand and join in unity during the 40 Days for Life.

In Jesus’ name, Amen

More about 40 Days for Life

How God Uses 40 Days to Save Lives

40 Days for Life: Find a Vigil Near You

What Is 40 Days for Life?

 

Posted in abortion, abortion-minded women, Friends4Life, prayer, pro-life | Tagged , , , , | Comments Off on “I’m Just One Person” – Joining With Thousands During 40 Days for Life

Every Eleven Seconds. Yes, That Often.

Posted on February 24, 2017 by Kathy Widenhouse

For You From The Word

Be as wise as serpents and as innocent as doves.  (Matthew 10:16)

For You To Think About

Every eleven seconds a woman discovers she is pregnantFact: every eleven seconds, a woman in the United States discovers she’s pregnant without planning to be.

Fact: birth moms and birth dads who face an unplanned pregnancy have a broad range of next-step options, including single parenting, marriage, joint custody, open adoption, closed adoption, abortion …

Fact: thousands of pregnant women struggle with uncertainty, loneliness, isolation, confusion – and need love.

Fact: God uses His people to raise awareness.  Jesus commands us to be wise about people and the times we live in.

Fact: in the time you took to read this, another woman found out she’s pregnant without intending to be.

For You To Pray

Gracious Lord,
Increase my sensitivity for women who will find out today that they face an unplanned pregnancy.  Use me to help raise awareness about their needs.
In Jesus’ name, Amen.

More About Unplanned Pregnancy

Take This Quiz to See What You Know About Unplanned Pregnancy Today

Unplanned Pregnancy Rates are Unrelenting

A Woman Faces These Risks in Unplanned Pregnancy

 

 

Posted in Friends4Life, unplanned pregnancy | Tagged , , | Comments Off on Every Eleven Seconds. Yes, That Often.

Family: Children Are A Gift From God

Posted on February 17, 2017 by Kathy Widenhouse

For You From The Word

Children are a gift from God. (Psalm 127:3, TLB)

For You To Think About

Children and parents feetAccording to Barry McLerran and Rick Stout of Demographic Winter: The Decline of  the Human Family,  “Every aspect of modernity works against family life, and in favor of singleness, small families or voluntary childlessness.” They cite these trends:

  • Delaying and severing marriage.  Starting later makes it less likely for couples to have families. High divorce rates mean families are smaller.
  • Rising cohabitation.  Lower commitment is less conducive to building families.
  • Putting off family for careers.  Conceiving becomes progressively more difficult, particularly for women over age 35.
  • Anti-family culture.  Today’s media portrays satisfaction derived from travel, work and personal growth, rather than from strong families and strong relationships.
  • Voluntary childlessness.  Though the world population has declined in the last three decades, talk of an over-population threat has led many to have smaller families or no family. Moreover, 24%  U.S. pregnancies end in abortion each year.

In our self-absorption, have we lost sight of God’s gift to us?

For You To Pray

Heavenly Father,
Renew our appreciation for the gift of children and families.
In Jesus’ name, Amen.

More About God’s Gift of Family

Don’t Forget the Family!

How to Support Family Members Facing an Unplanned Pregnancy

Lawmakers Agree: Children Have the Right to a Family

Posted in abortion, adoption, family, Friends4Life, love | Tagged , , | Comments Off on Family: Children Are A Gift From God

No-Cost Ways To Show Love

Posted on February 10, 2017 by Kathy Widenhouse

For You From The Word

As I have loved you, so you must love one another. (John 13:34)

For You To Think About

woman sending a textTwo out of three Americans celebrate Valentine’s Day with loved ones.

But what about women who face an unplanned pregnancy? So many are all alone.  Their fear and isolation lead many to make uninformed, fateful decisions.  In fact, 83% of women who struggle after an abortion say they would have changed their decision if they’d had support from a partner, family member or special person during pregnancy.

It costs nothing to –

  • Call or text a pregnant woman and tell her you’re thinking about her
  • Share Christ’s offer of unconditional grace with a woman who has just discovered she’s pregnant
  • Listen to a pregnant woman as she shares her story – and be there for her
  • Offer to pray with a pregnant woman
  • Ask a pregnant woman if she’s been given information about adoption options

For You To Pray

Loving Father,
Show me how I can offer love to a lonely pregnant woman this week.
In Jesus’ name, Amen.

More Ways To Show Love

A Love Ministry, Part 1: Love Is Unconditional

A Love Ministry, Part 2: One-on-One Love

A Love Ministry, Part 3: Life-Affirming Love

 

Posted in acceptance, Friends4Life, love, Pregnancy Support, unplanned pregnancy | Tagged , , , | Comments Off on No-Cost Ways To Show Love

Superstar Quarterback Stands For Life During Super Bowl

Posted on January 28, 2017 by Kathy Widenhouse

For You From The Word

Do not be afraid. Stand firm and you will see the deliverance the Lord will bring you.
(Exodus 14:13)

For You To Think About

Tim Tebow and mom via She Knows

Image: She Knows

Heisman Trophy winner and superstar University of Florida quarterback Tim Tebow, along with his mother Pam Tebow, starred in a pro-life television commercial during the 2010 Super Bowl.

The ad alluded the story of Pam’s pregnancy with Tim while she and husband Bob were serving as missionaries in the Philippines. Bob grieved over the loss of millions of American lives to abortion and prayed, “God, if you give me a son, I’ll raise him to be a preacher.” Soon afterwards, Pam learned she was pregnant.

But the couple faced a crisis. Pam contracted dysentery, fell into a coma, and was treated with strong medications. Doctors feared a stillbirth and urged her to abort. The Tebows’ faith led them to choose life for Tim.

Bob’s prayer was answered in an unusual way. Today, the young Tebow’s pulpit is the football arena. He is known not only for his athletic prowess but also as an outspoken man of faith and model of Christian character.

According to Focus on the Family, “The Tebows agreed to appear in the commercial because the issue of life is one they feel very strongly about.”

For You To Pray

Loving Father,
Help me to take a stand for life, no matter how big or small my circle of influence.
In Jesus’ name, Amen.

Posted in Friends4Life | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

How Citizen Heroes Are Building a Culture of Life

Posted on January 25, 2017 by Kathy Widenhouse

For You From The Word

Create in me a new, clean heart, O God. (Psalm 51:10, TLB)

For You To Think About

George W. Bush with members of the community“Building a culture of life requires more than law,” President George Bush told March for Life participants during his tenure.  “It requires changing hearts.”

He named practical ways pro-life citizens are working to cultivate a culture of life:

  • passing laws that promote adoption
  • extending legal protection to children who are born despite abortion attempts
  • helping pregnant teens to continue their education

“We will continue to work for a culture of life,” said President Bush, “where a woman with an unplanned pregnancy knows there are caring people who will support her.”

When people show compassion, hearts can change.  Changed hearts are a key to building a culture of life.

Hearts like yours.

For You To Pray

Gracious Father,
Change hearts in our nation. Let us value life. Raise up citizen heroes to stand for and work for life.
In Jesus’ name, Amen.

More Citizen Heroes Who Are Building a Culture of Life

Local Employees Team Up to Renovate Pregnancy Care Center

Concerned Citizens (Like You) Make Up the Pro-Life Movement

How One Community Rallied Around a Pregnant Woman

 

 

 

Posted in community, Friends4Life, Pregnancy Support, pro-life, Serving | Tagged , , , , | Comments Off on How Citizen Heroes Are Building a Culture of Life

It’s Been 40 Years, But We’re Making Progress

Posted on January 20, 2017 by Kathy Widenhouse

For You From The Word

Be diligent in these matters; give yourself wholly to them, so that everyone may see your progress. (1 Timothy 4:15)

For You To Think About

A pregnant woman sitting on a sofa looking at her unborn baby's ultrasound scan.In face of the January 22 anniversary of Roe v. Wade (the 1973 U.S. Supreme Court decision which legalized abortion) and companion case Doe v. Bolton (which held that physicians can perform an abortion at any time during pregnancy), has the pro-life cause made any progress in instilling a culture of life in our nation?

Advocates respond with a resounding “yes” in sheer numbers alone.

  • A May 2012 Gallup poll showed Americans were more likely to self-identify as “pro-life” rather than “pro-choice” by a 50 to 4 margin.
  • 1,500 abortion clinics closed their doors over the past 22 years. In 1991 there were 2,176 surgical abortion clinics nationwide; as of 2013 there are 660 and falling.
  • Abortions are down 25% annually from 1.6 million in 1990 to 1.2 million since 2005
  • Since 2010, 32 states have enacted over 100 pro-life laws.
  • Fetal therapy, fetal diagnosis, and fetal surgery are on the rise, all recognizing the unborn as a real person.

For You To Pray

Heavenly Father,
Thank you for the progress in instilling a culture of life in our nation. Help us be diligent and persist to restoring respect for life. As we make steps to that end, I pray You receive the glory.
In Jesus’ name, Amen.

More Progress in the Battle For Life

Legislators Help Close Clinics and Win the Battle for Life

4 Trends in the Pro-Life Battle

5 Facts that Prove We’re Winning the Pro-Life Battle

3 Changes in America’s Pro-Life Trends

 

Posted in Friends4Life | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment

Remembering Roe

Posted on January 12, 2017 by Kathy Widenhouse

For You From The Word

Remember those earlier days after you had received the light, when you stood your ground in a great contest in the face of suffering. (Hebrews 10:32)

For You To Think About

Roe-v-Wade headlineOn January 22, 1973, the U.S. Supreme Court made a landmark decision, Roe v. Wade, which legalized abortion.

Each January you have the opportunity to remember Roe, pray for our nation, and raise awareness for the next generation in conversations and on social media:

  • Share where you were on January 22, 1973 and/or how that one decision has impacted your life.
  • Post prayers for an end to abortion
  • Tell others how you plan to commemorate the day
  • Review the history of that date, including news clips announcing the decision
  • Spread the word

For You To Pray

Heavenly Father,
Move in hearts of Your people to not forget but to remember Roe and help others be aware of what happened on January 23, 1973.
In Jesus’ name, Amen.

More about Roe v. Wade

What is “Doe v. Bolton”?

What More Young People Learn Each January

What “Pro-Life” Really Means

 

Posted in abortion, Friends4Life, Sanctity of Life | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment

A Prayer at the Anniversary of Roe v. Wade

Posted on January 7, 2017 by Kathy Widenhouse

For You From The Word

I will lead the blind by ways they have not known, along unfamiliar paths I will guide them. (Isaiah 42:16)

For You To Think About

Pray this prayer for our nation as we approach the anniversary of Roe v. Wade on January 22, the landmark legislation that gave women the right to choose an abortion.

man praying with sunset in backgroundHeavenly Father,

I praise You for being our Creator! You made and formed each of us (Psalm 119:73). You knit us together (Psalm 139:13). Your Almighty breath of gives life (Job 33:4).

I praise You for giving us a choice. You tell us what is right: not to put the innocent to death (Exodus 23:7). You set before us life and death. You tell us to choose life. (Deuteronomy 30:19).

The way our nation has chosen may seem right to men, but it leads to death (Proverbs 14:12). On behalf of my nation, I repent of our sin of taking life that belongs only to You. You promise that if we confess our sins, You are faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness (1 John 1:9). Now at the anniversary of Roe v. Wade, I humbly ask for repentance, forgiveness, and cleansing for America.

You promise You will lead the blind by ways they have not known (Isaiah 42:16). The way of choosing life is unfamiliar for many Americans. Turn our nation back to You, even when it is unfamiliar, difficult, and uncomfortable. Let us choose life. Begin in me and use me. (Isaiah 6:8).
In Jesus’ name, Amen.

For You To Pray

Gracious Father,
Raise up many to pray for America at the anniversary of Roe v. Wade.
In Jesus’ name, Amen.

More Prayers to Pray for Life

A Prayer You Can Pray for Pregnant Women

A Prayer for the Pro-Choice Community

Prayers to Pray for an Abortion-Minded Woman

Posted in abortion, Friends4Life, prayer, Sanctity of Life | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

3 Ways to Celebrate the Sanctity of Human Life Sunday

Posted on December 16, 2016 by Kathy Widenhouse

newborn handSince 1974, people of faith across the globe have celebrated the Sanctity of Human Life Sunday (SOHL) on the third Sunday in January.

The observance is purposefully scheduled to fall around the anniversary of Roe v. Wade, the 1973 U.S. Supreme Court decision legalizing abortion.

As you prepare to celebrate with those in your faith community, you can affirm life in a practical and powerful ways.

  1. Tell your church about Birthmothers’ life-affirming, adoption-informing ministry to any woman who faces an unplanned pregnancy.
  2. Invite a pregnant woman to be matched one-on-one with a Birthmothers Friend who will walk with her and provide personal support, no matter what her circumstances.
  3. Give to support Birthmothers’ ministry to pregnant women.

For You To Pray

Loving Father,
Show me how to observe the sanctity of human life and affirm life to women and men who face an unplanned pregnancy.
In Jesus’ name, Amen.

More About the Sanctity of Human Life Sunday

What Is the “Sanctity of Life”?

5 Practical Ways to Promote the Sanctity of Life

What Happened on January 22, 1973?

 

 

Posted in Friends4Life, Sanctity of Life | Tagged , , , | Comments Off on 3 Ways to Celebrate the Sanctity of Human Life Sunday