What Is the Adoption Triad?

Posted on October 22, 2018 by Kathy Widenhouse

For You From The Word

Therefore we ought to support people like these, that we may be fellow workers for the truth. (3 John 1:8, ESV)

For You To Think About

Adoption TriadNovember is National Adoption Awareness Month! One way to raise awareness about adoption is through equipping the public to understand how adoption works.

The “adoption triad,” also called the “adoption triangle,” is a term used to describe the three-sided relationship that exists in an adoption between the adoptee, the birth parents, and the adoptive parents.

While each member of the adoption triad experiences adoption in a different way, their roles are all equally important.

  • The adoptee is the child who is adopted
  • The birth family includes the adoptee’s biological mother and/or father
  • The adoptive family includes the mother and/or father who accepts full legal, parental responsibility for the adoptee

The triad forms a framework which ultimately provides a permanent placement that is in the adoptee’s best interest. Each adoption triad is unique. While all three parties have a lifelong, unique relationship, they may or may not be close-knit.

For You To Pray

Gracious Father,
Thank you for the gift of adoption. As members of the adoption triad consider choices about their relationships, help them do so with the best interests of the adoptee and with wisdom that comes only from you.
In Jesus’ name, Amen.

More about Adoption Awareness

Celebrate National Adoption Awareness Month

Sharing the Adoption Option Through the Media

Words Matter: A Primer for Positive Adoption Language

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70,000 Volunteers for Life – Plus One

Posted on October 15, 2018 by Kathy Widenhouse

For You From The Word

Your people will offer themselves freely. (Psalm 110:3, RSV)

For You To Think About

volunteers at pregnancy care centers and pro-life organziations

Grace looked up as a young woman approached the desk. “Can I help you?” Grace asked kindly. The young woman nodded, trembling. As they talked privately, Grace discovered that the young woman had fled from an abortion clinic just as she was about to undergo a termination. Tears welled up in the young woman’s eyes. Grace placed a reassuring hand on her arm. It wasn’t long before together the two women were discussing options.

Grace is among more than 70,000 loving volunteers who actively serve pregnancy care centers in the U.S. In addition, thousands more serve in other pro-life social services, maternity homes, nonprofit adoption agencies, and ministries like Birthmothers, walking with those who face an unplanned pregnancy. Hundreds of thousands have committed themselves to this grassroots effort as the number of unplanned pregnancy services escalated in the wake of the 1973 Supreme Court decision Roe v. Wade, legalizing a woman’s right to choose abortion.

Volunteers are known to serve in areas that interest them personally. Nowhere can that be more true in the pro-life community. Among these volunteers are medical personnel, social workers, teachers, counselors, homemakers, students, young people, businesspeople, and clergy.

Compassionate servants with a special respect for life provide support and help for those who face an unplanned pregnancy. What about you?

For You To Pray

Gracious Father,
Thank you for the thousands of volunteers to serve those who face an unplanned pregnancy. Raise up more of them. Continue to build the groundswell of those who have a passion for life.
In Jesus’ name, Amen.

More About Volunteering

1 in 4 Americans Volunteer at Least an Hour a Week

Volunteer Friends Experience Healing While Helping

Volunteers: One Little Brochure Changes the Life of a Young Mom

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Students Stand With Their Peers Who Have Been Silenced

Posted on October 15, 2018 by Kathy Widenhouse

For You From The Word

I am not silenced by the darkness. (Job 23:17)

For You To Think About

Students stand for life on pro-life day of solidarityOn the Pro-Life Day of Solidarity, students in schools all over the world take a vow of silence, standing in solidarity with those who will never have a voice – the unborn lost to abortion.

A red arm band, mouth band, or pro-life t-shirt identifies participants. They carry fliers to explain why they are silent and to educate others about the plight of the approximately 4,000 innocent children lost each day to abortion.

The Pro-Life Day of Solidarity accomplishes several things.

  1. It raises awareness among students in schools and colleges about abortion.
  2. It opens the door for people to learn about abortion when participants distribute literature.
  3. It provides opportunities for women and girls considering an abortion to think twice. Since the inception of the Pro-Life Day of Solidarity, dozens of babies’ lives have been saved because participants offered pregnant girls a different option.
  4. It allows participants to take a stand for their pro-life beliefs in a visible way.

Perhaps most of all, it allows participants and observers alike to experience the fate of a child who no longer has a voice … a child who could have been a part of their generation.

For You To Pray

Merciful God,
Open hearts and minds during the Pro-Life Day of Solidarity. Allow people to understand that abortion silences a life. Help pregnant women who are unsure of their next step to choose life as a result of today.
In Jesus’ name, Amen.

More About Students Standing for Life

Students Unite for Their Generation’s Lost Victims on Third Tuesday in October

Students Weep With Those That Weep – And Save Lives

Millennials: Today’s Most Pro-Life Generation

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Before and After: 2 Times When Women Need Your Support Most

Posted on October 8, 2018 by Kathy Widenhouse

For You From The Word

There are different kinds of service, but the same Lord. (1 Corinthians 12:5)

For You To Think About

Older woman providing support to younger womanA choice for life may seem like a complicated matter. In truth, it boils down to just two areas of service.

Before: helping women and men understand how to prevent an unplanned pregnancy before it happens. “Before” support centers on education. Many wonderful organizations educate women and men with facts they need to prevent an unplanned pregnancy.

After: helping women and men choose an outcome after discovering they’re pregnant. Once a pregnancy is confirmed, it is no longer theoretical or a future possibility. It is a reality. A different kind of support must kick in. Education is no longer enough. A child’s life and a mother’s health are now at stake. It is at this point at which “After” services offer practical help and hope.

These two kinds of support play a vital role in God’s work to preserve life. They represent a beautiful picture of the different parts of Christ’s body functioning together as a whole.

For You To Pray

Loving Father,
Thank you for inspiring different members of the Body of Christ to serve You in different ways to promote the cause of life. Multiply both the efforts of those who educate men and women about preventing pregnancy and those who support the newly-pregnant. Show me where I should serve.
In Jesus’ name, Amen.

More about Pregnancy Support

Today, 8,456 Women Face An Unplanned Pregnancy

Pregnancy Support: One-One Support Made the Difference

Pregnancy Support Needed Every 11 Seconds

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How God Uses 40 Days to Save Lives

Posted on September 18, 2018 by Kathy Widenhouse

For You From The Word

If my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven and forgive their sin and will heal their land. (2 Chronicles 7:14, NIV )

For You To Think About

group praying in sunsetIn the Bible, God used 40-day periods to prepare people and transform them: Noah’s 40 days of rain to prepare his family to resettle the world (Genesis 7); Moses’ 40 days on the mountain with God to prepare him to lead the people to follow God’s law (Exodus 24); Jesus’ 40 days in the wilderness to prepare Him for ministry (Matthew 4); and Jesus’ 40 days on earth after the resurrection to prepare His disciples to launch the early church (Acts 1).

When God’s people accept and meet a 40-day challenge, He uses it to change their lives.

The 40 Days for Life movement, launched in 2004, follows this 40-day biblical model. Two times a year, local volunteers organize 40-day campaigns focused on the spiritual aspects of the battle for life, consisting of prayer vigils and fasting outside of clinics and hospitals that perform abortions.

How does God use these 40-day periods to change lives ? During the first ten years, campaign leaders reported 8,973 lives saved from abortion, 101 abortion workers quit the industry, and 54 abortion facilities have closed.

For You To Pray

Gracious Father,
I call out to You on behalf of my nation and the world, asking Your forgiveness for our callous view of life. I humbly ask that you change hearts and heal us, both during 40 Days for Life and afterwards.
In Jesus’ name, Amen.

More Ways God Uses 40 Days

What is 40 Days for Life?

“I’m Just One Person” Joining With Others for 40 Days

40 Days for Life: Find a Vigil Near You

 

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A Pregnant Woman’s Prayer for Assurance

Posted on September 18, 2018 by Kathy Widenhouse

For You From The Word

God redeems your life from the pit and crowns you with love and compassion. (Psalm 103:4, NIV)

For You To Think About

A prayer based on Psalm 103:1-5

woman praying on her knees at sunsetWorship the Lord, O my soul!
With all my heart and mind, I choose to worship my God and Savior.

Worship the Lord, O my soul –
right now, as I remember all the ways He has touched my life and worked good for me.

Lord, You have forgiven all my faults and mistakes … even those I have not yet committed. Further, You have promised healing from my anxiety and worry. Thank you!

You are my Redeemer. You take what could be devastating, like this pregnancy, and change it to make it a blessing for me.
But You don’t stop there. You are using my difficult situation to fill me with love for this child and compassion for others who are vulnerable.

You promise to satisfy my longing heart with Your good things, because those things never fade. I trust You to renew my heart and will for this great task so that I can soar with You like an eagle.

I worship You, My Father, Lord, Savior, and King. Amen.

For You To Pray

Gracious Father,
Move in hearts of those who face an unplanned pregnancy to worship You in the midst of difficulty. Allow them a glimpse of Your great will to use their situation for good. In Jesus’ name, Amen.

More Prayers for You To Pray

Prayer of Those Facing an Unplanned Pregnancy

Prayer of a Pregnant Woman for God’s Protection

Prayer to Pray When Pregnant and Lonely

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The #1 Cause of Death in The World: It May Surprise You

Posted on September 6, 2018 by Kathy Widenhouse

For You From The Word

So whoever knows the right thing to do and fails to do it, for him it is sin. (James 4:17, ESV)

For You To Think About

cause-of-death statisticsHeart disease has long been touted as the leading cause of death, both in the U.S. and worldwide.

Unquestionably heart disease is a ruthless killer, with a recorded 596,577 American deaths (2011) and 7.4 million worldwide (2012) annually.

Stroke, cancer, respiratory illness, infant death, HIV/AIDS, Alzheimer’s, diabetes, accidents, and influenza also claim proportionately high number of victims in the U.S. and the world .

But none come close to the leading cause of death in both the U.S. and the world.

Abortion is responsible for twice as many American deaths each year as heart disease (1.06 million in 2011) and nearly six times as many deaths worldwide (43.6 million in 2008).

James 4:17 tells us, “Whoever knows the right thing to do and fails to do it, for him it is sin.”

You now have in your possession the truth about the world’s leading killer. What will you do with this information?

Speak the truth about life.

For You To Pray

Gracious Father,
Allow people to know the leading cause of death in the U.S. and the world. Let me and others speak the truth. Give me boldness to speak the truth about life.
In Jesus’ name, Amen.

More To Help You Be Informed about Choosing Life

Informed Consent Helps Women Choose Life

You Can Choose Life – Even If You’re Not Pregnant

Your Freedom: It’s an Opportunity to Encourage Others to Choose Life

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9/11 Babies: Faces of Hope

Posted on September 6, 2018 by Kathy Widenhouse

For You From The Word

The Son gives life.  (John 5:21)

For You To Think About

Faces of HopeOn September 11, 2001, 2,974 Americans were killed in the terrorist attacks on the United States. Yet that same day, an estimated 10,000 American babies were born. They are a reminder of the hope that God gives in the life of every baby.

Christine Pisera Naman’s son, Trevor, was one of the new lives that came into the world on that infamous day.

“It was an easy day to give up and say, ‘Good Lord, what are we doing?’” says the Monroeville, PA mother, recalling grief and guilt mingling with her joy. “But then you look at your baby and you see a good reason to go on.”

The national tragedy and personal experience led Christine to compile a book, Faces of Hope, that profiles 50 children born on 9/11/2001 – one from every state in the union.

“The children born on that day had a very special purpose,” says Christine. They “provided hope and goodness to a world on a day when it needed it most.”

For You To Pray

Gracious Father,

The children born on 9/11 remind us that You give life and hope through each new baby.  Thank You for that precious truth.

In Jesus’ name, Amen.

More Stories of Hope

Hope Is Born in Rape Aftermath

Memorial: Let’s Take Care So That We Don’t Forget

LA Congressman Offers Support to Unwed Pregnant Daughter

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Women Who Face an Unplanned Pregnancy Face These 3 Health Risks

Posted on August 31, 2018 by Kathy Widenhouse

For You From The Word

I pray that you may enjoy good health and that all may go well with you.
(3 John 2)

For You To Think About

pregnant woman and stethoscopeThe National Survey of Family Growth by the CDC and the National Center for Health Statistics demonstrates the special challenges faced by women who become pregnant but did not plan to be.

According to the report, 50% of U.S. pregnancies are unplanned. Of the women whose pregnancies are unplanned (as compared to those whose pregnancies are planned) …

  • Twice as many do not receive prenatal care or only receive it after the first trimester
  • 38.5% are more likely to smoke
  • 1 in 5 are more likely to deliver a low birth weight baby

Mothers whose pregnancies are unplanned, as well as their babies, are more at risk for complications in childbirth and poor health.

But if these women have one-on-one support during pregnancy, then they will have a greater chance of receiving medical check ups … smoking cessation classes and support … good food … and their chances of good prenatal care and a healthy delivery are much, much different.

For You To Pray

Gracious Father,
I pray that women who face an unplanned pregnancy may enjoy good health and that all may go well with them. Show me and others how to support them so that they can receive excellent prenatal care and deliver healthy babies.
In Jesus’ name, Amen.

More About Risks in an Unplanned Pregnancy

88% Pregnant Women: “I Didn’t Receive Enough Information to Make an Informed Decision”

What Your Doctor Isn’t Telling You

Informed Consent Helps Women Choose Life

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1 in 4 Americans Volunteer at Least One Hour Per Week

Posted on August 23, 2018 by Kathy Widenhouse

For You From The Word

I heard the voice of the Lord saying, “Whom shall I send? And who will go for us?” And I said, “Here am I. Send me!” (Isaiah 6:8)

For You To Think About

pro-life volunteersEvery year, 63 million Americans volunteer at their local schools, hospices, thrift shops, community centers, and animal shelters. According to the U.S. Department of Labor, 27 percent of the population donates an average of 52 hours of time per person a year – about an hour a week.

What if everyone reading this donated one hour a week to volunteering with Birthmothers or another pro-life organization?

Volunteer service frees up staff time to grow ministry. There are dozens of simple tasks you can perform for a nonprofit that will help advance the cause of life. Your volunteer service – and that of hundreds of other volunteers – could ultimately help save the life of an unborn child.

Consider how God may be calling you to serve as a volunteer in prolife ministry.

For You To Pray

Heavenly Father,
Move hearts of Americans to volunteer and help a prolife organization.
In Jesus’ name, Amen.

More about Volunteering

Volunteer Friends Experience Healing While Helping

70,000 Volunteers for Life – Plus One

Volunteers: One Little Brochure Changes the Life of a Young Mom

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