With those words still suspended in air, this father-to-be had to be thinking, "Not after nine years of trying to conceive! This is what happens? I get to take home either my wife or our baby? What does he know? Oh God, how can this be?"
The next words he heard were, "It's a boy!" On October 30, 1959, a baby boy was born amidst a very traumatic delivery. One arm was bent and paralyzed, and his tiny little body which should have greeted the world fresh and pink, was black and blue.
Amazingly, both mother and son lived. Both incredible fighters. The baby needed some physical therapy to get his little arm moving, and the mother needed much rest and time to recover.
This story is true. That baby grew up and became my husband. Thank God, no one suggested aborting him because the delivery would be too difficult.
Because ultrasounds weren't available to this generation of parents, a C-section was not an option. The doctor had no way of knowing the baby was breech until it was too late. The traumatic birth of delivering a breech baby naturally, led the doctor to warn this precious couple not to have any more children. And, they didn't.
In today's world, the abortion option is offered more times than we want to admit, and mostly for the sake of convenience.
"The mother may die. Abort the baby."
"If the pregnancy isn't convenient, then just abort."
"The fetus is not developing properly. You need to abort."
"The fetus will only live a few hours. Abortion is the best route."
"There will be birth defects. Why not go ahead and abort it. Save yourself the trouble."
"Can the pregnancy be aborted during the third trimester? Sure. No worries."
"We also do partial birth abortions."
"You haven't told your parents? Don't worry. Your secret is safe with us."
Abortion is raw and invasive. It's intrusive and reeks havoc on the consciences of those who've had them and on many who've performed them. It's a sickening fact to even think about, much less talk about. But, in leu of recent videos of Planned Parenthood's Staff discussing over lunch the heinous acts of aborting healthy babies and extracting viable baby parts to sell, it has once again been brought to the table of conversation becoming even more raw and hard to swallow.
We've turned our heads away for far too long from the stark, harsh reality that our country, the United States of America, is legally performing a type of genocide - brutally murdering an innocent people group that cannot fight for their rights, deemed unworthy, or less important than the mother, to live or even have the chance to breathe outside the womb. Unborn, unwanted babies, the life literally sucked out of them for convenience sake. And, if they happen to survive the violent procedure, they are killed immediately outside the womb.
I know women who have had abortions. I've witnessed their breathtaking pain, heard their uncontrollable cries. Seeing how their heart aches with grief, guilt, shame, and the dark secrets they carry, crush my heart. For women to talk about it, even years after the fact, is still so hard.
It's still so raw.
One lived, one died.
Most abortions are done secretly. In many cases, no family member, except maybe the father of the baby, is even aware that their daughter, sister, or mother, is pregnant, much less that the decision to terminate the pregnancy has been made. The thought process seems to be that no one can know they are pregnant because of the judgement they will face, the public shame they may be put through. And, it may be, if no one knows, then I'll be okay.
But, passing harsh judgement on those who've gotten pregnant under less than honorable circumstances, and elected to end a pregnancy because of shame, is just as sinful as the horrific act of those who perform these atrocities on desperate women. There. I said it.
We, the Church, the Body of Christ, are guilty of sin when we pass judgement on the sins of others, especially on our sisters and brothers in Christ, thinking their sin is worse than our sin. We should know better. People of the cross should understand better than anyone else what true healing is about having experienced the Father's amazing grace, unending mercy, unconditional love and His forever forgiveness of sins through His Son, Jesus Christ. And, we are still experiencing all of that and more every single day, even though we don't deserve it. What makes us think we are above extending the same to others when they stumble and fall into sin, particularly since it's our judgmental attitudes that lead them to think they have no choice in the first place? This doesn't mean we condone sin, but we must help each other overcome sin and heal. We should be on our faces begging forgiveness from God for ignoring those who carry this weight around begging in silence to be released and redeemed.
(Note: The Church is not and will not be perfected until Jesus returns. In the meantime, we are Holy Spirit filled, heaven-bound-imperfect-living-in-the-flesh-people who desperately need a Savior every day we live. Our lives can be messy, but unlike the world, we have received God's gifts of grace - real joy, real hope, real love, real forgiveness, real peace, and real mercy healing at the cross. Through our belief and faith in Jesus Christ, we can trust Him with our messy lives, and by focusing on His perfect face, we are, everyday, being transfigured to look more like Him.)
God has nurtured a tender place in my heart for women who have chosen abortion. Because of my own story of being adopted, I've had the incredible privilege to share with many audiences how grateful I am that my birth mom, even under difficult circumstances, chose life for me. My heart aches for those who carry the weight of abortion around. Many have packed their guilt and shame in a secret compartment buried deep in their hearts, forever hoping no one finds out, only to live exhausted, unfulfilled lives trying to keep the lid on the box of the past. These precious women who treat their abortion choice as if it never happened, never heal.
If we don't help them heal and get passed their hurt, shame, guilt, and deep grief that abortion brings, and continue turning away, sweeping it under the rug like it doesn't exist, then it's just as if we have handed them over to Satan to do with as he pleases - giving the enemy permission to steal, kill, and destroy their lives and the lives around them.
So, what can we do? Where do we begin? We have to start somewhere.
I ask you to pray with me about what steps to take in developing ideas as to how and where we can provide a place of healing for women who've had abortions, are contemplating abortion, and who desire healing, to have an honest, Christ- centered, loving and forgiving conversation. I also will be encouraging women who have been healed from the effects of abortion, through the power of the Holy Spirit, to join the conversation for the sake of helping others to heal and be redeemed to the glory of God.
My dear children, I write this to you so that you will not sin. But if anybody does sin, we have One who speaks to the Father in our defense ~ Jesus Christ, the Righteous One. He is the atoning sacrifice for our sins, and not only for ours but also for the sins of the whole world. (1 John 2:1-2 NIV)
Jesus knows our secrets. Jesus cares deeply. He heals our broken hearts and binds up our wounds. (Psalm 147:3)
Jesus loves you.
My Pleasure,
Melanie
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