DAY 31: Road report, and international impact
WOW!
I just got off the phone with Shawn Carney on our national team who is in the midst of 40 Days for Life visits to New York, Connecticut, Rhode Island, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, and Vermont.
He also just returned from visits to Michigan, Illinois, Iowa, and Nebraska.
Shawn gave me an electrifying report on what he is experiencing at all these sites, and fortunately I was able to audio record the call so I could share it with you.
During this 17-minute high-energy update, you will also hear a deeply touching story of something that happened to Shawn earlier today related to a special needs child and the Special Olympics. Powerful.
Before doing anything else, take a quick listen to Shawn’s amazing update…
Listen to the Audio Online (click “Play” button to start audio):
Download MP3 (click to play, right-click to save to your computer):
http://www.40daysforlife.com/blog/audio/shawn1.mp3
Since well before this fall’s 40 Days for Life campaign began, I’ve been saying this is a critical time for the United States.
It seems it is also a critical time for the entire world, judging by the fact that two local campaigns are under way in Canada, and I am receiving notes of support from all around the globe.
Here are just a few…
There is much pro-life fervor evident in Latin America. Monica in Mexico City sent greetings and thanks to everyone participating in 40 Days for Life, asking God to “bless this campaign and all people involved. You have my prayers with all of you!”
“I live in Guatemala,” wrote Geraldine, “but I am so grateful for the 40 Days for Life campaign. I will be accompanying you in prayer.” Geraldine notes that a number of nations in Latin America are being pressed to legalize abortion. “Mexico has already begun falling into it, and Ecuador is faced with the approval of its pro-abortion constitutional amendment. But God has raised up soldiers to fight in Christ’s name all over the world.”
In Puerto Rico, Brunhilda has been praying and fasting. “We have also spread the word among Christians from different churches and they joined us in our prayers to end abortions,” she wrote. “Keep going and God bless you all!”
There are signs of hope in Europe. Gabriella wrote to salute her 81-year-old mother, who taught religion in Hungary for many years. “We started praying and fasting together for 40 Days for Life,” she said, “and now she is organizing two praying groups in Budapest.”
And there is breaking news coming out of Northern Ireland. We had received numerous requests for prayer for this country, where 40 Days for Life vigils were conducted in the spring. Abortion is not legal in Northern Ireland, however there was an aggressive effort to extend the United Kingdom’s abortion law to Northern Ireland to legalize the barbaric practice.
Eric Scheidler, the leader of the current 40 Days for Life campaign in Aurora, Illinois was there on the ground in Northern Ireland with Bernadette Smyth, the leader of the previous 40 Days for Life campaign, who organized a massive rally in Belfast on Saturday.
Following the rally, Eric e-mailed me this report:
“Victory in Northern Ireland! The U.K. Parliament in Westminster chose NOT to impose abortion on Northern Ireland. They could see that such a move would endanger the fragile political situation there.”
In the Pacific region, many of the cultural indicators Americans are concerned with are also being noted in New Zealand, where Sue Rowe has been working to organize a 40 Days for Life effort.
“All these pointers have brought abortion back into the public’s attention,” she told the New Zealand Catholic newspaper. “With all these things tying together, now is the time.”
“Thank you so much for allowing me this opportunity to be involved in 40 Days for Life,” said Fe in the Philippines. “God is so good! I know and I trust that with this worldwide effort, abortion will finally end in America and throughout the world!”
Isn’t it amazing what God has done with the tiny seeds that were planted just four short years ago with the first 40 Days for Life campaign in Texas?
WOW!
Here’s today’s devotional from Rev. J. Kirk van der Swaagh, Pastor, Conservative Congregational Christian Conference…
DAY 31 INTENTION:
For the medical community, that the truth they know about the human body may become awe and wonder at the God who made it.
SCRIPTURE:
Your eyes saw my substance, being yet unformed. And in Your book they all were written, the days fashioned for me, when as yet there were none of them.
–Psalm 139:16
REFLECTION by Rev. J. Kirk van der Swaagh:
Human beings — God’s tapestries.
Psalm 139 is a psalm that reveals the enormity and otherness of God. His divine attributes are on display: omniscience (2-4), omnipresence (7-12), loving-kindness (17-18), justice (19-20), righteousness (23-24), and omnipotence. Yet, when it came to express this last attribute, what example did the psalmist use – God’s creation of mountains, seas, or far-flung galaxies? No, he used none of these. To express the wonder of God’s unparalleled creative power the writer mentions the fashioning of the human in the womb (14-16).
The Hebrew word used to express God’s forming of us in the womb, raqam, is the same term for needlework or embroidery. In other words, we are a tapestry that displays God’s artistic mastery. And, like the artist who knows his creation down to the last detail, God intimately knows us. This reality provokes the writer to awe and wonder. He proclaims, “I am fearfully and wonderfully made.”
What is true for this psalmist is true for each human being. Each is fashioned by God and known by him and we can proclaim on behalf of each, “I am fearfully and wonderfully made.”
PRAYER:
Gracious God, help us to appreciate the wonder and beauty of Your creation. Help us proclaim on behalf of every one of our fellow human beings, “I am fearfully and wonderfully made.” May the knowledge that we are intimately known by You shape our lives and actions. Amen.
Today’s 40 Days for Life devotional can also be downloaded at: http://40daysforlife.com/docs/fall2008day31print.pdf
Yours for Life,
David Bereit
National Campaign Director
40 Days for Life
October 24th, 2008 at 9:01 am
David,
Thanks for all you do. I give thanks to God for the 40 Days for Life campaign and all the faithful people.
I wanted to share a couple of things from the 40 Days for Life in Flagstaff, Arizona, a small community in Northern Arizona.
I received an email from Angie, who came out and participated in the 40 Days for Life this week. It was the first time she had ever prayed in front of a pp. She said:
“It was extremely cold! We met one prayer warrior-who gave us her sign when she left, one heckler, and one friend who was driving by and stopped by to say hello.
It was a new experience for me (praying at pp), but this campaign has brought my heart closer to the issue and those I know who have aborted babies.”
At this location, we are prevented from being able to talk to most of the people going in, and our numbers are few, but growing all the time. I have one story of a young prayer warrior who had lunch later with one customer of PP’s contraceptives to discuss Natural Family Planning. I also was able to share material and resources with a young woman who was trying to counsel her boyfriend’s sister to keep the child within her. Please pray for Lauren that she is able to succeed in saving her future nephew or niece from death.
I see God at work in so many ways while standing vigil, but especially, He is at work in my own heart. Like Angie said, God has brought my heart closer to the issue. When we are out there praying for the babies and the mothers and the abortionists and all those affected by abortion, God uses us and He transforms us. He transforms our hearts to be more like His Heart, full of love for His creatures, and full of anguish at the barbaric treatment of the smallest and most fragile.
Remember, Everything is possible with God, and God is so actively at work through the 40 Days for Life campaigns! We don’t know how, we don’t know when, but we can know with certainty, that God is answering our prayers!
We praise and adore God, and we humbly ask Our Father in Heaven, to rid our country of the scourge that is abortion.
Thank You,
Mary Waechter
Flagstaff 40 Days for Life
October 24th, 2008 at 9:14 am
I want to tell all those people praying along throughout the world: Your prayers are working! God hears you and is working wonders in response to all your prayers. Your Heavenly Father is showering your earthly family with blessings. I know that so many of our blessings are due to the prayers of amazing, faithful people like you. I am so grateful, thank you!!!!!!
October 24th, 2008 at 9:30 am
We have been listening during this 40 Days for Life campaing, that many women have decided to keep their babies, as well as the touching story about the nurse from the abortion clinic who decided to quit her job, just because our Lord is listening to us. This is living proof that our prayers make a difference.
“God is good all the times”!
Nancy
October 24th, 2008 at 9:51 am
The choices made in the United States really do impact the rest of the world. A recent illustration was Hugo Chavez’ initial glee at the beginning of the exposure of the true nature of our economic turmoils which just a few days later turned somber when he realized the global fallout was going to hit–him.
My husband and I grew up as Americans in Mexico and lived in Brazil before moving to the States in 1990, and I know we have a more international view especially as my parents lived in Algeria and finished out the last 15 years of my father’s career in multiple countries in SE Asia. From this vantage point I realize the implications of the following and hope the seriousness of this hypocrisy impacts all who read this:
Both presidential candidates state they agree with the 1947 Nuremberg Code of Ethics, which includes no procedure being done on a human not first done on animals. Vacuum aspiration abortion is the most common early abortion option, but I just recently found out that this has been the procedure of choice since the early years of legalized abortion with no animal testing studies (the report said still to this day but I can not verify that at this time).
Given this information, that means Roe vs Wade and the Doe decisions all violate the Code of Ethics which the US agreed to abide by. Hmmmm.
When I found out about this I was so surprised that particularly ANY Jewish person could support a candidate that supports a violation of the Code of Ethics.
The article I read yesterday referenced recent studies linking autism and prior first trimester abortion, as well as premature birth and subsequent health issues.
In early 1976, as a college senior, I chose to end a pregnancy that had resulted from date rape. I did not know about post abortive stress syndrome until a few years ago when the Lord really did some clean-up work in my life. In filling out the application for the recovery class I was asked to identify the symptoms I experienced–I remember writing that I could be the poster child!
I had numerous miscarriages and my now 20-year-old daughter was almost 7 weeks premature and suffers from various related health issues. She is a 4.0 college senior but I wonder how smart she really would be had she had the opportunity of a normal birth experience. Others are not that fortunate though
She and I had the honor of serving as Ambassadors for Christ at the UN, as lobbyists for life–the only problem with that is that I had never told her I had an abortion and the Lord so aligned things that I had no choice. No choice as a result of ‘choice’.
The most important choice is to not live in the knowledge vacuum. May the Lord give us ears to hear and courage to act and have mercy on us by bringing us to repentance. May the Church be the one doing the shaking and not needing the shaking.
October 24th, 2008 at 12:22 pm
David: Thank you.. I will try to fast and keep praying especially for the Pastors who are ignoring this issue.
October 24th, 2008 at 1:42 pm
Hi, I’m from Evansville, IN. By the grace of God, our city is probably the largest one in the country that does not have free standing abortion clinics. We are so thankful for that. I am active in our local Vanderburgh County Right to Life organization and head up the Cemetery of Innocents project every year. Which is two thousand white crosses that are displayed in a large field along the major I164 highway. They represent the innocent lives lost forever in this country every day. Two thousand more crosses are displayed in a Cemetery of Innocents along Highway 41 in Gibson County not too far away which has the same cause, to represent the lives lost and for us not to remember them.
We are doing this project tomorrow and are praying for good weather for this project as well. We are going to have the field blessed and have a candlelight prayer service next Sunday, Nov 2, at the Cemetery
for the election and to close out our local 40 days for Life prayer/fasting campaign.
I had a thought after reading all the comments from the 40 days for Life participants, wouldn’t it be powerful if in every city in this country we could have Cemetery of Innocents displayed so all people can see a visual reminder of the lives lost everyday in this country. Let me know what you think….or let me know if this is already happening in other parts of the country…..
We know of one baby that was saved by having the Cemetery of Innocents display a few years ago that we’ve heard about….who knows
really how many minds are changed every year that we don’t hear about….a song was also written called (4,000 Crosses) by a passerby who happened to be a songwriter from Louisville, KY, who passed our display one cold December day on his way home. He said he was inspired and knew he had to write a song….it is amazing…..go to
http://www.4000crosses.com to hear it and find out about it.
Thanks for all you do and may God bless this country so we will return to a culture of Life here and in our whole world!!
Angie
October 24th, 2008 at 3:01 pm
Pray harder, fast harder, because we’re running the last lap now–and don’t get discouraged as I do when I meet people who are oblivious to the reality of abortion.
Please believe me when I tell you how important it is to fast and pray for the media! Almost every “pro-choice” voter I have spoken to is absolutely ignorant about the abortion industry and the medical realities of this women’s health issue. “Pro-choice” Christians seem to be the most ignorant of the facts, especially concerning the candidates. This is due to the triumph of abortion propaganda over the truth. We must not let the lie win!
October 24th, 2008 at 8:35 pm
Thank you so much for your work on the streets to pray before an abortion place. To hear of what that must mean for those precious babies who are saved or to pray for those who do not make it, to be present at the time they go to meet our God is an awesome testimony of LOVE. THANK YOU, WONDERFUL SOLDIERS OF CHRIST. GOD BLESS ALL OF YOU. I LOVE ALL OF YOU , ANNE MANGANELLI
October 25th, 2008 at 7:10 pm
Angela Lasher:
I think your idea about a cemetery for the Holy Innocents is inspired by the Holy Spirit. People would be forced to think about it, and yet lives would be saved by the grace of GOD and just maybe…more people would seek repentance for abortions they have had. These souls would be saved.
God Bless
Rick
October 25th, 2008 at 9:13 pm
10-25-08
we had a couple come up during our time outside the abortion clinic on Westmoreland in L.A. They had bought us a bag full of powerade drinks. They said they wanted to thank us for what we had done for them last year (We being 40 days for life) They said to keep up the good work.”
October 29th, 2008 at 1:52 pm
Thank You Jesus for giving me strength and wisdom to carry on praying at the PP clinic. You are my awesome Savior and Lord and You love everyone of these aborted babies and their moms and desire to heal them from these past abortions and bring them into Your love and presence. Thank you David for inspiring to carry on with the love of Jesus and your inspiring prayers each day and testimonies. We have had 3 babies saved in two weeks at PP and the Lord is so good to give us these testimonies of what He is doing through prayer around the nation and world. Hope to see lots of people at the CALL San Diego Nov. 1st praying to end abortion and Prop. 4 for Parental Consent and Prop. 8 Marriage between one man and one woman. God bless. Joan Anaheim, CA