DAY 15: Whatever we ask the Lord
A 40 Days for Life campaign can be very intense … but we often find there is at least one moment that lets us laugh at ourselves. My moment came last week.
If you’ve been following these messages, you know that both David Bereit — 40 Days for Life’s national director — and I are on the road a lot. We live in the same city, but with full travel schedules, we don’t see each other very often during the campaigns. Many times, we even forget where the other one is.
But this time around, we’ve taken that to whole new levels. Last week, I got off an airplane in Richmond, Virginia and sat waiting for my bag at the gate. I then noticed somebody walking off the plane I was on, and he looked really familiar. It was David Bereit!
We were on the same plane and didn’t know it! And to make things even worse, it was a very small plane. We had been in different parts of the country, flying home on the same connecting flight from Cleveland … and still didn’t know it until after we landed.
We were even e-mailing each other in the Cleveland airport — unaware that we were sitting at the same gate just yards from each other waiting on our flight. We laughed at ourselves … and you should certainly feel free to do the same!
We take our work very seriously — but we do give thanks for lighthearted moments like this one.
Here are some great reports from local 40 Days for Life campaigns …
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MILWAUKEE, WISCONSIN
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Dan, a local 40 Days for Life coordinator in Milwaukee, is one of those people willing to put his entire heart and soul into standing in peaceful witness outside the abortion center. We get frequent e-mail notes from Dan — usually short and sweet, but packed with something to celebrate:
- “God showed us two saves today!”
- “Three saves today within 19 minutes of each other!”
- “News of two saves today — twins!”
He also sends pictures. It seems like there’s always something special going on at the vigil. Dan’s photos include a church group participating in a “silent solidarity” event …
… a group from the Sons of Mercy motorcycle club (yes, pro-life bike enthusiasts) …
… and a picture that Dan captioned “puppies for life.”
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WALKER, MINNESOTA
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The 40 Days for Life vigil is back at the county courthouse in Walker — a town with no abortion center, but with people who are eager to stand up for life.
Pastor Michael Bitz from Immanuel Lutheran Church led a group in prayer recently — teaching, singing … and even helping to inflate 40 Days for Life balloons.
He reminded vigil participants of John 14:13-14, when Christ said that whatever we ask of Him in His name, He will do.
“As we prayed silently, our balloons were released to fly into the sky above as a sweet spirit flowed among us,” said one of the volunteers. “It was a good day.”
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LANSING, MICHIGAN
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Many of the 40 Days for Life teams are telling of how their campaigns are energized whenever local pastors visit vigil sites. Wherever the pastors go — their churches follow.
On a rainy morning, Bishop Earl Boyea of Lansing’s Catholic diocese led about 50 people in prayer at the vigil outside the local abortion center (that’s the bishop under the umbrella in the photo above).
Chris, the local coordinator in Lansing, said the bishop asked the group to pray for the women considering abortion, that they may understand that they have much better options. He also thanked them for their constant prayers and continuous vigil.
Here’s the link to today’s devotional.
For Life,
Shawn Carney
Campaign Director
40 Days for Life
PS: What’s new with 40 Days for Life in your city? Please leave a comment below.
October 10th, 2012 at 8:42 am
This past Saturday in Houston was the March of the Surviving Youth. Survivors and their families from around the Archdioceses came together for Mass, breakfast, a rally and most importantly a procession to and a Jericho March (7 times) around Planned Parenthood (the largest in the nation). Hearts were touched, people were educated and joined together in praying for the unborn and all those affected by abortion. We had a little over 300 people attend and provided lots of prayer! We encourage all to organize this type of event in their cities, it really engages the youth and encourages on-going participation and prayer to end abortion, especially during the 40 Days campaigns! We are on a mission to change our culture…one LIFE at a time!
October 10th, 2012 at 12:30 pm
….continued prayers !!!!
October 10th, 2012 at 3:24 pm
“Let God arise and His enemies be scattered, and let them also that hate Him flee from before Him..” Psalm 68:1. Praying at an abortuary in Charlotte, NC on a sunny Saturday afternoon, I was alone with Jesus on the sidewalk of a side street. There were 13 cars in the parking lot, after 2 exited. Next door, at the center to call to schedule abortions, there were 13 more cars. All of the people that I saw going in and out, except for 3, were African Americans.
Recently, I read about Planned Parenthood’s original goal to wipe out black people, and I was astounded by the number of people of color at the abortuary that day. A video clip that was posted last week showed the abortionist with pro-life folks interviewing him at his front door. During the interview, the abortionist was saying that he didn’t want to see the faces of any, ugly black babies. As I was praying, I became so angry that these African Americans had been duped into paying money to have this same man kill their own children. They had been lied to, and cheated, and mocked. Meanwhile, they were going by the dozens into the abortuary as lambs to the slaughter.
I attempted to hand some of them HLA literature about “our endangered children”, and to talk to them about what the abortionist is trying to do to their people and their future. One man slowly drove by me with his car window down, as he was leaving. I saw that there was a woman lying in the reclining passenger seat beside him. Her eyes were closed and she looked miserable. He took the literature, and I prayed that he would read it, and that his heart would be changed. I prayed that the woman would be healed.
I left my shift to go to my granddaughter’s 9th birthday party, thinking that the babies who enter the abortuary in their mothers’ wombs will never have a birthday. We MUST get the truth out to those who are vulnerable, abortion minded women and men. Lord, have mercy upon us!
October 10th, 2012 at 4:39 pm
We love the puppies for life! Every boy & girl needs a puppy and every puppy needs a boy and girl. Keep up the good work! RUFF! RUFF!
October 10th, 2012 at 5:52 pm
Bless the Lord O my soul and all that is within me. He is an awesome God and thank You Lord for ending abortion, one baby at a time and sometimes twins. Blessings to David and Shaun for each 40 Days for Life and also for our elections coming up that Christians all over the US will be out to vote Prolife and Pro Israel and the Lord will bless America once again.
God bless you all for saving babies. Amen.
October 10th, 2012 at 6:29 pm
Let us pray for a respect for life in the world.
October 10th, 2012 at 8:42 pm
puppies for life and leading bishops = awesome. Keep up the good work!
October 10th, 2012 at 8:46 pm
Dear Shawn and David, thanks for sharing this hilarious light hearted moment in your hectic lives…. I certainly shared your laughter…. you both had your hearts and heads on so many different issues during 40 days clarity of thinking isn’t at the top of things. I know tiredness causes many amusing incidents and I am not as busy as you both… May God continue to bless you both and your families abundantly.
There never seems to be a dull moment when you participate in 40 days for Life, even just trying to get to the abortion centre can almost be impossible… Maria and I on Monday this week were on the train into Melbourne when over the speaker came an announcement of an accident on a railway crossing ahead of us… we had to get off the train, catch a bus…but there weren’t enough buses we waited for an hour or so… after 4 buses had been and gone and many other besides us were still standing there, we decided we would go home to Cranbourne 40 mins away… but we prayed for an hour of reparation in our St Agatha’s Adoration Chapel instead and of course for the person involved in the railway accident. On Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday this week some of us are taking part in a protest outside our Victorian Parliament trying to get our politicians attention about the horrendous abortions laws passed in our state of Victoria, Australia in 2008 where babies by law are legally killed right up to birth. This protest involves a banner which currently spans from a railway Station exit right along the back of Parliament house parking area (where our politicians park their cars to go to work every second week for 3 days) the banner displays 12 thousand white crosses representing abortion done from January 2012 until now…., all the way along MacArthur Street nearly reaching St. Patricks Cathedral, Melbourne. We have approx 10 to 12 people standing supporting this green shade cloth banner I was one, we stay there from 8am to 9.30am. in silence, but often get different responses, mostly good from people who pass by. One lady stop right in front of me… with sadness in her eyes, she said “Why are you doing this to women, you a woman yourself, why are you judging me, you don’t know what we who have had an abortion feel like….why are you judging me?” I just quietly said, I am not judging you, she said yes you are…of course I said again I wasn’t and ask her to please know that as she walked away… we have so little time to think sometimes…I wished I told her how much God loves her and how my heart to goes out to her… I can’t imagine her pain…but God knows her sorrow and forgives, HE IS LOVE AND MERCY PERSONIFIED. GOD BLESS EVERYONE WHO READS THESE BLOGS AND ALL INVOLVED IN 40 DAYS from those at home praying and fasting to those faithfully keeping vigil outside these Abortion centres.
Sue Bentley
Melbourne, Australia
October 10th, 2012 at 11:09 pm
God Bless you too Sue!! And God Bless everyone participating in the 40 Days for Life!!
Thanks for sharing.