Everybody knows praying at a 40 Days for Life vigil saves babies' lives...
...but sometimes, your prayers save the lives of those despairing over the loss of their aborted children.
A young man in Alvaro Obregon, Mexico was devastated when his ex-girlfriend aborted their child. Tormented by grief, he decided to kill himself.
"That night, he left his house with the intention of not returning," reported 40 Days for Life Director of Latin American Campaigns Lourdes Varela.
The man boarded a bus and headed for the destination where he would end his own life. He looked out the bus window, saw Hugo praying on his knees in front of the abortion facility, and hurried off the bus to talk.
"Why do you pray?" the man asked Hugo. The question started a powerful conversation that resulted in the man accepting an invitation to receive professional post-abortion healing.
"You saved my life," the man told Hugo before departing.
The grace-filled encounter shows why prayer at abortion centers is important--even during non-business hours.
"I was tempted to think that at this time of night it was not worth praying because the abortion center was already closed," Hugo said. "God makes it clear, no matter the time, at any moment we can save lives and souls."
Denton, Texas
The Denton 40 Days for Life team held a diaper drive--right at the vigil site--for a local pregnancy help center.
"We received a generous amount of diapers," reported Arianne, the local leader. "What an amazing Saturday we had."
Not only did the pregnancy center receive a mountain of diapers, but it also received ten thousand dollars in donations!
St. Paul, Minnesota and Medellin, Colombia
Vila participates in the 40 Days for Life campaign in Medellin, Colombia. But she's visiting the United States for three months and has now joined the vigil in a very different climate: St. Paul, Minnesota!
"She may even volunteer as a sidewalk counselor while she's here!" reported St. Paul leader, Rev. Brian Walker.
Boston, Massachusetts
Prayer warriors in Boston have received more than their share of persecution, spitting, and scorn this fall. But recently, a young man approached Linda, handed her a $100 bill as a donation, and said, "Thank you for what you are doing!"
The man is an international medical student who said that praying in front of an abortion facility in his country would result in an arrest.
"I ask all who are involved in this campaign to pray for this wonderful young man--that he becomes a powerful influencer and a wonderful pro-life physician back in his country," Linda said.
He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away. He who was seated on the throne said, “I am making everything new!”
— Revelation 21:4-5
Father, you are the God of hope. Your word fills us with the vision of the world to come, when every tear will be wiped away, and death will be no more. Father, how we need that hope, how we are strengthened by that vision! Keep our hearts focused on heaven, and diligent in the labors of earth. As we struggle against the culture of death, root our souls in the assurance of victory.
