On Second Thoughts

 Dear Friend,

You know when you have a thought that enters your mind immediately upon hearing something or seeing someone, and you think, “Wow, I’m not sure why I thought that. That was a bizarre thought. I don’t appreciate that that came into my mind.” Follow me here. I call this a First Thought.

That internal questioning that says, “Hmm, why did I think that?” is one example of a Second Thought. This is a fundamental aspect of maturing as a person.

We’re all taught things, raised with ideas. Some of those ideas are beautiful and good and shape us to be stronger when challenged. Good ideas like trusting God first and looking before you cross the street can become instinctual First Thoughts if they’re ingrained early enough. Other first thoughts, however, are toxic. An example would be a thought of judging someone’s actions without discernment. Another example would be rude thoughts without consideration. Some forms of racism and sexism come from this First Thought category. Somewhere along the way, we absorb the belief that those clothes are “ugly” or that hairstyle is “awful.” These examples are only the tip of the iceberg. Sometimes these First Thoughts are insidious, causing harm to our psyche or resulting in harm to others when acted on. 

When I first began doing pro-life work, I judged women who had abortions as murderers – evil women who wanted to kill children. After speaking to women who had unexpected pregnancies, challenging life circumstances, or who had actually sought out abortions, the Second Thoughts started to emerge. When I judged someone “without thinking,” I addressed that thought: “I don’t want to think things like that automatically. I want to learn more about this person and have compassion.” 

Without Second Thoughts, the mind runs about like a child in a grocery store: “Ew, Mom, what’s wrong with her face?” With maturing and conscious effort to address prejudice, the mind stands still and ponders, “I feel concern. Concern for many people: the unborn, the women, this person standing before me. How do I love them all and extend to them the heart of Jesus?”

This transformation of thought takes work. Making Second Thoughts into instinctual habit takes years of re-learning, exposure to uncomfortable ideas, abandoning our pride before the throne of God. I still have so many First Thoughts. As a new mom, some First Thoughts about parenting are rearing their ugly heads, and I need compassion from people around me as I learn to re-train my mind, turning judgment into discernment and care. The good news is that I (and you!) can work on developing the habit of Second Thoughts that counteract these First Thoughts, causing them to recede into the background, and hopefully causing them to pop up less and less as Second Thoughts take their place. 

As a pro-life speaker, trainer, and conversationalist, Second Thoughts are my passion. If I want to have a good conversation with someone with whom I may have disagreements, I have to put aside judgmental thoughts first and say to myself, “On second thought, how can I love them first?”

I challenge you to do the same.

 

The Girl Who Saw the Bear

It's supposed to rain.
What if I stand there for a whole hour and don't talk to a single person?
Who wants to have a conversation about abortion anyways?
If only I wasn't alone.

These are all thoughts that entered my head on the morning of February 6th. I had committed to an hour of standing around on Mason's Fairfax campus near a group of pro-life activists. They bring signs with them with grotesque abortion images and aggressive messages like "THIS COULD HAVE BEEN YOU."

I know these people. They mean well. The students on campus know them too. They know the routes to take on campus to avoid seeing the images on days when their friends text them and warn them. "That group is back. You might want to find another way to class ;)" I've heard people say that to one another.

So I go to campus on those days. To be a go-between. I stand near their "tunnel of horror" and catch students on the other side. Most of those conversations start with common ground about dislike of the signs and we transition into a productive conversation with love and respect. That was my goal that day. I walked onto campus in a positive mood that threatened to wear away as I got closer to the signs and my heart started to pound. Dark clouds covered the sky.

As I walked up, I made eye contact with a girl walking my way and in the blink of an eye I made a decision and got her attention. "Hey, did you just come from the direction of the signs?" Ariel* immediately groaned and nodded. We agreed that the images are horrible. I told her, "I know those people, and I have conversations about abortion all the time, but I try to do it in a way that is respectful and involves asking questions." She looked relieved and said, "Yeah, I could do without the yelling." I asked Ariel about her opinion of abortion. She told me she only had a short while to talk and we used that time to discover our similar and differing views. 

At some point in our conversation we discussed scenarios where someone might try to save someone's life if they were in danger. "If a small child was drowning and you passed by, would you jump in and try to save them?" "Not if I couldn't swim," Ariel said firmly. "You wouldn't even try?" Her answer was, "Of course not, why kill myself trying to save them?" Her argument was that a woman who was too poor to care for a child should be allowed to kill it so she doesn't have to go farther into debt. She was adamant that children in the womb were disposable for any reason before birth. Conversations like that are discouraging, but it's hard to leave them. We parted on good terms despite our differences and my challenge to her to reconsider her view.

I walked back toward the group, but they were already tearing down their display. Had I just had my only conversation for the day? We prayed together and, before they left, their leader left me with a bear. It's a small stuffed animal with a tag tied to it. The tag reads: "Will you adopt me? My child was aborted and I never got the chance to love or be loved. Please take me home and love me." It has a web address and a hashtag and that's it. That message is supposed to communicate to some unwitting person that abortion is murder and they should care. I took the bear skeptically, but with the sense that I could use it somehow.

But how? I wasn't ready to leave and I wanted to process my earlier conversation, so I sat down on a bench in the middle of the plaza...

I set the bear on the ground in front of me and stared at it. A few rain drops fell. I prayed, "God, I'm here and I really want to have another conversation. Please use me. I've got this bear and some time before class. Help me to trust you." I zoned out, music playing in one earphone, people-watching and re-playing my conversation with Ariel in my head until I heard: 

"Hey!" 

I looked up. 

"You dropped your bear," she pointed.

The girl, whose name was Laura, gestured at the bear and I looked at it as though I had never seen it before. My bear had fallen over, looking dejected. I picked it up and said thank you. 

"What's that tag it has?" she asked. I showed her the tag and she read it. Her face contorted into an expression of pain and confusion. "Oh, oh. Wow, that's so sad." I asked her what she thought of the message and she said the most profound thing: "Love is something you want to give freely. I feel like this bear is trying to manipulate me into loving it, and that's not how love works." I agreed wholeheartedly and she asked me what I thought of the bear. I told her about how I had been given the bear by someone with good intentions. "I'm pro-life," I said, "but I don't feel like this is the right way to communicate that to someone."

Laura looked excited. "I agree! I'm pro-life too." She told me that she wouldn't know what to believe about abortion if it wasn't for her faith. For her, the only thing that mattered was what God said on the subject. I got so excited. Through my prayer and my bear, God had brought me a convicted pro-life Christian. We compared notes for the next half hour on our journeys of faith, learning to trust God and know Him, and how that understanding of our Maker permeated our perspectives on all things. We kept agreeing and learning more about each other, getting more and more excited to discover another passionate Christian on our campus.

When we exchanged phone numbers, she took the conversation one step further. "If I can be completely transparent," she said, "I saw you first and I asked God if I could talk to you. Then I saw your bear and I thought, 'I'll just make it all about the bear and see where it goes from there.'" I laughed and could have cried. I confessed, "I sat here to have a conversation and I prayed and asked God to use me and the bear!" We laughed. We hugged. We made plans to meet up later. Only then did it start to rain.

Leaving campus, I couldn't contain my excitement. I called my best friend. I called my mom. "This is why I'm here," I told them.

When I came to George Mason last fall, I had two goals: 1) Survive classes. 2) Form a pro-life group. Making friends and discovering who was willing to join me in this struggle has been harder than calculus.

That morning, I prayed with one of my mentors for courage. Courage to talk to people and be more forthcoming with them about my purpose. A few hours later, God gave me one person to talk to about the issue, and another to encourage me. 

God, thank you for Laura and Ariel. Thank you for answering my prayers, encouraging my heart, and showing me that you're with me even when I feel alone.

I am not alone.

May

I have two weeks left of my Kansas adventure with Justice For All. May was a flurry of activity and very little sleep. I loved every minute of it.

Tammy, Grace, and I at Cowtown

I appreciate all of you who have kept up with me while I've been interning. Your encouraging texts, emails, phone calls, and cards have lifted my spirits again and again as I've been 1,000 miles (and more; here's looking at you, Albuquerque and Denver) from home. It will be so good to see many of your faces again when I head home on June 15th.

That being said, I'm not excited about leaving. Wichita has become a home to me in more than the physical sense. I have made friends here closer than family. It feels as though I'll be leaving behind much of my heart with the hundreds of people that I have met and come to love in the past year.

Among those people are the hundreds I have spoken with on college campuses. They have shared with me their thoughts, concerns, and backgrounds. It is a privilege to have met each of these students. I wish you could see them all, each one so unique, so surprising. Each one has taken my expectations and turned them on their heads. They don't fit into tidy boxes. But they all have the same need for the Savior whether they realize it or not.

I love my job. If I could be a voice for the voiceless with JFA for the rest of my life, I would do it. This time has been extremely important for my spiritual growth, nurturing my passion for protecting infant life and elevating the value of all people, and other things like independence, reconciliation in my heart, and adventure.

I've used the word 'adventure' in almost every monthly update because it's so applicable. Coming to Wichita was one big adventure full of unknowns. In spite of this, one thing was always certain: I knew God was going with me. Before I left, I was prayed over many times by people who asked God to "go before, go with, and go behind her." He has done exactly that. He paved the way for me to come to Wichita. He came with me, staying by my side even when I thought I didn't need Him. He had my back protecting me from countless dangers, some known to me and some known only to Him. He is my strong tower and He will be when I go back home.

May Adventures:
Helping Grace move into her new apartment
Contra dancing in Derby
Kayaking the Little Arkansas
Game night with friends
Movies with friends
Frisbee in Derby
Monet to Matisse exhibit with Grace
Cowtown with Tammy and Grace
Going to see Clydesdales with friends
Sedgwick County Zoo with friends
Much swing dancing
Making lots of new friends

Looking forward:
The last two weeks of my internship include two workshops, a wedding, more dancing, untold fun, and getting to spend time with Katrina who is flying in to drive back home with me.
My summer will most likely include a trip or two to the Boardwalk Chapel, a family vacation, and random stuff.

In the fall, I start school at George Mason University to study Cyber Security Engineering. I hope to form and maintain a pro-life club with the focus of starting and continuing truthful, loving conversations with fellow students about abortion. Lord willing, JFA will come to Mason to do outreach and there will be more blog posts about conversations where God does amazing things.

Thank you again for all your support and encouragement. Here's to the next adventure <3

Conversations from Colorado: Open Invitation

In April, the Justice For All team went to Colorado. There we taught people skills for having productive conversations about abortion and we also held outreach events on a few campuses, using those skills to converse with hundreds of students. I believe that God was orchestrating a central theme through many of my conversations during those weeks. Here are a few highlights:

Melissa

            "Melissa" walked up to the exhibit at Metropolitan State University (MSU), just about as angry as anyone I’ve seen in my time with JFA. She pinpointed one of our male trainers, Jeremy, and verbally attacked him. Hearing her shouting from across the square, I edged into the conversation, letting Jeremy know that I was available to help by standing close by. As Melissa continued to yell at him, I listened and nodded calmly as she spoke. After a minute, she gestured widely in my direction. She said, “What about you? Do you want to add anything?” I immediately found common ground with her and invited her into a calmer, more private, conversation. She relaxed instantly and we discussed our views on human biology and dignity. After a few minutes of getting to know each other, she asked, “Would you like to ask me more about the unborn?” Along with this open door, she even added, “We can bring [Jeremy] in and see what he thinks, too.” I was amazed to see this woman who had been so angry, calmly invite both me and Jeremy into another conversation in which we discussed more aspects of the abortion issue.

Charlie

            After a few particularly difficult conversations at MSU, I walked over to a volunteer who was engaged in conversation with a pro-life student named Charlie. She was doing a very good job addressing some reservations he held about our display, and when he asked a question she couldn’t answer, she gestured my way. “Actually, Susanna would know better how to answer that,” she said, inviting me into their conversation. He told me what his situation was: “I have friends who have abortion experiences. I want to talk to them about it, but I don’t know how to let them know I care.” It was a beautiful relief to meet someone who cared so much. I shared with him the ways I have learned to help people who are hurting from abortion and be there for those who need to talk about their experiences. I invited him to our seminar that night, where he could learn how to have the conversation about abortion in a caring, loving way.

"Olivia" writing Genesis 1 on the Free Speech Board right before I spoke to her.

Olivia

            At Colorado State University (CSU), I had spent the morning in two long conversations mostly centered around the biology of the unborn. I sat down to think about those conversations and pray when I saw "Olivia" walk up to the Free Speech Board. She sat down in front of it and started writing. I was conflicted. I wanted to talk to her, but I didn’t want to interrupt her writing. I prayed, “God, if you want me to talk to her, please keep her around when she’s done writing.” When she finished writing, she just sat there, looking at her phone, so I walked over and sat down next to her. She had written much of Genesis 1 on the board. After introducing myself, I learned her name and that she was a Christian who was very appreciative of our work on her campus. She told me about how college was going and the different ministries in which she was a part. Before she left, she invited me to pray with her. Right then and there, we prayed for each other’s ministries and personal walks with God.

       

 At the University of Colorado of Boulder, Steve, JFA's executive director, and I talked to this young man who disagreed with us, but who was willing to stay and talk for an hour despite the snow.

God set each of these students in my path. Each of them invited me into their lives. Melissa asked me what I thought about abortion, so we had a conversation. Charlie asked me how to show his care for people who had experiences with abortion, so I helped him prepare for future conversations with his friends. Olivia asked me if she could pray for me, so I returned the favor and prayed over her life. These invitations all happened because I was there and I was available. Because I was invited, I responded.

This is my challenge to you: Respond. Respond to the invitations to share, listen, encourage, give assistance, pray. God puts these people into our lives all the time - people who invite us in unexpected ways.

I have an invitation for you. My internship with JFA ends in June, but the work of JFA continues on. You helped me do this work by providing financially, encouraging me and praying for me. Please help JFA continue this work by continuing to donate to the Intern Scholarship Fund. They did not ask me to ask you this. It just makes sense. You cared about this work enough to get me onto the field. I care about this work enough to ask you to consider supporting the organization as a whole. I would not ask you this if I did not think you cared enough to consider making JFA a part of your giving. 

Thank you. Thank you for getting me to Kansas, and from there to Indiana, Oklahoma, Minnesota, New Mexico, Georgia, and Colorado. Thank you for the support which helped me impact the lives of over 180 college students, with whom I spoke during these various outreach events, for the sake of the unborn. God used you to impact over 180 people just through me. I believe He will use you again to train thousands to make abortion unthinkable for millions, one person at a time. 

April

April has come and gone in a blur. I'm sitting here on Grace Fontenot's porch playing soft music as a light breeze brings down the heat of a glorious afternoon. Such a wonderful way to relax after two weeks in Colorado. About an hour ago, a mother cat tore into a paper bag that I left on the porch and she ate the half-muffin I had saved for later. She needed it more than I did.

JFA brought the team to Colorado State University to do three seminars and two days of outreach in the middle of April. Seeing the Rockies for the first time blew my mind. I took every opportunity over the next two weeks to mention my love of the mountains to anyone I could. I participated in the seminars and one outreach day. One of the unique conversations I had on CSU's campus is already in blog form and can be found here: The Third Person

After spending two days recuperating, the team met up again in Colorado for three more seminars/workshops and two days of outreach at CU's Auraria and Boulder campuses. That's right, Auraria. Strange name, but definitely different from Aurora ^_^ On Sunday the 22nd, we went hiking in the mountains and the Red Rocks. It was a gorgeous day to climb 380 stairs up to the Red Rocks Amphitheater.

Outreach at Auraria was spiritually daunting. From conversations with students who thought it would be fine to abort babies after birth, to spending an hour calming down two upset women, God reminded me over and over again how much prayer has to go into every conversation. A notable conversation that day was started by "Anna." She stopped by the exhibit (pictured below) and stated that she would never admit to her opinion on abortion. She was going to stay out of it. After engaging her on the subject and learning about her family history of political contention, I asked her what she personally thought about abortion when she wasn't trying to calm down her relatives. In her mind, abortion should only be legal in the case of rape in the first trimester. This position is incredibly common and means that she and I share about 98% of our views in commonality. She didn't have time to go farther into the topic, but she thanked me for being civil and finding common ground.

Grace Fontenot in conversation

Boulder turned white while we were there. The day before, Colorado experienced 70 degrees of sunny bliss. The next day, with temperatures in the high 30s, snow fell for about twelve hours, covering everything and us. A few people were gracious and interested enough to stand in the cold with us and dialogue. My favorite conversation that day was with a young man who thought that life did not begin at conception, it began with everything that came together to make our existence possible. We connected over a Doctor Who reference that brought the whole concept together. (For fellow fans of the show, that reference was: "I blew into this world on a leaf.") With this view, it was hard for us to establish in the conversation what makes a potential human person become a real human person with value and the basic right to life. Thanks to help from Steve, an umbrella, and a cup of hot soup, we got through the long, complicated conversation. We parted with a better understanding of each other's views.

Now, back at home in Wichita, I'm looking forward to a few days of rest. May does not have any events scheduled for me as of yet, so I will probably be doing many intern-type things, learning the seminar, training as a mentor, dancing, and spending time with Grace. Please pray for continued restful nights. I'm grateful to have not had a nightmare since early March. Pray also for the men and women we have encountered on campus this year and an end to abortion.

March

March really was an adventure. From Stillwater, Oklahoma, to Mt. Nebo, Arkansas, to Lawrence, Kansas, March has been full of driving. There was more to it than that, but everything is so far away in the mid west!

Have a sunrise:

This was my view on March 4 with Grace and Maria. I think I can speak for them when I say we had a great time planting trees for monks at Clear Creek Abbey and a hilarious road trip out to Mt. Nebo and back. Such a blast.

JFA brought the team to University of Kansas (KU) from March 10-13. That was an adventure. I got to speak for the first time in two seminars that weekend. Having been certified in two speaking sections, I already feel more familiar with the concepts that we use to create personable, informed dialogue about abortion.

Outreach at KU was unique in that it was the first time I have done outreach using the Art of Life exhibit. The purpose of the exhibit is to start conversations by suggesting that the various themes represented in these paintings such as "Embracing child and career", "Suffering", and "Unknown future" are better than abortion. One side pictured here:

We brought with us a few polls, free speech boards, and even this snazzy art table that Grace and I created ourselves:

The Star Wars layout was my idea ^_^

In Lawrence, I had some really interesting conversations. I feel that God has been slowly challenging me with more difficult conversations. When I first began, I did not know how much I did not know about how to talk about abortion. Now that I am learning that, I am experiencing conversations in a different way. Listening, asking questions, and finding common ground are more important than ever and I realize that my mind has a tendency to go blank if I haven't role-played how conversations can go with the hard questions like rape, life of the mother, and bodily rights.

After KU, we set up a kiosk at WSU for an afternoon. My last conversation that day was with a young man named "Peter." When I asked him if he wanted to sign our "Should Abortion Remain Legal" poll on the "Yes" or "No" side, his curt response was, "I don't think it's a binary issue." And the conversation took off from there. Peter had three points that he brought up over the course of the next half hour. His assertions: 1) You can't really be pro-life if you eat meat. 2) You can't really be pro-life if you don't allow abortion in "life of the mother" cases. 3) You can't really be pro-life if you are a fiscal conservative. One by one, Peter and I addressed each of these concerns and fleshed out why being pro-life is more complicated than that, just as the abortion issue is more complicated than whether or not it is legal. It was hard to find common ground with Peter because it seemed as though common ground for him meant giving ground. Getting him to concede points wasn't my goal, so I tried to convince him that we weren't enemies. What we needed to do was define our terms and open our hearts to each other's backgrounds and worldviews. Peter identified himself as being a pro-choice libertarian vegan. That was the best way he knew to take care of people and the earth. At the end of our conversation, Peter was still a pro-choice libertarian vegan. That's alright. What amazes me though were his words right before we parted, "I guess we have common ground after all." Him saying that to me, a pro-life conservative omnivore, makes me happier than a pigeon with a french fry.

New experiences of March:
Planting trees for monks in Oklahoma
Arkansas!
Eating edamame aka soybeans
Trying sake

Note: Usually I would add a "Looking forward to" section, but I procrastinated so much in getting this post out that the April post will probably follow it too soon to warrant a whole section here. April coming soon!

Real Conversation at CSU: The Third Person

At the end of the outreach day at Colorado State University, the area around the exhibit was quiet except for one voice. He sauntered over to the signs with an air of confidence that piqued my interest. He began to loudly abuse the exhibit pictures so I intercepted and asked him what he thought.

"It's crazy," he said. "Why is this here? What do you think?"

"I'm actually with the exhibit. We go around to college campuses talking to people about abortion. What do you think about that?"

"I think the government shouldn't have a say in our rights. And why is anyone pro-life in the first place? Have you even ever heard a pro-life argument that wasn't religious?"

I love this question. JFA taught us a reply that anyone from any religion can use and be consistently pro-life. I've only recently understood how to help people understand this argument, so I eagerly responded.

"Sure! You want to hear one?"

"Yes!"

I dove into the thought experiment with him. "Look around! See all these people around us on campus?" He looked all around and I continued, "Do you think we deserve equal rights?"

"Of course!"

"Good, I agree. If we deserve equal rights, isn't there something the same or equal about us that demands that we be treated equally?"

"Yes!"

"Cool. What do you think that is?"

"Our humanity. We're all humans."

"That's right! So, the conclusion is that, if the unborn are human, they must be given the same rights as the rest of us."

He backpedaled immediately to his previous statement, "The government shouldn't have a say in what we do with our bodies."

I gestured a time-out, "Follow me here. Forget the government. Say abortion will always be legal and there's nothing I can do about that. What if the unborn are humans but they are being systemically exterminated by the thousands every day? What if they are being discriminated against the same way black people and women were discriminated against? What if abortion kills a human being?"

"Then it's absolutely wrong," he said quietly. His attitude melted away and he wouldn't look at me. I waited.

After a moment, he said, "I know someone who had an abortion. She got knocked up by a douchebag on a one-night stand and she got an abortion. She had to. That baby would have screwed her over and ruined her life. She wouldn't have a degree or a career if she hadn't had that abortion. I hate that she had to do that but it was right for her."

My heart broke. This loud young man with an ego the size of a bus had just crumbled. He revealed to me in a moment the reason for his rough exterior and there was nothing I could do but sympathize with him.

"I'm so sorry about your friend. That sounds horrible."

He thanked me for talking with him and he walked away.

I was left with what felt like a gaping hole in my heart. I had forgotten the third person. I got excited by the opportunity to share such a cool, fool-proof argument for my cause and I forgot about what I was telling him. I told him what he probably already knew: that his friend had been party to taking the life of a human being. That is not information to be taken or given lightly.

JFA taught me to keep three people in mind in every conversation:
1. The unborn. As a pro-life advocate, it's my job to be a voice for the voiceless. Usually, that means being a voice for the unborn, but they are not the only ones I need to consider.

2. The person standing in front of me. In every conversation, they are the most important person. They are just as real, just as valuable, just as beautiful as the unborn. I need to remember to respect every person I speak to and place them first.

3. The woman. The third person I must include in every conversation is the person who has a connection to abortion. Sometimes it is the person standing in front of me, but other times it is someone they know, someone who is standing nearby listening to me, someone they will talk to in the future, someone who will read my account of the conversation. Even if it seems like the person I'm talking to has no connection with abortion, statistics say they do or will. I have to keep in mind my respect, care, and love for the man or woman personally affected by abortion in every conversation.

This is just one example of how complicated these conversations can be. I've wanted to describe the third person tactic before, but such a clear example of the need for it hadn't arisen. He was my last conversation that day. In a few days, JFA will be at the University of Colorado and this time I will be more careful to look out for what I cannot see and listen to hear unspoken words and feelings.

Real Conversation at OSU: "Of Men and Of Angels"

Out of the corner of my eye by Oklahoma State's Chi-O Clock, I recognized her. When she walked past me a moment ago, I smiled and she smiled back, but she kept walking. Now, she was returning this direction slowly. I turned and smiled again, "would you like to sign our poll table?" As if noticing it for the first time, Rachel* agreed. When she finished writing on the "YES" side of the poll: "Should Abortion Remain Legal?" she waited around to talk to me about her view.

We introduced ourselves and she said abortion should be legal because of the many difficulties that people discover along the way in pregnancy. I agreed that there are many possible complications and difficulties involved in pregnancy.  Rachel then cautiously voiced a belief that the unborn isn't human. She asked me what I thought about abortion.

Gently, I said, "Before I tell you what I think, can I ask you more questions?"
She happily agreed.
"You said you don't think the unborn is human. Do you mean that in a biological sense or a philosophical sense?"
She grinned. "I just came from a human development class, and I failed philosophy, so let's talk about biology!"

Carefully and respectfully, she and I went back and forth for a few minutes while I clarified what her position was. Through five questions, we discovered that she believes the unborn is just a mass of cells in the first two weeks of pregnancy. According to her professor, "you can technically get in there and find human DNA, but it's not a human yet." She acknowledged that, after three weeks of development, the heart and brain are communicating and therefore the unborn is a human at that stage.

This is where I transitioned us. "Rachel, you asked me what I think about abortion. I was taught that the most comprehensive view of valuing human life extends to all stages of development, even the stages I am not personally attracted to. The embryo from conception to three weeks does not seem relational to me, but I would rather treat it like a human and respect life all the way through development, even to old age. That includes the two week embryo, all these students here, and you."

She paused and stared at me for a moment. When she spoke, she said, "let me just say, that is the most sensible pro-life view I've ever heard. Every other time I've had this conversation, the pro-life person just screams at me, 'd*** you, liberal!'"

I expressed sadness at the way she had been treated in the past and thanked her for sharing her experience. She went on to say how nice it was to disagree in a free way with me. She had grown up in a liberal environment, I had a conservative upbringing, and we were looking for truth together.

Thinking back on this exchange, the passage in 1 Corinthians 13 has new context for me. Even if I could speak with the tongues of men and of angels, having the most knowledge and scientific facts at my disposal, if I do not love the person I'm talking to, it's more than worthless: it is that obnoxious sound that hurts and you wish would just stop. For Rachel, I was the first person she disagreed with who had let her express her opinion without attacking her. I hope I'm not the last.

"Love is patient and kind; love does not envy or boast;
It is not arrogant or rude. It does not insist on its own way;
it is not irritable or resentful;
it does not rejoice at wrongdoing, but rejoices with the truth.
Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.
Love never ends. As for prophecies, they will pass away; as for tongues, they will cease; as for knowledge, it will pass away.
For we know in part and we prophesy in part,
but when the perfect comes, the partial will pass away.
When I was a child, I spoke like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. When I became a man, I gave up childish ways.
For now we see in a mirror dimly, but then face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I have been fully known.
So now faith, hope, and love abide, these three; but the greatest of these is love."

February

After a wonderful hiatus in Virginia for family, holidays, and fundraising, I am back in Kansas for a five-month internship, ending in June. The month of February has been cold and challenging, but full of bright hours and big accomplishments.

One of my long-term tasks last semester was to scan 20 years worth of JFA response cards, volunteer agreements, debrief and reflection papers, and other papers from seminars and outreaches into the computer. It was supposed to take a year. David and I finished half of the project in the three months we were interning together in the fall of 2017. This month, I completed that project. It feels amazing to see that progress and now move on to other projects.

One of the most exciting things I was looking forward to doing with JFA was learning how to present parts of the seminar that we teach all over the country. This month, I was certified in one of those speaking sections and I'm working on memorizing a second one. I love public speaking and this material is incredibly helpful in conversations and life in general.

Adventures in February:
1/27 Meeting my host family's newest member: baby Brave
1/28 & 2/4 Swing dancing
2/11 Lunch with the Hotovys, Grace, and CK
2/15 Creating an intricate conspiracy story about the occupants of a local pub with Grace
2/18 Swing dancing
2/23 Final Friday: spending hours looking at local art with Grace
2/25 Visiting Jubilee PCA; lunch with new friends

On the 27th, Becca, Grace, and I set up a poll table at Oklahoma State University for two hours and talked to about 13 people. We were abruptly cut off by a downpour, but we had a lovely lunch and meeting with the pro-life club at OSU. I'm in the process of making another post for one of those conversations.

Looking forward to in March:

Hiking in Arkansas
Seminar and Outreach at KU
Progress in speaking certification

It's hard to close the chapter of February. I learned a lot about myself, my work, my colleagues. It was a good, hard month. March has its own adventures and I look forward to them, but I hope to remember this February for a long time.

Real Conversation at UNM: Sharpie

It was the second day of outreach at the University of New Mexico. I had been in conversation all morning, so I walked over to the Free Speech Board and sat down to read it. As I sat there, a young man walked up next to me.

"Have you written anything?" He asked.

"Not yet, but I was thinking about it," I responded.

He sat down next to me and fished a Sharpie out of his backpack. The boards have about half a dozen Sharpie markers tied to each side, but he handed me his own without a word. So I took it.

I wrote on the board a verse that had been in my head since the day before. A shortened version of 1 John 4:10 “This is love...that God first loved us." I handed his Sharpie back.

He read what I wrote and then wrote next to it, "There is no God, but there is Love."

After a moment, I asked him, "If there is no God, where does love come from?"

He considered this and said, "I don't know. I've never thought about that. Where do you think love comes from?"

I have never seen a more open door for the gospel. So I took it.

I told him about how God created the world and us and He loved us so much. But then we broke His law and He loved us so much that He came to earth and took the punishment for our sin for us so that we can live with Him forever.

He accepted this and we started to transition the conversation to the topic of abortion, but we were interrupted by another student.

"You're one of those crazy people who thinks the Bible informs every area of your life?!"

Almost everyone with JFA has a Colin* story from that day. He got around. In that moment, he stood between me and the sun, so I squinted up at him.

"Yeah, I am," I said, having no idea where he got that from, but happy that he brought it up while Sharpie guy was still around. "Have you read it?"

Colin’s confidence flared up. "No," he said, "Have you?!”

I grinned and responded, “Yes, three times.”

He then made a strange statement, “by reading and interpreting the Bible on your own, you’re going against the authority of the Pope!”

Confused, I simply answered, “I’m not Catholic.”

Colin’s attitude deflated instantly. “I know that having not read the Bible is my greatest weakness when talking about this."

"You should read it," I smiled, "It informs every area of life."

Sharpie guy had to leave then, so we said our goodbyes and Colin, now calm and respectful, dialogued with me for a little longer about God, the Bible, and how interpretation of those matters affects how we determine the morality of abortion.

November

It's been a crazy, blessed month!

I got back from Georgia right at the beginning of the month. While in Georgia, I had a really cool conversation with a young man who approached the exhibit. We agreed that abortion should not be legal in the last two trimesters and should not be done for just any reason. He said that a good reason to have an abortion would be if an unborn was diagnosed with a disability. With permission, I shared with him the story of a baby with spina bifida who had received surgery in utero to fix part of the baby's spine. In the corner of my eye, I saw a lady in a wheelchair coming down the sidewalk in our direction. I kid you not, as we were talking, this woman approached us and interrupted our conversation. She passionately shared that she had spina bifida and was afraid for unborn babies with that diagnosis. Many of them are aborted. She said, "Never let disability be the reason you have an abortion. Never. We can have good lives too." The young man heard in awe as the woman told her story. He left an hour later saying that he had a lot to think about.

One week later I was in Oklahoma with the office team, most of our national team, and two volunteers! Outreach at OU was interesting, hard, and pretty great. I got to watch God quell some firey conversations almost as soon as they started. He opened up some doors I never would have expected in people's minds and hearts. He also set up some circumstances that were amazingly clear open doors. He guided us as we walked through the doors, minds, and fires of the students of the University of Oklahoma.

Fundraising filled the last two weeks of the internship with many letters sent and calls made. The encouragement from friends and family has been a huge blessing in this process.

Random adventures:
11/5 Called Sarah on her birthday!
Dancing!
11/18 Dinner and Blokus with Becca, her fiance Mark, and David!
11/19 Called Olivia on her birthday!
Swing dancing and eating ice cream with Deborah!
11/20 Won ImaginIf at my small group's Friendsgiving!
11/21 Workshop at Kansas For Life (I got a t-shirt!)
When I called Katrina, her sun was setting and mine was still up. It was a magical moment.
Painting Grace's living room and saving her from a self-destructing bookcase!
11/22 Bananagrams with Becca and David!
11/23 Thanksgiving with Kulases!
Coffee and walk with Grace!
The Princess Bride, online shopping, and painting with Grace!
11/25 Cosmosphere and shopping in Hutch with Grace!
11/26 Swing dancing and ice cream with Grace!
11/27 Last small group meeting!
12/1 Final day with Justice For All

I was given the honor of presenting the "I'm a miracle!" story to a Baptist church in Oklahoma. That was a very cool opportunity for me. Probably the largest crowd I've spoken to and they even laughed at my joke :)

How do I sum up? Last year, I thought I knew what I was asking God for when I asked to do pro-life work. I didn't know that that prayer would be answered in the form of sharing love and truth with college students all over the United States of America with an amazing team of God-fearing, life-affirming prayer-warriors with decades of pro-life work experience to learn from and imitate. I am blown away... and I can't wait to come back. Whether I return in the spring, or God doesn't lead me back for a long time, I hope to support and participate in this organization. Justice For All lives up to its name, placing God at the front of all their work. Thanks, team. Thank you for exemplifying to me what love and truth can do when used together.

Real Conversation at OU: Spheres of Influence

On Tuesday, I had the privilege of sitting in on a conversation on the University of Oklahoma campus.

Caleb, a high school student volunteering with JFA that day, and I were discussing a previous conversation when we were approached by an OU student named DeWayne* who asked what the exhibit was about. He seemed very pro-life. He believed life started at conception and that generally abortion should be illegal. We built common ground there and I asked questions to understand his beliefs.

At this point in the conversation, DeWayne paused in his processing of abortion and asked Caleb and me a question. He said, "Everyone has a certain amount of energy that they use to address different things in their spheres of influence. I choose not to get upset over some things because they don't affect me yet. Why do you choose to spend your energy talking about abortion?"

It was a packed question. I wanted to slow him down and address one thing at a time because I heard a lot in what he was saying. But it wasn't me who needed to speak. As I was thinking about how to unpack DeWayne's question, the volunteer spoke up. Caleb told a story about how his brother's roommate in college had said the word "super" so much that all the roommates eventually began using the word "super" in their vocabulary subconsciously. Then his brother, who was now using the word frequently, unintentionally spread the word to his Chik-fil-A coworkers. Within a year or two, the word "super" had gone from being used by one person to 95 people who did not know the original speaker. Caleb's point? Your influence goes far beyond what you will ever know.

This impacted DeWayne. We could see it in his eyes and he told us as much right away. "You're right," he said, "I hadn't thought about it that way. It's worth it to have the conversation about abortion because we have no idea who it could influence." I thanked God that this young man had connected the dots. This is a point I try to get many pro-life students to reach. I am asked at every campus, "It doesn't affect me. Why should I even have an opinion?" At every campus I want to explain to people that the topic of abortion may not seem like it affects them, but they can influence others if only they will speak up.

DeWayne got it. He is now willing to start talking to people about what he believes regarding abortion. This young man, through the conversations in his future, will make an impact he had never thought possible.

He did not think it was worth his time and energy to have the conversation, but he was willing to ask us why we thought talking about abortion was worth our energy. I did not have the words he needed to hear, but the high school senior volunteer did, and he spoke up.

Are you willing to have this uncomfortable conversation? Have you formed your opinion on abortion? Have you done the research?

If not, are you willing to start down that path?

If so, are you willing to speak up?

Your sphere of influence is larger than you can imagine.

oPIN Your Eyes Project

Ever since watching the Paper Clips documentary on the Holocaust a few years ago, I have wanted to find a way to both commemorate and help visualize the loss of life in this country from legalized abortion. Two weeks ago, I Googled "paperclips abortion" and found Alyson: a working student who was one step ahead of me. Back in March, Alyson started the oPIN Your Eyes Project, collecting diaper or safety pins to raise national awareness for the lives lost because of abortion. To do this, she set a goal of 9 months to collect 300,000 safety pins to represent the 60 million abortions in the U.S. since Roe vs. Wade in 1973. All she needs is 10 people to send in 2,000 pins each by Thanksgiving and she will reach her goal. 

After connecting with Alyson, she agreed to do a Question and Answer post with me. I hope you enjoy getting to know this incredible young lady:

Q1. How did you get interested in Pro-Life? 

A. I have always had a passion for “the least of these."  When I was a little kid, I wanted to help the poor or those who could not help themselves.  As I grew up, that desire expanded into even wanting to help people with disabilities.  As I grew older, I learned about other people who would fall under “the least of these” category.  Now, not only do I desire to stand up for those who are killed in the womb, but my heart also breaks for the Muslim people.  (After college, I plan to become a Missionary in closed countries to reach Muslim women and children with the hope of the gospel.)  I cannot pinpoint an exact day or time when I decided to be Pro-Life.  I have grown up in a Christian home, and so I always knew abortion was wrong.  Although I knew it was wrong, I did not jump out there and get involved with Pro-Life marches or anything like that.  It was more of an understanding, but no action accompanied it.  I did hold some Pro-Life signs on the side of the road with a group of Pro-Lifers one time, but that was it.  Now, this past January is when I began to consider taking more of a public stand.  It was when I read WORLD magazine's article by Marvin Olasky, called “Incapable of Shame.”  For more on how that changed me: https://opinyoureyes.blogspot.com/2017/03/the-story-behind-opin-your-eyes.html   

Q 2. What was your impression of the Paperclips movie? 

A. My first impression of the Paperclips movie was how amazing it was that those middle school kids worked hard to create such a beautiful memorial for all those who had died in the Holocaust.  It also made me cry, to just imagine what all those Holocaust survivors went through!  As I watched it, it confirmed my idea to do a project like the Holocaust Memorial for the babies who have been aborted.  I thought, “if these little middle schoolers could do this for something like the Holocaust, why can’t I, a high schooler, do something like that for abortion which is 10x worse (in amount of babies who have died)?”  I had no idea what all this project would ask of me, even after seeing that movie.  The movie did prepare me for the time and effort I would have to pour into this project, but it just scratched the surface.  

Now, after reading the WORLD magazine’s article, that is when an idea of bringing national awareness concerning abortion was birthed. The actual oPIN your eyes idea was conceived when I remembered the Children’s Memorial Display of the Paperclips that I had visited several year ago.  After considering how I could collect diaper or safety pins like those middle schoolers collected paper clips, that is when we watched the movie to see what all was involved.  

Q3. Why safety pins? 

A. Well, I associate safety/diaper pins with babies, especially diaper pins.  Plus, it was the closest thing I could think of to paper clips.  They are roughly the same size, and people (mainly ladies) seem to have plenty around the house.  It just seemed to practically fit the idea, both collecting wise and in proportion to how big these aborted babies are and how they are uniquely different. 

Q4. What is your goal with the Project? 

A. While my goal is to collect a certain number of pins, my ultimate goals are:

1. To glorify God    2. To bring awareness of what we have lost as a nation.  3. To be able to visualize this massive number.

Q5. Share a cool story since starting the Project:  

A. Oh dear, there are a lot.  I have talked to people who were almost aborted, and those are such neat stories of how God spared them and then to see how God is using them.  One of those stories was about a little girl who was at a church I was speaking at.  Her grandmother introduced us to her 3 year old granddaughter who “was a walking miracle.”  The child’s mother had been on meth when she found out that she was 32 weeks pregnant and “her tummy was flat as a board."  They didn’t know what to expect when the baby was delivered. Would she have all her fingers and toes?  What about her brain?  How would it be affected?  When we first arrived in the packed (small) sanctuary that night, this little girl was the one that stood out to me above all the rest. She was adorable!!  She was attentive and engaged in the whole service.  We overheard her grandmother prompting her to quote John 3:16 to an older woman sitting nearby.  She touched our hearts before we even met her.  Her grandmother said she was born without any problems.  Indeed, she was a walking miracle!  

Q6. What is the most encouraging part of this for you?  

A. There are two things that have been encouraging to me.  (1) When pins do not come in as quickly as they used to, God sends some form of encouragement.  Sometimes it is a person I have not met who contacts me, or sends me pins, or I get a chance to speak somewhere about my project.  (2) I have seen so clearly how God has placed a passion to stand against abortion on certain people’s hearts.  I have found that even if I present my project exactly the same to two different people, their reactions can be quite different because of how God is working in each one.  The first person might respond with an “oh that is nice” comment and move on, while the other might respond energetically, eager to help me in any way possible.  I have been so encouraged when God directs me to multiple, like-minded, and passionate people during this project.  

Q7. Why should people send you pins? 

A. These pins, at the end with the final display, will be a way to help our nation be aware of how many babies have died.  It is a way they can play a part in bringing awareness.  My prayer is that God will use this awareness and the final display of pins to help Christians realize how many babies we have lost and to stand up to change how our country views abortion.  

Q8. What was the initial response and how has that changed? 

A. When people heard about my project, they were surprised to see a young person being willing to stand up against abortion.  But as time has gone on, responses have varied.  I think that it depends on who I talk to, if God has already stirred in their heart a desire to stand up against abortion, or not.  I also think that the amount of time I spend on the project affects the amount of pins I receive and the number of responses as well.

Q9. Who has given you the most support? Pins? Emotionally? 

A. The most support in general, has been my mom.  She has been right there with me through every step, pushing me to take initiative and to do it myself, while also being there for me if I need advice or an idea.  She has been the back bone of this project, though she won’t admit it. :)  

The most support pin-wise, I would say is a church in our area.  They gave 50,000 pins after I spoke at their church.  

The most support emotionally, would be God, my mom, our prayer team, and my family.  Without all of them, I would have quit a long time ago.  At our church, there is a dear older lady who has been so sweet and supportive of my project.  When I told her about the project she hopped on board and asked how she could help.  I had no idea at the time, but she has been so passionate about it and collecting as many pins as she can for me.  She has been extremely supportive and encouraging.

Q10. What is the biggest surprise you experienced from the Project and why? 

A. Oh goodness, God sends such great surprises to me nearly every time the project begins to feel slow. I would say that the biggest surprise was when I contacted several Christian radio stations, and Chris Fabry responded, asking me if I would come on his show!  So I did, and God worked through that to send me pins from people who had heard me share about my project on the radio.  

Q11. Who is your public inspiring figure and why? 

A. Honestly, my role model is Jesus and if I had to pick an earthly one, it would be my mom.  She is always so strong and knows just how to get what needs to be taken care of, completed in the most efficient way.  She seems to be always right and gives the best advice.  Now, my dad is also my role model.  He is the most solid man you could ever find.  His counsel holds fast to God’s Word and he continually holds up God’s Word as the guidelines for our thinking and way of life at home.  Both of my parents are my role models and I hope to, one day, somehow reach at least a half of what they are!

Q12. Where do you store the pins? 

A. In Ziplock bags and in cardboard boxes in our sunroom.  My brothers help me count the pins that are not sent in counted.  (But, we do ask people to send in their pins counted.)

Q13. What is the final goal for displaying them? 
A. I have not fully created a final display.  But I want to create some sort of large container that looks like a large baby bottle.  Hopefully the container will be somewhat clear so that people can see the pins inside.  I hope to place the display in a public area.   

Thank you so much, Alyson, for taking the time to do this Q&A and especially for dedicating 9 months of your year to this cause. God bless you in the last month of your collection and in your future endeavors. 

All Alyson needs is ten people to send in 2,000 pins each by Thanksgiving and she will reach her goal. Through Amazon Prime, 2,000 safety pins can cost as little as $10, 1,000 at $5 and so on. Go to opinyoureyes.com to learn where to send the pins.

To learn more about oPIN, visit https://opinyoureyes.blogspot.com/ and follow the project on Facebook and Instagram. Alyson shares easy links to Amazon to show your support with pins, pins, and more pins.

October

We kicked off this beautiful month with an outreach at the University of Minnesota. I got to know the interns and my bosses better as we explored Minneapolis and made important decisions about the best place to find ice cream. Paul is my supervisor in the office, and Steve is the director of JFA, so I have two bosses. The outreach itself was a different experience for each of us, but we all saw God's hand at work. For more details on that, see my blog post for Minnesota.

When we got back, Grace hosted a party for her friends who were visiting her from Louisiana. At this party which featured gumbo and good company, Grace surprised me with an early birthday present: a cheesecake. If my future were decided on a balance between "Stay with JFA Forever" and "Go Back to College", Grace is stacking the first side expertly.

This fun evening was followed by 24 hours in Oklahoma where I met some wonderful Pokes and shared the gospel alongside Tammy, Jon, and David. OSU was a peaceful campus with many questions for us. "What is the point of the poll?" "Are you selling something?" "How do you think the world began?" You never know what you're going to get, but every conversation is an opportunity to build relationship, find common ground, and respect every person.

Nearly two whole office weeks filled the middle of my month. I turned 22 and used that day to start reading The Hiding Place and explore Wichita a bit more. In the office, David and I have been replying to poll emails from the various campuses we visit, sorting through old files of JFA history, and helping out with random tasks which help the organization to run smoothly. I am unofficially the temporary librarian in the office because I put all the books in order and will dragon-like keep them orderly for the next month.

I've been attending my host family's small group as faithfully as possible with my busy travel schedule. We discussed the 5 Solas of the faith this month and I greatly enjoyed bouncing Scripture references off the other members of the group. They are a delightful collection of young parents and singles. Lord willing, I will be able to meet with them three more times before going home in December.

Random October adventures include a corn maze with new church friends, ice cream with Grace, walking on THE Yellow Brick Road, and riding a roller coaster in the Mall of America! There has been more dancing, and if I haven't been working, I've probably been crocheting, knitting, or cross-stitching.

Grace on the Yellow Brick Road in Liberal, KS

This past week in New Mexico was filled with answered prayers and unexpected laughter. Another 10 hours in the car to and from Albuquerque meant fun word games, riddle puzzles, and lots of jokes. This outreach was peacefully protested by a group from the university who stood a few yards away from us holding signs. They had chalked our area the day before with sayings. They were nice enough to engage a few of our staff in conversation about abortion before leaving. When people are expecting a fight, our organization is a disappointment. In contrast to this mindset, those in need of help are welcomed and provided for. Hundreds of conversations were held at UNM, some of those continuing in email form.

The space for our exhibit was covered in chalk-slogans from the Student Alliance for Reproductive Justice when we arrived on Monday morning (10/23/17)

On Sunday, Grace and I leave for Atlanta, GA where we will join other members of the staff to hold a seminar and outreach at Kennesaw State University. That event will close out October and welcome November. The last event of the internship will be Oklahoma in the middle of November.

Thank you for your continued prayers. I experienced only one nightmare this month and my health has remained strong. The training program is so helpful, teaching me all sorts of pro-life details that have been invaluable in conversation, especially at UNM. I'm two-thirds of the way through my internship and the idea of leaving to go home is hard to grasp. Please pray that my mind will stay engaged in my work through this final month and that my friendships here will grow stronger in their reflection of the Savior.

Real Conversation at UNM: "Will it end?"

"Will it end?"

I've been asked this question before. Not frequently, and usually not by people who describe themselves as pro-choice, but it has caused me to wonder for years. Will abortion ever end? Will it become illegal? Will Roe vs. Wade ever be reversed? For those of us who are fighting to this end, questions like these are ones which we struggle with commonly. A less-frequent question for me is this: "What next?"

I was asked both of these big questions at the University of New Mexico this week. One student on campus, William, saw Justice For All's exhibit from a window and thought, "This'll be fun." He wasn't wrong, but he didn't get the fight he was hoping for. William and I dialogued for two hours on Monday about abortion, justice, and the Christian worldview. He introduced me to his ideas about how the world works, the exceptions he found to be crucial for the justice of the women in hard situations, and there may have been some references to Star Wars. The next day, Tuesday, he came back to the exhibit. And he had questions. Between questions about JFA, aliens, and fears, he looked me right in the eye and asked, "Will it end?" He was asking if I thought abortion would ever be a thing of the past.

I sighed and prayed aloud, "Lord God... I hope so." Previous conversations where I've answered this question came to mind and recent conversations with Justice For All staff also spoke to my thoughts in that moment. Abortion really could end. Per JFA's mission statement, abortion really could become "unthinkable." I pray for a day where Roe vs. Wade will be reversed. It could be that I see a day where the millions who would have been surgically and chemically exterminated are safely entering the world and living their lives. I long for that day.

Explaining my hopes and dreams for the end of abortion over the course of the next few minutes was not enough. William listened patiently as I compared abortion to the United States slavery epidemic from 150 years ago and how the consequences of that time are affecting our nation today. Slavery may be over in that sense, but we experience the effects of it still. It will be the same for abortion, I said. When it is over... when it is finally done, our job will not be done. This world is forever changed by the way we have treated the weakest of our species over the past 45 years. Myself and pro-life advocates everywhere are ready to help people who are suffering the effects of a society which is embracing abortion. We know that our job will never be done in that sense and, more personally, Christians never expect our job to be over.

Knowing God helps us discover what we're meant to do in the time we're given on this earth. As Christians learn about God, we learn to care about what He cares about. He cares about His creation, so when it's being destroyed, it grieves Him and it has to grieve us. When abortion is over, the grief will still be there. We have to be ready to turn our care to the area of need. Today, there are so many areas of need. Right now, I'm concentrating on one of those areas in one college campus at a time, one person at a time. I told William that when this area is settled, with God's help, I will move to help whomever needs me. That's just how it goes. I can live my life no other way. Because if I believe God has the end of abortion in His plan, I have to believe He has a plan for what comes after.

I'm crying now as I write this. I want it to end. There are approximately 2,500 abortions every day in the U.S. alone. On the days I spent in New Mexico, around 7,500 lives were lost. At this rate, by the time Christmas rolls around, the U.S. will reach 60 million killed in 45 years. I have to believe it could stop.

Father God, please let there be an end to abortion. Give your people the humility, the strength, the grace, the compassion to extend Your love to every human being. Today, tomorrow, and after abortion is gone. Because the work will never be done, but Your faithfulness endures to all generations.