40 Days for Life

And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth.

The Word of God came to us in human form in Jesus Christ. Every time I contemplate this fact I get chills! And I think it is something that we, as Christians, tend to gloss over. I can only imagine how the first disciples felt when they were looking into the eyes of the one and only Almighty God who created them.

The first disciples developed a close relationship with Him as they daily walked and talked with Him. They ate with Him, prayed with Him and rested when He rested. As they listened to the Word of God, who was and is Jesus….they believed and "beheld His glory."

Today, this is something we can still do because we serve a living God. Remember, Jesus died on the cross but rose from the dead in victory! Jesus is every bit as real and alive for all of us as He was to the first disciples. He wants us to develop a close relationship with Him in the very same way. Jesus wants us to know Him personally. He wants us to walk with Him and talk with Him on a daily basis.

Dear Heavenly Father, I thank you for your love and saving grace in Christ Jesus. Help us to realize every day the great blessing we have in our Savior. I pray that we will rise every morning with excitement and zeal, looking forward to walking another day in your footsteps fully knowing that you continue to dwell among us. Amen.

THREE ELEMENTS

Constant vigil

The visible, public centerpiece of 40 Days for Life is a 40-day, round-the-clock prayer vigil outside a Planned Parenthood center or other abortion facility in your community.

Those who are called to stand witness maintain a peaceful and educational presence.

This 24-hour-a-day presence send a powerful message to the community about the tragic reality of abortion. It also serves as a call to repentance for those who work at the abortion center and those who patronize the facility.

If you do not have an abortion facility or Planned Parenthood office in your town, you can still conduct 40 Days for Life. However, you will need to select a different location which has some strategic significance ... perhaps near city hall, a courthouse, or a highly visible intersection.

Community outreach

40 Days for Life in Greenville, South Carolina

During 40 Days for Life, the pro-life message is proactively taken to every corner of your community. This can identify hundreds, or even thousands, of pro-life supporters.

A door-to-door petition and education drive reaches out to every household in your town or city. Informational flyers are distributed in neighborhoods to raise awareness about the local crisis of abortion. Citizens are invited to sign a petition of support for the sanctity of human life, and people are given the opportunity to visibly show their support for 40 Days for Life by wearing wristbands, placing signs in their yards, or displaying bumper stickers on their vehicles.

These people can then be encouraged to pray and join in local pro-life efforts.

Church involvement begins by meeting with local pastors, other church leaders, and members of different congregations. The Body of Christ is invited to pray together and participate in 40 Days for Life, uniting in one focused mission that can save lives and make an eternal impact.

Media outreach is conducted through carefully targeted news stories, talk shows, editorials, and letters to the editor. This enables you to get the pro-life message out to many people who would never see the inside of a local church.

If your community has a college campus, many students can be impacted through an intense 40-day campus outreach. This can consist of flyer raids, sidewalk chalking, petition drives, table displays, and much more.

Local leadership with 40 Days for Life

40 Days for Life in Halifax, Nova Scotia

40 Days for Life is primarily a local campaign. Yes, there is a national team that provides information, resources and encouragement, but all campaigns are based at the local level. Each community knows best when it comes to countering the damage abortion has caused in each individual city and town.

No one is appointed as a local 40 Days for Life leader; in each community, someone must step up and accept the challenge.

The campaign is also a group effort. There needs to be a main coordinator, but there is a whole level of duties and responsibilities that must be filled in addition to the director's position:

Prayer coordinator
Vigil coordinator
Outreach coordinator
Event coordinator
Church coordinator
Communications coordinator
And possibly others, depending on your local needs.

A line from Scripture comes to mind: "Here I am, Lord; I come to do your will." Please pray for discernment and guidance. 40 Days for Life won't happen without somebody. "Somebody" could be you!

Today’s email:

Every once in a while, people show up at a 40 Days
for Life prayer vigil who wish YOU would just go home.

In some cases, they themselves are suffering as the
result of an abortion experience. Or they may simply
want to get under your skin.

Persecution is not suggested by Jesus; it is PROMISED
if we follow Him. While seeking persecution is not
the goal of 40 Days for Life, it does go along with
standing against the evil of abortion.

If that ever happens to you, just remain peaceful —
and pray harder! The fruit is worth it.

MILWAUKEE, WISCONSIN

On my recent visit to the 40 Days for Life vigil in
Milwaukee, the abortion center put a sign in their
window asking for contributions to “pledge to end
harassment.”

This tired, ineffective tactic is attempted often,
particularly by Planned Parenthood. But it doesn’t
work. They do it because they don’t know how to
react to peaceful opposition that speaks to their
conscience and calls them to re-evaluate their work.

This childish reaction speaks to the effectiveness
of the prayer that they view as “harassment.”

To see the window of the Milwaukee abortion center,
please go to:

http://40daysforlife.com/blog/?p=1046

SANTA CRUZ, CALIFORNIA

At their kickoff event recently, the 40 Days for Life
team in Santa Cruz was “welcomed” by a local, rabidly
pro-abortion anarchist group that was attempting to
thwart their efforts.

Most of what these abortion supporters said and did
to the prayer volunteers cannot be repeated. Suffice
it to say, it was vile and nasty.

One pastor wisely advised the prayer volunteers to
keep an air of serenity and ignore the obnoxious
behavior — but to not back down.

And they followed that advice.

Please keep the Santa Cruz team in your prayers. And
pray for the coversion of the misguided anarchists.

There is only one picture I can show you from Santa
Cruz, featuring a small group praying. Opposing them
is a man holding a sign that reads “Abort Jesus.”

http://40daysforlife.com/blog/?p=1046

RENO, NEVADA

Please keep Reno in your prayers as well.

When I was in there a few days ago, I witnessed what
the volunteers there have to endure — an aggressive
abortionist with a vulgar and confrontational attitude.

One sign that he had professionally made is so vulgar
I cannot put it in an e-mail. But there are other
signs, facing the street for all to see:

* No trespassing
* God is pro-choice
* These protesters are terrorists

The abortionist also has a sprinkler system — but not
for landscaping. The sprinklers are intentionally
pointed towards the sidewalk ... where the prayer
volunteers stand.

He also installed a sound system that he often uses to
blast out obscene music — hoping that the Christians
praying on the sidewalk would be offended and leave.

Well, it isn’t working. It hasn’t worked — ever. But
still he persists. As do the prayer volunteers!

To see photos of the Reno vigil site, please go to:

http://40daysforlife.com/blog/?p=1046

LAWRENCEVILLE, GEORGIA

If someone does give you a hard time, pray for them!

A woman drove into the parking lot near the 40 Days
for Life vigil location in Lawrenceville and started
yelling at one of the volunteers. She was described
as very aggressive and angry, shouting things like,
“Just WHAT are you people doing here?”

The volunteer quietly explained what the vigil was
all about — and the angry woman started to calm down
a bit. During the course of a 15-minute conversation,
she shared some personal information (we’re not sure
exactly what was discussed), and finally she had made
a complete turnaround.

“She became very sweet and very supportive of what
we were doing,” one of the volunteers reported.

To see a photo of 40 Days for Life participants in
Lawrenceville, please go to:

http://40daysforlife.com/blog/?p=1046

The long and the short of it is PRAYER WORKS — so
please keep it up!

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