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Day 34 - October 25

Intention:

May we come to know that divine life, in relationship, creates human life.

Scripture:

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things were made through Him, and without Him nothing was made that was made.

--John 1:1-3

Reflection:

"In the beginning" was God. Always, before all times, there was God. This particular God -- the God of the Bible, the God of St. John's Gospel -- is different from all other gods. This God is alive and full of life. This God is not the picture of deadness and death, aloneness and isolation. This God is the picture of life, relationship, and unity. For within this God, within this one God, there are three divine persons who live, who love, and who work -- together. This is the glorious mystery of the Trinity. The Trinity means divine life. The Trinity means three, living Persons -- Father, Son, and Holy Spirit -- who relate to each other. The Trinity means mutual love and service among three Persons.

The Word was always with God the Father. This Word was, is, and will be the Trinity's second person. The Word is also the Son of God or, as revealed in time, Jesus Christ. God the Father and God the Son live, love, and work for each other. As one, they create "all things" together: the Father creates all things, including all human life, through the Son.

So the Father, through the Son, creates all human lives. The little one swimming in his mother's womb, the infant smiling in his father's arms, the child crying in pain in a hospital bed, the energetic teen running another mile, the old man gasping for his last breath -- all were created, at their beginning, by the Father through the Son. No exceptions. Divine life creates human life.

Prayer:

O God, may we always be quick to call you Father. And when we call you father, let your Spirit remind us that we, and all people, from their beginning to their last day, are your children. We praise you, Father, that you sent your Son to reveal to the world that all people are His brothers and sisters, that all people are your children. Through Jesus Christ we pray. Amen.

Rev. Paul Stallsworth
President, Lifewatch (United Methodist Church)

Today’s email — and it’s a good one!

How many more lives will be saved this fall?

This is the last week of the campaign and a wild week
for me — I go to Southern California before closing
this fall’s campaign at the site of one of the largest
abortion facilities in the world — the Planned
Parenthood in Houston, Texas.

The number of babies God has saved in response to your
prayers during this 40 Days for Life campaign is now ...

... 445 — that we know of!

Please keep praying and fasting!

Here are some of the great stories I’ve received from
local 40 Days for Life volunteers.

CLEVELAND, OHIO

Tom says the weather was nasty in Cleveland, which made
the scene at the abortion center even more depressing
than usual. But he and a number of other vigil
volunteers prayed silently that God would hear their
pleas — it was a Tuesday, an abortion day, and there
were many women arriving for appointments.

Near the end of the prayer shift, one of the volunteers
offered literature to a woman who was leaving the
abortion center. “The woman told us that she had an
appointment to abort her baby,” Tom said, “but had
changed her mind.”

When asked what made her change her mind, she answered,
“God did.”

“We told her that we would be offering prayers of
thanksgiving for her courage and of support for her
as she carries her baby to term,” Tom said.

FORT WORTH, TEXAS

When Theresa arrived at the 40 Days for Life vigil, the
parking lot at Planned Parenthood was full.

“We saw several women leave after their abortion,” she
said, “and one in particular really struck a chord
within me. A young girl being escorted by her parents
was holding her abdomen and crying. I immediately felt
overwhelmed and began crying for her and her aborted
baby as I prayed for God’s mercy.”

Shortly afterward, another car pulled in. But no one
got out. Theresa and the others at the vigil just
kept praying.

After about 10 minutes, the car began to leave. The
woman in the car smiled, waved to the volunteers, and
said, “I’m keeping my baby!”

“We all thanked the Lord for saving this innocent life,”
Theresa said. “I gave Him a special thank you for
giving us the gift knowing we made a difference.”

MELBOURNE, AUSTRALIA

Sue watched as a young woman got out of a taxi at the
abortion center in Melbourne where the 40 Days for Life
vigil is in progress.

Dave, one of the volunteers, glanced her way and said,
“The group of people over there are praying for your
unborn child. What do you need? We are here to help
you and your child.”

She looked nervous. Dave asked her, “Why isn’t the
father of the baby with you?”

“I have not told my husband. I didn’t want to be
pregnant,” she said. After a short chat, the woman
said she wasn’t really sure she wanted the abortion.
“What shall I do now?”

She asked the right person. “Go home and tell your
husband, your daughter and your parents about the
new member of their family,” Dave said.

“I will ring the same taxi driver,” the woman said.
“He gave me his number. I hope he can take me back.”
The taxi was there within ten minutes.

Dave spoke to the taxi driver and asked him to take
good care of her. With a smile and a thank you,
they drove off.

“Please pray for this young woman and her family,”
Sue said. “One more to add to the 3,000 plus who
have been saved thanks to 40 Days for Life!”