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Rev. Ben Sheldon, President Emeritus, Presbyterians Pro-life

Intention:

That we may realize the generational impact of abortion.

Scripture:

Isaac prayed to the Lord for his wife because she was barren; and the Lord granted his prayer and Rebekah his wife conceived. The children struggled together within her, and she said,” If it is thus, why do I live?” So she went to inquire of the Lord.

And the Lord said to her, “Two nations are in your womb, and two peoples, born of you, shall be divided; the one shall be stronger than the other, the elder shall serve the younger.”

— Genesis 25:21-23

Reflection:

What an answer to prayer! Who dares to say that the unborn are not human, with distinct personality and character right from the moment of conception? This account emphasizes the vitality and uniqueness of the twins who, because of Isaac’s prayer for his wife, were conceived in Rebekah’s womb. When Rebekah was told by the Lord that the older would serve the younger twin, God already knew that Jacob and Esau would lead turbulent and conflicted lives.

God knows us and knows all about us, including our personality and disposition long before we are actually born, indeed, from the moment we are conceived in our mother’s womb. What a tragedy of gargantuan proportions that babies, planned and endowed by the Creator, with distinct and unique personalities and with, perhaps, a future and destiny intended for greatness, have their lives snuffed outby cruel abortionists before they ever see the light of day! May our prayers that the dreadful scourge of abortion in our land may vanish be as fervent as Isaac’s were for Rebekah.

Prayer:

O, God, you formed us in our mother’s womb and planned a unique and special life and purpose for each of us, and we do thank you. Grant that we may pray and work for an end to abortion, especially in these 40 days, so that no unborn baby you have made may fail to achieve your divine intention for him or her because of intentional abortion. We pray this for the sake of your Son, our Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.

It’s always a confirmation of the Holy Spirit’s work when we receive similar stories – or similar pictures – from campaigns a great distance apart. Coincidence? I think not!

Here are some examples of what I’m talking about.

EVERY KNEE SHALL BEND

We often invite people to go to the vigil to stand and pray. More and more, people arriving at the peaceful 40 Days for Life vigil feel led to KNEEL and pray. If there was ever a situation that cried out for pleading on bended knee before the Lord almighty, this is it. And faithful people are responding in a time-honored way.

The 40 Days for Life team in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania sent a photo of a woman who arrived at the vigil. She put her umbrella down on the sidewalk and knelt in prayer – for two solid hours.

“It was amazing to see the effect her witness had on the passers-by,” said Nikki in Pittsburgh. “It began to rain about an hour into her witness…but she never moved. Eventually, there was a dry spot all around her in the shape of her body, but the rest of the sidewalk was wet.”

At one point, a group of Planned Parenthood employees walked by as they went to lunch. They certainly noticed the woman on her knees. “It HAD to make an impact on their consciences when, an hour later, they returned to work and saw that she was STILL in the same position,” Nikki said.

The woman told Nikki that she really didn’t think she would be able to do it, but the Lord put it on her heart to try. “She said it wasn’t her doing it. She felt the power of the Holy Spirit sustaining her during the entire two hours.”

The 40 Days for Life team in El Paso, Texas also posted a photo. The weather was much better, but the scenario was quite similar. A young man arrived at the vigil. He put his backpack down next to the wall and knelt in prayer – on the gravel in the alley way – for more than an hour.

“He was radiating the love of Jesus,” said one of the prayer volunteers, “pouring his heart over to God for the mommies and their unborn babies. Praise God for teens like him! What an example!”

AND A CHILD SHALL LEAD THEM

It's common for families to pray together at 40 Days for Life vigils. They often come with very young children … who really seem to take to the signs. Again here, we have pictures from two different cities – again, with very different weather conditions – but similar messages.

”Here is the photo of another persuasive messenger, who came to the sidewalk for the first time today,” said Wynette in Sacramento, California … noting that if “this little girl can saves lives, by the grace of God, surely you can too, by the power of prayer!“

The other young volunteer was appropriately bundled up for winter in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, where the 40 Days for Life team has reported many blessings already during this campaign. As one of the leaders noted, “We start them young.”