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Praying DOES have an impact!,p.

One of the unexpected blessings of this 40 Days for
Life campaign thus far is the unprecedented number of
media stories about local campaigns -- and it's not
just the number of stories but the tone of those
reports. Many of them have been highly positive!

An extremely favorable article about the 40 Days for
Life kickoff appeared in the Journal Star, the daily
newspaper in Peoria, Illinois. Here's the first part
of that story:

Cathy Trowbridge had an abortion and lived to tell
about it. Not overnight, mind you. But after 34
soul-searching years, the Princeton resident is
silent no more.

"Not everybody can do this," Trowbridge said
Tuesday night at a rally at Riverfront Park to
launch the 40 Days for Life campaign. "Not everyone
that has had an abortion can stand here and be able
to face a crowd. But that courage comes from Him
who selects those that can do it."

Trowbridge told a crowd of about 80 how she paid no
attention 34 years ago to those praying in front of
a clinic at 7405 N. University St. in Peoria and
entered what is now National Health Care and had
her pregnancy terminated.

"I didn't know what they were there for,"
Trowbridge said of the group whose successors
intend to be in front of the clinic around the
clock from Wednesday through Nov. 1. "I didn't
allow myself to look at their signs and figure out
what they said.

"I just knew that I was full of fear and
desperation," Trowbridge continued. "And the people
that counseled me told me that this is what I
should do and this is where I should go. And
because it was legal and lawful and because I
usually did what I was told, I did. It wasn't until
much later that I found out the truth."

Read the whole story at:

http://tinyurl.com/ydhfowq

What a powerful account -- and in a secular
newspaper! It's a valuable insight into the mind of
the woman who seeks abortion, and something to keep
in mind as you pray.

Abortion clearly leaves a lasting negative impact.

You even may meet someone at the 40 Days for Life
vigil in your own community who has a story similar
to Cathy's. The 40 Days for Life team in Bakersfield,
California knows it is more common than you might
think. Here's a posting from their blog:

During Saturday's kickoff rally, a volunteer
noticed a forlorn woman standing near the vigil
signup sheets. "I sensed that God wanted me to talk
to her," the volunteer said.

"Can I help you sign up for a time to pray at the
vigil?" the volunteer asked. The woman seemed
reluctant at first. As the volunteer continued to
talk to her, eventually she opened up to share the
internal struggle she was experiencing.

"Twenty-five years ago," she began, "I aborted my
baby. Maybe if people like you had been there, my
baby's life could have been saved."

During this 40 day prayer vigil, as you meet new
people joining you in prayer along the sidewalks
outside abortion facilities and Planned Parenthood
offices, remember that some of the vigil participants
themselves are still struggling with their own
private pain, and pray that they will experience the
fullness of God's healing grace.

Just this morning, at the 40 Days for Life vigil I
was visiting in Lexington, Kentucky, two different
women told me that 40 Days for Life was the vehicle
that helped them to begin the healing process from
their past abortions. One lady even told me that
40 Days for Life saved her from committing suicide.

Wow. We never know how God can work through our
prayers and faithful participation in this effort.

Please take time to pray at the nearest 40 Days for
Life vigil.

For Life,

David Bereit