40 Days for Life, February 17 -- March 29, 2010, Come and Pray to Stop Abortion in the World

Mediation, February 22, 2010

Day 6 - February 22

Intention:

That those tempted to abort may understand that their child is already present, and already a real person.

Scripture:

And it happened, when Elizabeth heard the greeting of Mary that the babe leaped in her womb; and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit. Then she spoke out with a loud voice and said, "Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb! But why is this granted to me, that the mother of my Lord should come to me? For indeed, as soon as the voice of your greeting sounded in my ears, the babe leaped in my womb for joy.

-- Luke 1:41-44

Reflection:

Jesus not only loves unborn children -- He was one himself!

Think about this for a moment.

We often hear people speak of a pregnant mother by saying, "She's expecting a child." Now if one is expecting a package, the package is not yet there. As reflected in our verse for today, however, this is not the case with the mother. Her gift is already there. The pregnant woman, a mother already, does not have a child "on the way," but has a child, already present and in full possession of his or her human rights, starting with the right to life.

Prayer:

Jesus, open my eyes to your presence in the life of every child. Open my heart to joy in the birth of every child, a birth that reflects the joy of your own birth in Bethlehem. As you shared life in the womb of Mary, so now send your protection upon every child still in the womb, and grant to their mothers the strength and joy that comes from welcoming the gift of life. We pray through Christ our Lord. Amen.

Fr. Frank Pavone
National Director, Priests for Life

Testimony from Florida!

Early Sunday morning, local coordinator Ernie Cyr
sent out an urgent message to 40 Days for Life
volunteers in Pensacola, Florida. He had just found
out that abortions were taking place at the city’s
only abortion facility. Yes, on the Lord’s day.

Ernie’s request for prayer volunteers at the 40 Days
for Life vigil was quickly answered.

It would soon become apparent that their prayers were
being answered as well.

A woman drove up and told the vigil participants,
“I called my sister and convinced her not to have
an abortion!”

It wasn’t easy — her sister was already inside the
building. The woman got on the phone and tried to
speak to her sister, but the abortion facility staff
refused to let her take the call.

Finally, the woman told the center’s staff it was an
emergency and she MUST speak to her sister URGENTLY.
The staff reluctantly permitted them to talk. The woman
explained to her sister that there were far better
options than ending the life of her unborn child.

She listened ... and called off the abortion.

The woman then went into the building, came out with
her sister and returned to the pro-life volunteers.

“When the young mother came out she looked dazed and
confused,” said Ernie, “like the weight of the world
was upon her shoulders.”

She was still very much in shock after almost aborting
her child. “It was so terrible in there,” she said.
“The noise in that place was awful.”

A counselor from a pro-life pregnancy center was able
to tell her about the free resources and free medical
services that would be available throughout her
pregnancy, as well as community services that can
assist her until her child is ready to start school.

Ernie asked if she was able to get her money back.
“She said she paid $525 for the abortion but they
would only give her back $300 or so, so I told her
that the pro-life community in Pensacola is absolutely
behind her.” He’s already started a collection.

“I told her all will be well because she just made a
life-giving decision,” he said. “God has put the
pro-life community in Pensacola behind this woman.
And we will not fail her!”

Fantastic report! But guess what? There’s more!

“There were six — yes, six — other mothers that
chose life for their babies,” Ernie said. “Praise
God! Women were absolutely fleeing the abortion
facility today!”

Ernie called it a “slam dunk miracle.”

“So come on out and pray in front of the abortion
facility every chance you get,” he said. “Jesus is
really, really using us to save lives!”

Meditation -- February 23

Day 7 - February 23

Intention:

Pray that the abortionists and all workers in abortion facilities would be troubled in their souls regarding their work and would seek truth.

Scripture:

Let all bitterness, and wrath, and anger, and clamor, and evil speaking, be put away from you, with all malice. And be kind one to another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God for Christ's sake has forgiven you.

-- Ephesians 4:31-32

Reflection:

We see the evil and oppression in the world, the arrogance of those who mock God, the millions of innocent lives destroyed because of the greed of a few. Our flesh tells us that we should take justice in our own hands, but instead of vengeance, the Lord calls us to love our enemy, to forgive others as we have been forgiven.

God loves the abortionist and the Planned Parenthood advocate just as much as He loves you. It breaks His heart to see them in bondage to sin and He is giving you this opportunity to introduce them to the Savior who sets the captive free.

Though you may not experience direct interaction with these souls, your presence will not go unnoticed. Your non-verbal communications speak volumes about the God you serve.

Forgiveness is an act of obedience to God (Colossians 3:13). Forgiveness is not condoning or overlooking the wrong behavior of others, but rather it is freeing ourselves so that God can work mightily through us to touch their hearts for Him. Let's join our hearts with His in recognizing that those in the abortion industry are not the enemy, but rather they are blinded by the enemy. God desires that we bring them the message of truth and hope found in Christ, but the messengers He will use are those willing to forgive.

Prayer:

Dearest God, You tell us in Proverbs that the foolish and the wicked lack wisdom and understanding. I pray you will trouble the souls of those in the abortion industry so that they hunger for truth and cry out for freedom. I pray that my life would reflect my redemption so others may see it and trust in You. In obedience to You, and by your grace, I choose to forgive others as you have forgiven me. In the name of Christ my Redeemer I pray, amen.

Carmen Pate
Co-host, "Point of View" talk show

This is the Mediation for February 24 --somehow I got a day behind.

Day 8 - February 24

Intention:

We pray for a renewal of our zeal to offer generous help to the unborn and their families.

Scripture:

If I have despised the cause of my male or female servant When they complained against me, What then shall I do when God rises up? When He punishes, how shall I answer Him? Did not He who made me in the womb make them? Did not the same One fashion us in the womb?

-- Job 31:13-15

Reflection:

The ground is level as we stand before God.

Job lived with an awe provoking sense of God's expectation of him, particularly regarding his obligation to care for the weak and needy. He knew that in God's economy everyone stands on level ground when it comes to our status as God's creatures. Because of that central truth, we must take care of each other.

Job also knew that he didn't deserve any of the good things God gave to him. Instead, those blessings came to Job from God's benevolent heart. As an extension of that knowledge, Job instinctively linked his obligation to be generous to others to God's kindness toward him.

As in Jesus' parable of the unmerciful servant (Matthew 18:23-35), Job knew that it is an egregious sin to deny to others what we enjoy ourselves. He actually calls down on his own head severe condemnation and even punishment should he fail to share with others out of his own abundance (see verses 16-23).

Proverbs 3:27 reads, "Withhold not good from them to whom it is due, when it is in the power of your hand to do so." Some things are so obvious that we don't even need to pray except to ask of God forgiveness and the power to do what so obviously needs doing.

Prayer:

God, forgive us when we try to explain away the obligation we have to help others who need help. Enable us to not devalue them because they are in the circumstance that they are in, but to see them for what they are, those, who like us, were formed by your hand in their mother's womb. Amen.

Rev. Rob Schenck
President, Faith and Action, and National Clergy Council

Mediation -- February 35

Day 9 - February 25

Intention:

Pray that the post-abortive woman would be repentant, accept forgiveness, be healed and restored, and bring glory to God with her new life.

Scripture:

I acknowledged my sin to You, and my iniquity I have not hidden. I said, "I will confess my transgressions to the Lord," and You forgave the iniquity of my sin.

-- Psalm 32:5

Reflection:

Because abortion is legal in America, many have justified their choice. "If it's legal, it can't be wrong, right?" We now have an entire generation of men and women who have never known abortion to be illegal; a generation of people who have never been broken over their sin of abortion.

As a result, the consequences of unconfessed sin weigh on their souls, yet they have never connected the dots as to why their hearts are heavy. No wonder we have millions of women who are struggling with depression, addictions, eating disorders and more.

Post abortion syndrome is very real but recovery begins when the individual agrees with God as David confessed in Psalm 51:3-4, 14, "Against You, You only, have I sinned, and done this evil in Your sight - that You may be found just when You speak, and blameless when you Judge. Deliver me from the guilt of bloodshed, O God, the God of my salvation."

Brokenness is the key to accessing God's glorious mercy and healing. Christ came to heal the broken hearted and He is waiting with open arms to take the post-abortive woman on a glorious journey of healing and restoration if she will only run to Him.

God will not waste any sin we lay at His feet. Imagine millions of healed and restored post-abortive women like myself singing aloud of His righteousness and giving testimony of His love and forgiveness. What a day of rejoicing that will be!

Prayer:

Heavenly Father, you are our Healer. You have forgiven all my iniquities and removed my transgressions from me as far as the east is from the west. Guilt no longer has dominion in my life. Lord, we pray that post-abortive women across this nation will run to You to receive the gift of redemption and healing that comes from You only. In the name of our Savior we pray, amen.

Carmen Pate
Co-host, "Point of View" talk show

Email for February 25 from David Beirut:

Do you know how important your presence in front of
an abortion center can be? Here are a few reports
from local 40 Days for Life campaigns that just begin
to tell the story.

One of the prayer volunteers in Houston, Texas says a
mom and her young son arrived to pray at their vigil
in front of Planned Parenthood. The woman had aborted
her first child at that very location.

She HAD to be there to pray, she said. "I can't help
but think that if some pro-lifers were here" when
she had the abortion, "maybe I wouldn't have gone
through it."

Those sentiments were echoed by BJ, who posted a
comment on the 40 Days for Life blog.

If only there had been someone praying outside Planned
Parenthood in her city, 19 years ago, "it would have
made all the difference in the world to me and my
boyfriend," she wrote. "I regret every day what
occurred in that cold winter morning."

Just BEING THERE can have a profound impact.

Joanne tells of a mom who brought her children to the
40 Days for Life vigil in Cranston, Rhode Island.
While they were praying, her son noticed a woman
sitting in a car in the parking lot. He looked in her
direction once, and then again.

The woman looked at him, and their eyes locked.

"The woman began sobbing," Joanne said. "Something
in her heart moved."

We pray that God's healing love will touch women
contemplating abortion -- and all whose lives have
been touched by past abortions. The suffering can
go on for years.

Dorothy, who left a note on the 40 Days for Life blog,
said she still thinks of the "horrific decision" she
made 26 years ago, when there was no one there to tell
her she could choose life for her child.

She had never healed from the pain of that abortion --
until recently.

"When I stood and prayed in front of Planned
Parenthood, I was flooded with emotion," she wrote.
"Holding the sign that 'women regret abortion'
empowered me, along with the wonderful people that
surrounded me in prayer."

Sadly, not all of the women who see her sign take heed.

"A young woman leaving Planned Parenthood looked away
in profound sadness after reading my sign," Dorothy
said, "and I thought, 'Dear God. Her life will never
be the same.' The impact on women is so understated."

Still, she said, thanks to you and all 40 Days for Life
participants, "I am now on the road to healing."

Please pray for all those who seek healing -- and
especially for those who would deny that abortion
leaves a lasting impact.

Meditation -- February 25, 2010

Day 10 - February 26

Intention:

May those who hold life as trivial realize that we live because God wills it so.

Scripture:

Who among all these does not know that the hand of the Lord has done this, in His hand is the life of every creature and the breath of all mankind.

-- Job 12:9-10

Reflection:

Job was a man acquainted with grief, trials and tribulation. He had everything taken from him, including his family. He endured sickness, ridicule and judgment from his friends. Everyone gave him advice about his situation, questioning his spirituality and his God. Job's circumstances were bad but he never loses faith. Why? Because "the hand of the Lord has made all life." Created by God, he knows his life has meaning and purpose, regardless of the circumstances.

In our present culture, we've lost that basic truth; every life is made and allowed to live by God's sovereign authority. As people who pride ourselves on our independence, we have a hard time acknowledging our dependence on God. From our creation, when we were knit together in our mother's womb to our last breath, God's word is clear that "in His hand is the life of every creature and the breath of all mankind."

It's time for us as individuals, and as a society, to recognize that we exist by God's grace and turn back to Him, honoring His word and His teachings. Why? Because our world is full of Jobs, people who are dealing with trials and tribulations and hurting desperately. Job's response should be ours as well. Regardless of what we face (even an unplanned pregnancy) God in His wisdom and mercy will redeem it. How do I know? Job's friends who doubted God's sovereignty cry out to God asking for help, God instructs Job to pray for his friends and after he does, God restores all that Job had lost. In other words, because Job never lost faith and knew and trusted His Creator, the Lord blessed Job.

Prayer:

Thank you Father God for being the Creator of my life and every life. Please give me, and the society in which I live, an appreciation for your gift of life. Please help us set aside our pride and acknowledge that we need you. Show me how I can honor you today in response to all the blessings you bestow so freely. In the name of Jesus, amen.

Georgette Forney
President, Anglicans for Life

Meditation -- February 27, 2010

Day 11 - February 27

Intention:

Pray that people of faith will have their strength renewed even in the face of the violence of abortion.

Scripture:

The favors of the Lord are not exhausted, his mercies are not spent. They are renewed each morning, so great is his faithfulness. I say to myself, "The Lord is my portion; therefore I will wait for him." The Lord is good to those whose hope is in him, to the one who seeks him; it is good to wait in silence for the saving help of the Lord.

--Lamentations 3:22-26

Reflection:

The Book of Lamentations, a short book of only five chapters, contains some of the most poignant expressions of human grief. These verses are used in many Churches on Good Friday, since they can be seen to express a prophecy of the suffering of the Lord and the lamentation of his followers on that dark day.

But in the midst of his grief, Jeremiah writes the verses quoted above. "The favors of the Lord are not exhausted." It is a call to hope that no matter how much violence there is, life will prevail in the end.

Why does he say, however, that God's mercies are renewed each morning?

Because early in the morning, on the first day of the week, the women came to the tomb -- and they found that the events of that morning changed everything.

Christ's victory over death came in the morning, and therefore each day we can renew our confidence that life has the final victory.

Prayer:

Lord, look kindly on your people who weep and mourn amidst the vast devastation that abortion has brought upon our land. We cannot even count the children killed, and the mothers and fathers wounded.

We cannot measure the devastation and corruption abortion has brought upon the very fabric of our society. But we declare today that your favors have not been exhausted, your mercies have not been spent. They are renewed each morning.

Give us new strength today in the resurrection of Christ your Son, that we may bear effective witness to the victory of life! In His name we pray, amen.

Fr. Frank Pavone
National Director, Priests for Life and President, National Pro-life Religious Council

Meditation, February 28. 2010

Day 12 - February 28

Intention:

Pray to God who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, to end abortion in America.

Scripture:

Now to Him who is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that works in us, to Him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus to all generations, forever and ever. Amen.

-- Ephesians 3:20-21

Reflection:

God's power working in and through His people is unlimited and far beyond our comprehension when we submit to God's Word and Spirit. He receives glory when we are obedient to His calling and faithfully serve Him in His strength.

Consider God's hand of providence on this nation because of the faithfulness of a few who were totally committed to God and His truths. It is interesting to note the words of Mother Teresa of Calcutta: "Yours is the one great nation in all history which was founded on the precept of equal rights and respect for all humankind, for the poorest and weakest of us as well as the richest and strongest."

Mother Teresa, in addressing the Supreme Court of the United States said, "Human rights are not a privilege conferred by government. They are every human being's entitlement by virtue of his humanity. I have no new teaching for America. I seek only to recall you to faithfulness to what you once taught the world. Your nation was founded on the proposition very old as a moral precept, but startling and innovative as a political insight that human life is a gift of immeasurable worth, and that it deserves, always and everywhere, to be treated with the utmost dignity and respect."

It is time to restore that dignity and respect. Our God is able. Are we willing to remain faithful until His work through us is done?

Prayer:

God Almighty, Who is powerful and willing to supply, our hearts cry in unison for You to restore dignity and respect to human life, not only in America, but around the world. Lord, may our hearts remain faithful to your calling, and may You begin Your transforming work with me. Keep me ever mindful that with You Lord, nothing is impossible; without You, I can do nothing. To You be glory forever and ever, Amen.

Carmen Pate
Co-host, "Point of View" Talk Show

Today’s email:

Two volunteers stood in the rain and prayed at a
40 Days for Life vigil last week as a young man
drove up, got out of his car with the engine still
running, and walked over to talk to them

“I just wanted to thank you for being here,” he said.
“I know you know what kind of a place this is,” he
said, pointing towards the abortion facility. “Can I
tell you a story about it?”

The prayer volunteers nodded yes, and the young man
began to pour out his heart.

He said a couple of weeks ago, his wife was not at
home and he had no idea where she was — until he got
a phone call from the hospital. “My wife had been
admitted because she was having seizures,” he said.

At the hospital, he found out his wife was pregnant.
It would be a struggle with two young children already,
he said, but they’d work it out.

As he spent more time at the hospital, it began to
dawn on this young man that no one was telling him
the whole truth. He realized something was seriously
amiss when his wife told him she’d left her car at an
abortion facility.

He thinks she went there for a chemical abortion —
the abortion pill. She began to have seizures and was
taken to the hospital.

His wife insisted she was still pregnant, but he
simply didn’t know for sure.

“I haven’t stopped crying in over two weeks,” he said.
“What kind of place is this that would do this to a
married woman without telling her husband, the father
of the baby?”

“We asked if we could pray for him,” said one of the
prayer team members. “As we prayed, the young man began
to cry again. Just imagine how he felt — betrayed,
helpless. We assured him that he will get through this
trial and that God loves him.”

Vigil participants hugged him, and he thanked them for
being there on this rainy day. “Please keep being here,”
he said, and then returned to his car and drove away.

“While we did not save a baby from an abortion,” said
the volunteer, “we brought Christ to a hurting father.”

Please pray for this young man, who fears he may have
lost his child to abortion. Please pray as well for
his wife and for his family. Please pray that those
who are deceived by the abortion industry will be
awakened to the truth of God’s love — and the
awareness that all things are possible with God.

“And, if you are willing,” the vigil participant said,
“please consider joining us as we keep vigil for these
40 Days for Life.”

Day 13 - March 1

Intention:

We pray for the strength to love those who do not love us.

Scripture:

But the Lord said "You have had pity on the plant for which you have not labored, nor made it grow, which came up in the night and perished in the night. And should I not pity Nineveh, that great city, in which are more than one hundred and twenty thousand persons who cannot discern between their right hand and their left, and much livestock? Should I not be concerned about that great city?"

-- Jonah 4:10-11

Reflection:

God doesn't value people and things like we do. Jonah loved a shade tree more than an entire city of sinful people. We love our dogs more than a terrorist. We love our cars more than a beggar on the side of the road. And sometimes, we love our money more than a child growing in a desperate teenager's womb.

But God isn't like us. Genesis 1 tells us that humans were the capstone of God's creation. We were created on the sixth day after God had completed the land, the stars, the plants and the animals. Therefore, His love for us is greater than His love for a plant, an animal, or any other created thing. And the book of Jonah tells us that He loves even the most sinful people and seeks to bring them into His merciful arms. And it's a love that seeks to touch all of his created children: that desperate teenager, the baby growing in her womb, even tyrants and terrorists. So it's up to us to imitate God's merciful love by helping and praying for those who persecute us, and those who don't love us back.

Prayer:

Gracious God, loving our enemies seems like one of most difficult things you could ask of us. Please remind us that this is how you love and that if you ask it of us then you will give us the grace to do it. This we ask through Christ our Lord. Amen.

Dennis DiMauro
Lutherans for Life representative to the National Pro-life Religious Council

From today’s email:

Whenever talking about babies saved from abortion
through God’s mercy and the prayers of 40 Days for Life
participants, I usually add the words “that we know
of.” After all, we really don’t know how many lives
have been spared in ways that only God will ever know.
We just have to trust Him!

With that in mind, I can tell you that thus far in
this 40 Days for Life campaign ...

... 107 babies have been saved from abortion ...

... that we know of!

We don’t know, for instance, how many abortions were
prevented because the abortion facility was closed
one day last week in Overland Park, Kansas.

“The place was empty,” said Valerie. Apparently,
heating and plumbing problems kept the doors shut
all day. “Praise God for allowing women to have
another chance to think about what they are doing.”

Most of the time, we don’t know how many women change
their minds — and simply don’t show up for their
abortion appointment.

We do, however, know of at least one.

Judy in La Puente, California said a young man
walked up to 40 Days for Life vigil participants to
thank them for being there.

“Because he had seen us outside praying, he had the
courage to convince his girlfriend not to have an
abortion,” she said. “You just never know how many
others never get to the abortion site because of our
presence. Praise God!”

That may be happening in other cities as well. Mary
in Everett, Washington noted that last Monday, the
abortion facility “wasn’t as busy as I remember on
Mondays during the last campaign.”

It’s great news whenever business decreases at the
abortion center!

Meditation -- March 2, 2010

Day 14 - March 2

Intention:

Pray that we will have faith to realize that even now our Lord can bring an end to abortion.

Scripture:

On his arrival, Jesus found that Lazarus had already been in the tomb for four days. Bethany was less than two miles from Jerusalem, and many Jews had come to Martha and Mary to comfort them in the loss of their brother. When Martha heard that Jesus was coming, she went out to meet him, but Mary stayed at home. "Lord," Martha said to Jesus, "if you had been here, my brother would not have died. But I know that even now God will give you whatever you ask."

-- John 11:17-22

Reflection:

Martha was right. Jesus is Lord of life and death. She knew that, which is why she was able to make this statement, yet at the same time she had to wrestle with the fact that Lazarus died anyway. Jesus indeed is Lord over life and death, but here the power of death was still displayed right in front of her.

Yet in this clash between the conviction of faith and the evidence of human experience, Martha allowed hope to shine through. "Even now, God will give you whatever you ask." Even now. Those words show the power of hope, born of faith. Even now, when death has already done its work, life can be victorious.

Even now, when the last word seems to have been spoken, we can hope that a word will be spoken again to restore life. Even now, when Lazarus has already been laid in the tomb and it seems impossible to do anything about it, things can change. And things did change. The Lord raised Lazarus from the dead.

We live in a society where many believe the abortion issue has been settled, and its practice so deeply ingrained in our policies and attitudes that it is unrealistic to think we can stop it. Yet we are the people who say to Jesus, "Even now..."

Prayer:

Lord Jesus, even now, you are master of life and death. I come before you as Martha did after Lazarus has died. I come before you after countless brothers and sisters of mine have died from abortion. And I pray to you: even now, you can stop the forces of death. Even now, you can bring us into a culture of life. Come, Lord Jesus. Speak your word yet again, and free our nation from the shackles of death. Amen.

Fr. Frank Pavone
National Director, Priests for Life and President, National Pro-life Religious Council

From today's email:

Three prayer volunteers at the 40 Days for Life vigil
in Roanoke, Virginia talked to a young mom who was
obviously well along in her pregnancy. She was
unmarried and poor and had four small children.

"We prayed with her and asked her to give her baby
life," said one of the vigil participants. "Let us
have the baby, we said, and we would find a home."

The young mother cried and allowed the three to hug
her. And then she walked into the abortion center.

"I can't get her off my mind," the volunteer said.
"She held on so tightly to me. I don't know what she
will ultimately decide. Please, please keep up your
prayers and sacrifices."

----snip

Please remember that this is spiritual warfare. And
sometimes when you watch carefully, you start to
observe subtle changes.

"When there are large groups of people in prayer being
led by members of the clergy, it really seems to
affect the Planned Parenthood escorts and workers,"
said one of the 40 Days for Life leadership team
members in Houston, Texas.

She said the Planned Parenthood staff can become very
agitated and appear nervous. A few even back off from
escorting their clients and allow sidewalk counselors
to hand out literature without interference.

"Oh, if we could see the spiritual warfare that must
be going on!" she said.

Nikki in Pittsburgh sees a similar impact. "What a
difference prayer makes," she said.

She said that during the 40 Days for Life prayer vigil,
what is normally a very busy, noisy sidewalk was
covered in the peaceful presence of God.

"It even seemed that the noise of the buses were
muffled, drowned out by the prayers of the people. It
was so powerful," she said.

For some reason, more young women were willing to take
her informational brochures. More people were willing
to talk to her. More girls were willing to take
brochures into the clinic than usual. More people
were receptive to talking to her, including one
teenage couple.

This couple, however, continued on their way into the
clinic. "But I believe came back out after only a few
minutes. I didn't get to talk to them," Nikki said,
"but I hope and pray that they changed their minds."

"Please know that we are planting seeds," said Linda,
one of the local 40 Days for Life coordinators in
Canton, Ohio. "We are visible signs of Christ; and
with God guiding us we are making a difference."

Meditation -- March 3, 2010

Day 15 - March 3

Intention:

Pray that we will not become defeated by the enemy's attacks but rather call on the name of the Lord who is on our side and our help in time of trouble.

Scripture:

What if the Lord had not been on our side when people attacked us? They would have swallowed us alive in their burning anger. Praise the Lord, who did not let their teeth tear us apart! Our help is from the Lord, who made heaven and earth.

-- Psalm 124:2,3,6,8

Reflection:

The enemy attacks in many ways, but one of his favorites is to slander us with hopes of tarnishing our reputation and character, and ultimately to defeat our good work for the Lord. It is interesting to note however that it is usually not the slander that causes harm to our testimony, but our response to the slander. Proverbs 24:10 says, "If you faint in the day of adversity your strength is small."

So if we are applying God's truths to our lives moment by moment, we are not swayed by the lies of the enemy and we will be strong.

Standing on the front lines, armed with God's truth, places you in the battlefield for the mind. As you are prepared to present words of love, for the sake of the unborn and for the distraught and confused women and men who are entering the abortion facilities, know that the enemy has prepared his forces to attack your mind.

Unkind words from a protester, or vicious lies in the local paper about who you are and what your mission is, can indeed be hurtful. But rather than give in to defeat, that is the time to shine for the Lord, standing firm, as you call on Him to defeat the enemy.

Remember the words of Romans 8:31, "If God is for us, who can be against us?" Let's stand strong for those who need us most.

Prayer:

Dear Lord, help us to ignore the verbal attacks of the enemy and instead turn to You, our refuge and strength. Help us to find shelter in the blessed promises and provisions of Your Word. Thank you that no enemy can defeat us, and we praise You knowing that nothing can separate us from Your love. In the name of Jesus, we come to You, amen.

Carmen Pate
Co-host, "Point of View" Talk Show

Day 16 - March 4

Intention:

May the mystery of the Incarnation increase our zeal for defending life.

Scripture:

Then the angel said to her, "Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bring forth a Son, and shall call His name Jesus. He will be great, and will be called the Son of the Highest; and the Lord God will give Him the throne of His father David. And He will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of His kingdom there will be no end."

-- Luke 1:30-33

Reflection:

"God has assumed Humanity, joining it with Divinity, and kindled in men's hearts new love of me." These words were written by a Roman poet in the Fourth Century. He spent his life finding ways to express the greatest mystery of the world: the incarnation, in which God became man.

Often the womb has been referred to as the "first home of the whole human race." It is the place where life begins, where our stories start. In the womb the great men and women of history began their magnificent march through life. In the womb Divinity met humanity, and God the Son was born into the world. As one of the Fathers of the early church, St. Leo the Great, declared, "Within her spotless womb Wisdom built itself a house and the Word became flesh."

Recently, I was at the hospital for the birth of my fourth grandchild. Looking through the nursery window at the rows of newly born babies, I began to think of the great stories that would be written about these tiny lives. During his visitation with the Virgin Mary, the angel prophesied to Mary about the life of her child. Here in this hospital, I pondered, what would he say about each of these? Would they meet the one who also came from His mother's womb to redeem the world and kindle our hearts afresh for God? I thanked God for each baby alive and prayed for each story yet to be written.

Prayer:

Heavenly Father, you have made the womb of each woman a very special place. Help us to hold fast to the sanctity of this first home of humanity, remembering the wonderful mystery, that God inhabited the womb of a young woman and came forth as the savior and deliverer of the world. We ask this in the Name of the one who came forth, Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

Randolph Sly
National Pro-life Religious Council

Good media and false media reports about 40 Days for Life. And another baby saved!

I had to smile when I read a California blogger’s post
that described 40 Days for Life as a “babies-saving,
moms-helping, ‘round-the-clock prayer-and-fasting-
outside-abortion-businesses effort that’s been saving
thousands of babies’ lives.”

I really loved that breath of fresh air! Far too
often lately, I’ve see strings of other adjectives
connected to 40 Days for Life that are — to put it
mildly — inaccurate.

Just this week, I saw 40 Days for Life described as
“a nasty campaign of anti-women harassers” who “get
their jollies at this time of the year by swarming
women’s reproductive health centers and abortion
clinics for 40 days.”

Really?

Unfortunately, others can often be taken in by these
inaccurate representations. One 40 Days for Life vigil
participant saw first hand how such misstatements can
have an impact.

A young woman drove up to the abortion center and sat
in her car. She seemed to be waiting for someone.
Finally, the person she was waiting for arrived —
a policeman. The woman wanted to be escorted into the
building because people were outside praying.

A 40 Days for Life vigil participant said the officer
was aware that “there had never been any complaints
about us and how we conduct ourselves.” But he also
didn’t seem to understand why people were praying.

The volunteer saw an opportunity to do a bit of
educating, and explained that two dozen lawsuits were
pending against the abortion center and there had been
reports of three abortion-related deaths. “He didn’t
know any of that.”

The officer said, “The woman was scared to get out of
the car with you here.” The volunteer responded, “She
should have been scared to go inside.”

Other people have fallen for the common “pro-choice”
mantra that a woman’s abortion decision should be
“honored and respected.”

A 40 Days for Life participant in Lake County, Indiana
was shocked to see a pro-life bumper sticker on a car
in the parking lot at Planned Parenthood. The driver
explained that she didn’t like abortion, but it was
her friend’s choice to have one.

She was told that such an argument wouldn’t wash if
her friend were to rob a bank; the driver of the
getaway car is considered an accomplice.

With that, the woman went inside the building to tell
her friend she was about to make a terrible mistake.

It wasn’t easy. Voices were raised. It was quite
emotional. At one point, the driver came out crying,
saying she had failed.

But the vigil participants encouraged her to try
again. They kept praying and “decided to let the
Holy Spirit work.”

The driver went back into the abortion center.

Later, her friend came out in tears, saying she had
changed her mind: “I couldn’t do it.”

Thank you for your faithfulness and your commitment.
And thank you, Holy Spirit!

March 5, 2010

Day 17 - March 5

Intention:

Pray that we choose to trust God to bring an end to abortion soon, no matter how impossible that may seem to others.

Scripture:

The hand of the Lord was upon me, and He brought me out by the Spirit of the Lord and set me in the middle of a valley; it was full of bones. He led me back and forth among them, and I saw a great many bones on the floor of the valley, bones that were very dry. He asked me, "Son of man, can these bones live?" I said, "O Sovereign Lord, you alone know."

-- Ezekiel 37:1-3

Reflection:

You and I are standing in a world today over a field of dry bones: those who have been killed by abortion, those who have been killed by so many other things attacking the dignity of human life. And God has placed us here; we find ourselves here in the midst of this incredible tragedy. Like Ezekiel, you and I are in a dilemma because God says to us: "Speak and proclaim the Word of Life. Keep doing it. Let nothing deter you."

People can say, "This is humanly foolish, humanly impossible. How can we transform the world from the path of death that it's on?" Yet we choose to do the "foolish" thing rather than the dangerous thing.

If you ever doubt that we can bring an end to this culture of death, this destruction of the family, this destruction of life by abortion, if you ever think for a moment that it's impossible, then ask yourself this: Can a man who has been scourged, crowned with thorns, nailed hands and feet to a cross, pierced with a lance, has died and been buried; can such a man ever live again?

Prayer:

Lord, I thank you for giving me the holy dilemma of having to choose between the foolish thing or the dangerous thing. Yet for me the solution is clear. Lord, I will obey you, even if it means aiming for a goal which, in the eyes of others, seems foolish. I will obey you, and will hope for the end of abortion soon, no matter how impossible that may seem to others. I dare not mistrust you; I dare not doubt your power; I dare not fail to follow your call. In you, who raise the dead, all hope comes alive. Amen.

Fr. Frank Pavone
National Director, Priests for Life and President, National Pro-life Religious Council

Wow! Ultrasound successes!

Last week, we reported on a young mother in Louisville,
Kentucky who chose life for her baby after redeeming a
coupon for a free ultrasound. That story struck a chord
with the 40 Days for Life team in Southfield, Michigan.

The Southfield team tried the same idea ...

... and it worked!

Howard, one of the prayer volunteers, showed his “free
ultrasound” coupon to women who were approaching the
abortion facility. One woman took the coupon — she
seemed quite excited to get it — but then walked into
the building.

She came out ten minutes later — and told the
volunteers that while she was inside the abortion
center, she had called the pro-life pregnancy resource
center to ask about the free ultrasound.

They left the abortion facility immediately. “We did
the ultrasound and had everyone crying tears of joy,”
said Mike, the 40 Days for Life coordinator in
Southfield. “The baby’ mother was so overjoyed to
see her baby. Praise God!”

A verbal offer of a free ultrasound is certainly good;
it appears, though, that the “free coupon” idea makes
it seem more real. And besides, everybody likes to get
a good deal with a coupon!

Ultrasound also helped save a life in Bakersfield,
California. Of course, the prayer vigil in front of
the abortion center had a lot to do with it as well.

40 Days for Life volunteers spoke to a 17-year-old and
her mother as they arrived for the teen’s abortion
appointment. The girl said she was the youngest of
five children and she did not want to disappoint her
father.

Tim in Bakersfield said both the girl and her mother
seemed to have very hard hearts. Although they
listened for several minutes, “they seemed to have
no change in their attitude.” But when they were about
to walk into the building, someone approached the girl
and said, “Don’t be afraid — trust in God.”

When she heard this, tears began rolling down her
cheeks. But her mother remained firm.

So the prayer team quickly made arrangements for an
ultrasound. As the girl’s mother watched the perfectly
formed body of her grandchild on the ultrasound screen,
“she began to cry,” Tim said. “The baby’s tiny feet
and hands were clearly visible on the screen, and the
baby even waved at his mother and grandmother!”

Did the baby wave? See for yourself!

Click here to see a video of the actual ultrasound:

http://40daysforlife.com/blog/?p=699

This is most definitely the image of a very young
human being. And that fact was immediately evident to
both mother and grandmother.

Please pray that more pro-life centers will have
greater access to this amazing, life-saving technology!

Day 18 - March 6

Intention:

May we absorb the truth that God is paying attention to us, and to each human life, personally and individually.

Scripture:

When I consider Your heavens, the work of Your fingers, the moon and the stars, which You have ordained, what is man that You are mindful of him, and the son of man that You visit him? For You have made him a little lower than the angels, and You have crowned him with glory and honor.

-- Psalm 8:3-9

Reflection:

How often we ignore the phrase, "stop and smell the roses" and instead submit to the all too "urgent" task at hand. Is this tendency what keeps us, at least in part, from acknowledging that God's care for His sacred creation is paramount in His own mind?

The Psalmist speaks of God's handiwork: the heavens, the work of his "fingers," and then points to God's masterpiece - human life. He declares to us that God is mindful of us. God keeps His masterpiece in His thoughts.

God, the creator of the awe-inspiring heavens, is not distracted by the tasks before Him. He is not pulled away, as we might be, by thoughts of something "more important." God is paying attention to and attending to His crowning glory, His masterpiece of creation, which cannot be duplicated or replaced, which surpasses the beauty of all other created things - the human being.

There is no way to adequately describe how God feels about us as human beings. There are no words to fully portray His love, compassion or desire to be in communion with us. Perhaps, the closest we can come, is to contemplate the thoughts of a mother as she gazes for the first time at her newborn child. God cares for Life. We, as His followers, should take time to consider the life He has created and called upon us to love and protect.

Prayer:

Lord, you are the creator of all things. Guide my thoughts to consider your creation in all of its majesty, beauty and holiness. Guide my heart especially to your creation of precious human life. Help me to comprehend how essential life is in your own heart. Teach me to appreciate, love and protect all human life through your son, Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

Fr. Terry Gensemer
National Director, Charismatic Episcopal Church for Life

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