Thursday, October 1, 2015

From 40 Days For Life: DAY 9: Doctors praying outside Planned Parenthood

40 Days for Life
Dear Deacon John,
 
Planned Parenthood is in the news again this week ... as the federal investigation into harvesting and trafficking aborted baby body parts heats up.

A recent poll showed that 50% of Americans do not know that Planned Parenthood does abortions. That’s a frustrating statistic, since they are the largest abortion business in the United States. They do more than 325,000 every year!

However, you can do something about that!

Here’s how three 40 Days for Life teams that hold their peaceful vigils outside Planned Parenthood facilities are drawing their communities into the campaign. 
 
Bloomington, Indiana 
 
 
“We are off to a great start!” said Monica in Bloomington. “We have no reports of babies saved … because we’re not even sure if they did abortions last week!” The business was closed several days.
 
The Bloomington team did stage a major event outside Planned Parenthood – a Doctors for Life rally. About 200 people attended, Monica said, including “28 local physicians who put their names out there as being pro-life and committed to the protection of the unborn child. What an inspiration these doctors were to all of us!” 
 
Some of the doctors were photographed near a mobile help center that offers free pregnancy tests and ultrasounds.
 
“As fruit from our 40 Days for Life campaigns, we announced that we are getting our own unit, paid for by a generous donor,” Monica said. “We can’t wait to have it there regularly to help the women going in!”
 
Poughkeepsie, New York
 
 
The 40 Days for Life team brings awareness to the vigils through Life Chain events in their community. Maureen in Poughkeepsie says this form of community outreach began five years ago.
 
“Over the years there has been a steady increase in pro-life support within the community,” she said, “and participants on the Life Chain this past Sunday, once again, noted that there was an increase in the number of positive horn beeps and responses from passing vehicles.”
 
Ann Arbor, Michigan
 
 
In Ann Arbor, Students for Life groups from the University of Michigan and Eastern Michigan University helped lead a Jericho March around the block in which the Planned Parenthood abortion center is located – it was a one-mile procession that included song and prayer.
 
Sandie, the Ann Arbor leader, said that “among the participants there were many new faces and dedicated veterans of 40 Days for Life.”
 
When participants returned to the front of Planned Parenthood, the group heard from Students for Life leaders, including Maddie Battle, who started a Students for Life chapter at Stockbridge High School when she was 15. Also speaking was Pastor Ted Jungkuntz of St. Luke Lutheran Church.
 
Sandie shared with them the comments of investigative journalist David Daleiden, the man behind the Planned Parenthood baby parts videos, who said, “40 Days for Life is the spiritual engine that has driven a lot of the success of the pro-life movement over the past several years.”
 

 
Here's today's devotional from Day Gardner, president of the National Black Pro-life Union.
 
Day 9 intention

May we grow in joy, knowing we serve a living God.
 
Scripture

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.

— John 1:14
 
Reflection

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.
 
Prayer

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.
 
Printable devotional

To download today's devotional as a formatted, printable PDF to share with friends:
 
 
For life,
 
 Shawn Carney
SHAWN CARNEY
Campaign Director
40 Days for Life