This morning, I am on my way to Washington, D.C. in order to add my voice to hundreds of thousands of others, praying for the end of abortion.
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Did you know that less than one tenth of one percent of abortions are performed in order to save the mother's life or as a result of rape/incest? We have an obligation to prevent the wrongful death of millions of innocent human lives. I realize that there are a handful of those who choose to end their children's lives in order to "prevent future suffering" through birth defects and conditions that may limit their lives to a few moments or hours or even weeks beyond birth. But who are we to say that those lives don't deserve the chance to live to their natural death? Isn't it possible that we could gain abundant graces through those experiences? I suppose if you don't believe in God, maybe you believe that NO, nothing good can come from an experience like that. But I disagree.
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Should I not even try to get pregnant because I have had 7 miscarriages (one of them at nearly 20 weeks)? Should I just give up completely my hopes of having a larger family because it is obvious that we continue to conceive life that is doomed to be short? Or can we hope that God is using all these for a greater good? That He is forming us, even as our hearts long for more children? Why is it that people feel sorry for us that we have suffered so many early losses, yet they think it is a woman's right to end a human's life rather than inconvenience herself or her plans for the future?
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Thanks to the decision in the case of Roe v. Wade, I am the oldest of 3, instead of the 3rd of 7. And I feel a responsibility to my deceased siblings to stand up and say that a "woman's right to choose" the death of her children is not only horrifying, but should not be a protected right.
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Our culture has been so sidelined by the decision that was made 36 years ago that it makes me afraid for my children's future. Will they be able to worship God freely as adults? Will they be persecuted for their christian faith? It certainly seems like we are heading down that road. And I can't help but think that the moment we crossed that line to think that we should protect a woman's right to "choose" death for her children is the moment our society began its descent into a place of absolute disrespect for human lives. Lives have been marginalized because of this, and many many women have spent years suffering from this legal decision and its lasting effects on their lives.
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Human life cannot exist without its start in the womb. Even people who were conceived in a lab, still had to grow in the womb. A woman's choice is when she makes the decision to have sex. Period. Any other choice ends the potential greatness that is inherent in every human life. .
God Bless you.
(This is my blog and I reserve the right to delete any offensive comments, though I will try to exercise restraint if you are respectful in your dissent.)
Yep, I did NaNoBloPoMo and then abruptly stopped posting altogether. There is not a lot I can say to explain myself. I had a lot going on through December with the holidays and some personal things that I cannot talk about here that prevented me from taking the time to post something.
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This morning, as I lie in bed cozied up with my 8 1/2 year old daughter, snow falling outside the window, I thought I'd try typing something up here on seeking grace. I still don't quite know what to say, but I will say this:
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God has been using these past couple months to work on my heart and work on my soul in ways I didn't think needed working on. A relationship severed (not by my own hand) and it broke my heart in a familiar, but unexpected way. This has forced me to spend a great deal of time of introspection. Also, I've had to admit that I don't know how to cope with the mechanics of this particular relationship. I've sought guidance and prayer from our pastor, a good friend of ours; I've spent a lot of time praying for an answer and discernment for God's will; and I've just plain thrown myself and my energies into building what is in front of me.
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God has been abundantly gracious. I have never lived in a place where I felt constantly ministered to by each of our friends. Sure, I have some excellent friends in the various places we've lived, and I think if we'd stayed in middle Georgia longer, we may have had this all the time (hi, Cara! Your family was the one that we felt completely comfortable around and we could just relax and have a good time every single time we were together - not to even mention how cared for we felt with your family.), but this past weekend is an example of how awesome it is here.
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Friday morning, we went to church for Children's Adoration, a time of prayer and praise in front of the Blessed Sacrament. Husband led the music (his public guitar debut!) and this is typically my favorite half hour of the entire month. I was not disappointed. The second-graders from our parish school joined in with the homeschooled students and our pastor did another excellent job in leading us through a time of worship. Lunch with another mom and her kids at their house (and we had beer! so unlike us to drink at lunch, but it was one beer each and it just had the effect of making it seem like the weekend earlier.) That evening found the girls and me back at church for our weekly hour of adoration. .
Saturday evening, we dropped off cakes for the next day's meal for the homeless before heading to a friend's for a dinner/information meeting. The evening was with two couples who happen to be good friends of ours. We talked some about "business", but mostly had a nice time with friends. Sunday found us at church in the morning for prayer group, then mass and afterward we went out to brunch with a group of 21 (4 families) to hear the musical stylings of a young man who we know (and he teaches piano to the boys in two of the families), and to celebrate one friend's birthday. Last night found us at another friend's house for dinner with them, another family and our pastor (and to watch football). We left at nearly midnight and on the 2 minute drive home, my husband and I exclaimed that we have never had such an abundance of friends who feed our soul every time we are with them.
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And it's true. Even though we miss our friends and family in other states, we have never been ministered to the way we have been here by such a large community. And I know when I think of the relationship that still needs some resolution, that God placed us here at this particular time in order to lift me up in the way I need in order to successfully sort through it all. And for that I'm grateful.
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Until next time (hopefully sooner than later), God Bless you.
