First Fruits Friday - God Ordained You to be a Mom
According to a 2015 Care Net survey,
“ The church has connections with many women who choose abortion, Care Net research found. In the survey of 1,038 women who have had abortions, 70 percent claim a Christian religious preference, and 43 percent report attending church monthly or more at the time of an abortion.”
Many of Seneca’s clients are self proclaimed Christians who consider abortion in part because of fears of judgement from their church.
One client shared her experiences:
“‘God ordained you to be a Mom’
Those words echoed through my mind when I left Seneca on the day that I was considering abortion. I had just found out that I was 6 weeks pregnant. I only had one more year left at college - a Christian focused institution. How could I go back to school as an unmarried, pregnant woman? What would people say? I felt so ashamed and foolish. How would I continue my studies? How could I be a mom at such a young age?
Now our baby girl will arrive very soon. Her daddy is thrilled and never wanted to have an abortion. He did not believe in it. He said that we both needed to step up. He wants to give his precious girl the type of life that he never had. He is already in love with her.
I had wanted an abortion. I was so overwhelmed, and I did not think that I could do it. What changed for me was coming to Seneca and going to church. Some condemned me at church, but most did not. I was still one of God's beloved children.
I feel that I am growing spiritually because being pregnant is a spiritual thing itself. Being pregnant with my little girl is allowing me to appreciate all of life.”
We know that God can use ANYTHING to bring about His glory. He is calling on our churches to help facilitate healing from abortion and create a culture where women are not afraid to show up to worship in the midst of their unplanned pregnancies.
In the last few years, we have seen so many more churches in our community join us in praying to end abortion during 40 Days for Life. Many others are creating healing programs for women and men harmed by abortion who attend their church. We are so thankful for all of the churches in our community who stand for life.
Still, we see many women come for abortions with Christian bumper stickers, and some even displaying the name of their church. May the Lord continue to embolden His church to defend life and support parents facing unplanned pregnancies.
Help us to create a culture of hope and life in our community where churches are the first to welcome a pregnant mother! Help us also to change the narrative among Christian mothers seeking abortions. With God’s grace, we can change thoughts of shame and guilt to empowerment and grace in His mercy.
We do this every week at Seneca by empowering women like our client you met today and the mothers you will meet next week in our Mothers Matter fundraiser with immediate and long-term support through Sidewalk Advocacy and Case Management. All mothers matter. We all need the grace and mercy of God the father to live each day for HIM! Be a blessing for mothers by texting mm21 to 41-444 to make a life saving donation today! While you are at it, for just $100, your donation can be used to honor a special mom in your life and our Mothers Matter team will send her a gift from you!
https://www.care-net.org/churches-blog/new-survey-women-go-silently-from-church-to-abortion-clinic