Friday feature: Billboard update

We featured Garden of Hope's billboard campaign back in October. Today, an email from them requested prayer for a new post-abortion Bible study just starting. This sentence was really exciting to read: "Three of the participants came because of our fall billboard campaign."

A leader of the group mentioned the women "seem to be at different places spiritually, but they still knowingly came to a Bible-based study." They'll be working through Pat Layton's Surrendering the Secret.

How you can pray:

• That all the participants will return next week and for the duration, even though their wounds are deep. "It is possible that they've avoided the truth for some time because it is so painful to remember.

• For group leaders Karen and Michelle

• For there to be no hindrances to healing and forgiveness

• For all to discover freedom and joy in Jesus Christ

Monday musing: Love the enemy

I still remember the moment I excitedly realized I could obey a difficult passage of Scripture. The sun was in my eyes as I headed east after leaving the bagel place where I'd studied Luke 6:27-36. It may have been this same time of year, with a 40 Days for Life campaign going on. Whatever it was that made me put two thoughts together -- loving my enemies and praying at the abortion clinic -- I felt joyful as I anticipated loving the local abortionist by praying for him!

Before this, the concept of having an enemy had been rather vague. None of mine seemed to have a name or a face. They existed in the abstract -- Fear, Anxiety, Forces of Darkness in High Places ... entities like that. Whenever I came across references to foes in the Psalms, I spiritualized them. In general, I didn't really want to identify someone as my enemy because that would mean -- in the world's scheme of things -- having to battle or confront him or her in some way.

Thankfully, what I am actually called by Christ to do is love, do good to, bless, and pray for those who "despitefully use" me. Or despitefully use the unborn.

As previously noted, righteous indignation is too thin a motivation for being pro-life anyway. It simply doesn't get at the core problem or bring about lasting change. The reason is, it doesn't reflect the totality of Christ's character the way loving ones enemies does.

Over at Churches for Life, Rev. Douglas W. Merkey writes that there are many possible motives for being pro-life. "Some ... are driven by an imbalanced affection for God’s law and an overblown sense of their own piety. Some ... are driven by unresolved guilt, perhaps fueled by their own abortion experience. Some ... are driven by a hope for human approval, or insecurity. Still others ... are driven by a craving for political, social, or moral enlightenment." He urges champions of life to be "gospel-driven." (See a longer treatment of this idea here.)

When I read the article my mind went to 1 Corinthians 5:9-13a where Paul corrects a misperception: 

I wrote you in my letter not to associate with immoral people; I did not at all mean with the immoral people of this world, or with the covetous and swindlers, or with idolaters, for then you would have to go out of the world. But actually, I wrote to you not to associate with any so-called brother if he is an immoral person, or covetous, or an idolater, or a reviler, or a drunkard, or a swindler—not even to eat with such a one. For what have I to do with judging outsiders? Do you not judge those who are within the church? But those who are outside, God judges.

We're to hold "insiders" to God's high standard but, rather than being constantly alarmed or surprised by what "enemies" do, we're to treat them with godly pity. "Such were some of you."

So, while I might identify someone as an enemy of life, my treatment of him or her is modified by what God requires of me in terms of reflecting His mercy. I have to recognize this person is incapable of living a new life, never having forsaken the old (Col. 3:1-14). He lacks the advantage of an indwelling Holy Spirit.

Thanks to the Gospel, enemies become friends. Carol Everett is one such trophy, among many. Hatred and vilification could not do what the Holy Spirit, prayer, and persistent pro-life witness did by God's grace.

A new pro-life organization is devoted to bringing abortion doctors and workers out. Abby Johnson, a former Planned Parenthood executive, has started And Then There Were None, whose goal it is "to provide financial, emotional, spiritual and legal support to anyone wishing to leave the abortion industry."

Do you know the name of an abortionist? Would you pray for one today? Here's a list of over 700 U.S. abortionists. Find the one nearest you.

Tuesday prayer: Willing. Ready. In position.

In light of yesterday's musing on the Gospel and compassion ministries, pray --

• That each of us will be willing to help people and share the Good News
• That we'll be ready to help people and share the Good News
• That we'll be in position to help people and share the Good News

Pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the Lord’s people. Pray also for me, that whenever I speak, words may be given me so that I will fearlessly make known the mystery of the gospel,  for which I am an ambassador in chains. Pray that I may declare it fearlessly, as I should. --Ephesians 6:18-20

Monday musing: The gospel and compassion ministries

Jesus' disciples had a lot to learn. About a hungry crowd, they said, "Send them away." About a desperate mother: "Send her away." To parents with children, in effect: "Take them away!" Perhaps they were at a loss for knowing what people needed, or how to help. Maybe they were simply annoyed.

How often are we like that? I felt something similar on a recent morning driving to work. A man was standing near the highway entrance holding a sign that said he’s a veteran and needs help feeding his family. Many thoughts swirled through my head as I passed by: Is he really a veteran? His buzzed haircut and soldierly posture vouched for him, but both could be easily counterfeited. Was he willing and able to work at any menial job, or too proud to take what's available? Why was he willing to humiliate himself? Is his situation really so desperate? Would he really buy food with the donations, or drugs and booze?

Of course, it was impossible to change lanes, pull over, and ask him these questions without endangering myself or other drivers. And it probably wouldn't have been wise for me, as a woman, to approach him at all. 

I found myself wondering if or when the “professionals” would step in -- people who work with the hungry, who know the right questions to ask, and have referrals to food pantries. Are they aware of this fellow? Have they tried to help and been rebuffed? Where were they?

Giving is sometimes messy, but Jesus didn’t seem to have a problem with it.

In contrast to the disciples' hostility or apathy, a deep pity moved Him to effective, confident acts of mercy on behalf of the lost. The object of His compassion was people – those who knew they had problems and those who were oblivious. His objective was complete restoration. While not everyone responded in faith, He graciously served.

His compassion met both immediate and eternal needs – problems such as hunger, sickness, and sin. While laying out hard truths about God’s kingdom, Jesus did not neglect other human needs but served the whole person.

As they followed, the disciples witnessed first-hand how perfectly Jesus expressed His Father’s compassionate nature. They heard Him say, “I feel compassion for them” and watched Him do something about it. In the course of their training, Jesus directed them to perform lowly acts of service for others, such as having them hand out the baskets He was filling with food.

In response to situations like the one of coming across a hungry person and feeling at a loss of what or how to give, some friends have come up with a creative solution. They've taken to carrying bottles of water and granola bars in their cars and handbags that can be offered in Jesus' name, along with information about local food pantries. It's a good way to avoid the trickiness of handing out cash and the embarrassment of giving nothing.

Pro-life ministries reflect Jesus’ spirit of compassion on a larger, more organized scale. They serve the whole person: body, mind, and spirit. Pregnancy care centers “suffer alongside” those caught in the web of sexual immorality, unwanted pregnancy, and abortion. LIFT “suffers alongside” the dying and chronically ill. Meanwhile, the world offers counterfeit answers - abortion, euthanasia - that abandon people to death. 

God often uses frailty or deficiency to draw a person’s attention toward Himself. Physical, emotional, and social problems point to the reality of sin because they proceed from it -- their own sin, the sin of others, or the Fall in general. Sometimes, caring for these problems is our only entrée past closed doors. The people served by compassion ministries may not know it, but they also have spiritual needs.

Evangelism and compassion go hand-in-hand. It’s not enough to educate people about abortion, or hold their hands as they weep. They may still be lost in sin. That’s why true compassion ministries will point toward the source of ultimate transformation – Jesus Christ. Salvation from a life of sin and the penalty of death is only in His name (Acts 4:12).

God still prepares His followers for compassion ministry. The challenge is being willing, ready, and in position to help. 

Scripture references: Exodus 34:6; Psalm 103:8; Proverbs 14:12; Lamentations 3:22; Jonah 4:11; Matthew 9:35-36, 14:14-21, 15:23, 30-38, 20:34; Mark 1:41, 6:31-44, 8:2, 10:13-16; Luke 7:13, 9:11-17, 15:20, 17:11-19; John 1:18, 13:14; Philippians 2:1; Colossians 3:12; Hebrews 1:3; James 5:11.

Related articles 
Works and Words: Why You Can't Preach the Gospel with Deeds
Onward Christian Workers

Works and Words: Why you can't preach the Gospel with deeds

Works and Words: Why You Can't Preach the Gospel with Deeds | Christianity Today | A Magazine of Evangelical Conviction: How often do we hear these days, with passion and approval, the famous dictum attributed to Francis of Assisi: "Preach the gospel at all times. Use words if necessary"? . . . At first blush, this sounds right. Except that it isn't.

. . . Some today will claim that there is no true evangelism without "embodied action." In fact, according to one critic, "Unless [Christ's] disciples are following the Great Commandment, it is fruitless to engage in the Great Commission." According to this view, the gospel is without its own potency. Its "fruitfulness" depends upon us.

But this is not the testimony of the New Testament. According to Paul—whose itinerant ministry met few of the "embodied action" criteria—the power of the gospel does not reside in us; it resides in the Spirit's application of the message itself. "I am not ashamed of the gospel," Paul said. Why? Because "it"—the verbal gospel, the "word of the Cross," the Good News of Jesus Christ proclaimed—is "the power of God for salvation" to everyone who believes (Rom. 1:16). So strong was Paul's confidence in the gospel's inherent Spirit-infused power that he could rejoice even when it was being preached, not merely in the absence of "embodied action," but out of overtly sinful motives (Phil. 1:12-18).

Baptists for Life helps the Body of Christ articulate the biblical pro-life message in word and deed.

Is there an 'overnight solution' to abortion?

We Could End Abortion ‘Overnight’—If We Really Wanted To: "[W]e could end abortion virtually overnight. Here’s how we can “go viral” with this. If every Sunday, in every pulpit, in every evangelical church across America, ministers would devote one minute—ONE MINUTE—to decrying the evil of abortion on demand, such universal solidarity within the ranks of Christian leadership would accomplish two things, maybe three."

Editor: I'd love to hear your comments about this essay. For what it's worth, here's my response . . . 

After Googling the author and finding no connection to pro-life work of any kind, other than pro-life groups who cited his article, I wonder what grounds he has for "browbeating" (his term) anyone on this issue.

I am suspicious of anyone who thinks they know how to solve the abortion problem "overnight," or even "virtually overnight" as he amends it, particularly when they have no track-record. I might say -- "virtually solve," because the minute we think we've eradicated abortion it will only take one more abortion somewhere in all the world to undo the solution.

Thus, I think he's set up a straw man and an even flimsier solution. At the very least, it's a legalistic, simplistic one. Really, one minute per sermon per church? For how long? One Sunday would be "overnight." A month of Sundays would not fit his artificial criteria.

I admit to being impatient with artificially set time-frames for what many of us have been working at for decades. He doesn't seem to understand the problem, so how can he comprehend the solution? Abortion is a matter of the heart. The heart set on self, devoted to the works of the flesh, will kill. The only way to eliminate sin -- all sin, not just this one -- is death: dying with Christ, dying to self, living for Him. As far as I know, God has not promised universal salvation. Some people will reject Christ until they die.

But I'm not sure that's what he was talking about. I thought he was going to say we need to love people to Christ, but then he did a sharp turn and started talking about the ballot box and overturning Roe. Is that the answer? Do we pin our hopes on a law that can be overturned again, by another ballot box? Have we solved the problems of murder, rape, or fraud by enacting laws against them?

It's important to note that he has drawn a false distinction between evangelism or "ministry" and love. Giving people the Good News (and bad news) is love. Giving them things without giving them hope is not love. It is possible, as Paul says in 1 Corinthians 13, to give my all and not have love.

Is there really too much prayer or preaching in the world? I've got a sneaking suspicion there's not enough. There may be a lot of ineffective ministries out there, but I dare say it's not because they're giving the gospel too often.

The other night, my boss was the speaker for a small-town pregnancy care center's banquet. This center is only open a few hours a week, has no paid staff, might not fulfill most of our ideas of success. But they invited a man to give his testimony of how the center had impacted his life and that of his wife. I don't know all the story, whether there was an abortion in their past or whether they had ever faced abortion, but it was clear that they were changed people. The center director had apparently mentored him, showing him "how to be a man." I thought, this is what it's all about. This is change. What happened to him is the solution.

The writer doesn't seem to have taken PCCs into account. They are, after all, ministries that attempt to fulfill the Great Commission and what he terms as "the Greater Commission." Thus, I don't understand his impatience with ministries. 

There's no neat package for this, no easy way to bottle it. Perhaps some pastors and churches could do a better job of preaching and teaching the whole counsel of God's word, which is pro-life from end to end. But it would take more than a minute a week to expound how deeply rooted in the gospel the sanctity of human life is.

Later: Rolley Haggard published a follow-up article -- Louder than the Silent Scream, the deafening silence of our pulpits. And this is my response to an essay by Jonathan van Maren -- Don't discern. Join the fight for the unborn now!

'via Blog this'

Vatican Cardinal warns of ‘silent apostasy’; says Catholic charities must evangelize

Vatican Cardinal warns of ‘silent apostasy’; says Catholic charities must evangelize | LifeSiteNews.com: In an address to the General Assembly of Caritas International today, Cardinal Robert Sarah, who heads the Vatican dicastery dealing with the church’s charitable institutions, stressed that the main mission of all Church groups, charitable groups included, was to bring people to Christ. “Today, dear Friends, the tragedy of modern mankind is not lacking clothing and housing. The most tragic hunger and the most terrible anguish is not lack of food,” he said. “It’s much more about the absence of God and the lack of true love, the love that was revealed to us on the Cross.”

The Cross: The Greatest Pro-Life Initiative Ever Taken

The Cross: The Greatest Pro-Life Initiative Ever Taken - Desiring God: The greatest and most profound pro-life initiative ever to take place in the history of mankind was when God sent his Son to die on the cross for our sins (John 3:16-17). That is the pro-life movement we've joined and the one we've invited others to join with us. At the cross we see that people are of inestimable value and worth to God. His message of unconditional love and forgiveness is what the world needs to hear.

Cultural attitudes and worldviews that devalue human life have infected the global culture in general and the Christian culture as well. For example, in places around the world, LIFE International has seen married pastors carry on with multiple mistresses. Church leaders send their wives and daughters to have abortions. Some Christian husbands even abuse their wives to enforce submission. Christian women may have dozens of abortions during their childbearing years. Each of these examples demonstrates how every nation has a flawed theology of life.

Answers in Genesis in Plainwell, MI, September 12

Bob Gillespie, a dynamic and passionate speaker, will be in Plainwell, Michigan, at Orangeville Baptist Church on Sunday, September 12, 2010. He'll be presenting The Seven C’s of History, The Relevance of Genesis, and Creation Evangelism. This event will be free. Event details

Pope: Answer to Secularism is to Re-Evangelize World

Pope Benedict said during his recently concluded trip to Portugal that "vast effort at every level" is needed to answer the threats of growing secularism in Europe, of which abortion and homosexual "marriage" are among "today's most insidious and dangerous." What is needed, he said, is "a vigorous Catholic outlook ... in fidelity to the magisterium ... a strong prophetic dimension without allowing yourselves to be silenced." LifeSiteNews

Apologetics site for young people

Stand to Reason launched a new website today designed to help Christian students form a confident Christian worldview and be able to explain it clearly and gracious to others. STR Place helps students "just think" about Christianity and has a variety of resources:

• Videos dealing with timely issues
• Articles providing clear, concise explanations
• A video blog answering questions
• Parent & teacher resources to support Christian students
• Online store with resources specifically for Christian students

Abstinence brochures available from CBH

CBH Ministries (Children's Bible Hour) offer abstinence brochures for young teens that are biblically based, as well as other helpful gospel tracts.

Many Americans don't believe in hell, but what about pastors?

Only 59% of Americans believe in hell, compared with 74% who believe in heaven, according to the recent surveys from the Pew Forum on Religion and Public Life. At the recent annual Beeson Pastors School, Kurt Selles led two workshops to discuss "Whatever happened to hell?" He asked how many of the pastors had ever preached a sermon on hell. Nobody had, he said. The soft sell on hell reflects an increasingly market-conscious approach. "When you're trying to market Jesus, sometimes there's a tendency to mute traditional Christian symbols," Selles said. USA Today

Proclaiming the Gospel by Caring for Our Elderly

As Tertullian wrote roughly 1,800 years ago, “it is our care of the helpless, our practice of loving kindness, that brands us in the eyes of many of our opponents. ” What better opportunity to demonstrate how this new life in Christ has transformed us—reorienting our priorities away from self to others—than by how we care for the aging within the community of God’s people? In Paul’s letter to Timothy, he stresses this responsibility toward the elderly and widows in particular. Such care is not merely a nice option if it’s convenient or affordable but a serious and universal command. Center for Christ & Culture

Evangelism 2.0

What is new and different about [Portland, Oregon, evangelical church's] Season of Service, though, is the participants' emphasis on "preaching" through idealistic action rather than pious words, and their partnership with the progressive politicians who run City Hall. USA Today

Editor: I'd love to see what you think about this. Please comment.

The Collapse of Christian America—Live Webcast

Ken Ham, president of Answers in Genesis, will present powerful new research as part of our first-ever live video webcast addressing the current spiritual state of our nation. Find out the reasons behind the collapse of Christianity in the Western world, then participate in a live chat with Britt Beemer, founder of America’s Research Group, and Ken following the webcast. America has more Christian resources and Bible colleges than ever in its history, yet the nation is on a spiritual downward spiral. What has happened? Why is the church not reaching the culture today as it has in the past? Get the full report on June 25 at 8:00 p.m. as Ken, in his dynamic style, recounts the secularization of American culture and explains why we are losing generations from the church—why, in fact, they are already gone! Don’t miss this free webcast. Mark your calendar and visit www.creationmuseum.org June 25 at 8:00 p.m. (EDT).

Map of Associated PCCs

Here's a Google map of all pregnancy care centers that are currently associated with Partners in Ministry.

Abortion and the Emerging Evangelical Conscience

Tell me that you simply do not believe that abortion kills human beings. I shall disagree with you, but I will understand why you find it reasonable to allow the abortion issue to be eclipsed by other concerns. Tell me that you do not believe in the imago dei or the notion of human dignity. I’ll understand, but wonder what grounds you wish to offer me for any moral concern — such as AIDS or poverty — whatever. Tell me that political affiliation is inconsequential for the abortion issue. I’ll assess the claim, but might suggest that you underestimate the importance of such things as Supreme Court appointments and veto power. But please do not tell me that, even though we have thus far killed fifty million bearers of the imago dei in this nation since Roe v. Wade, this fact must be “juxtaposed” against other important issues. For then I shall fear that you are at risk of losing touch with all that is sacred. The Citizen

Love sick

It is heartbreaking just how insidious and how prevalent 'love sickness' is among Christian women and men—both single and married. Thankfully, God offers perfect love and freedom through His Son, but learning to transfer our heart's longing to the one true source of contentment is challenging and takes time. At the Center magazine

Reaching the Post-Modern, Abortion-Minded Client

A new wave of abortion-minded clients is appearing at pregnancy care centers across the country. These girls have been taught to reject any form of universal morality. These girls grew up believing that having an abortion is as easy as taking a pill. Therefore, pregnancy care centers will have to dramatically change their methods in order to reach these post-modern young women. At the Center magazine