Standing for Life in Texas: SB1, HB2, a Car Accident, and a Rally

Sunday night, my friend Donna and I (and Grace) traveled to Austin, Texas to be a part of the historical bill, Senate Bill 1, also called The Fetal Pain Bill.  This bill proposes that abortions cannot be performed after 20 weeks of pregnancy due to the pain the baby would feel during the procedure.  Texas law currently prohibits abortion past 24 weeks unless the life of the mother is in danger (though, we all know how loose that term can be).  The bill also states that abortion clinics must come up to ambulatory surgical center standards, thus making them safer places for women.  Finally, the bill mandates that abortion doctors must have admitting privileges to a hospital within 30 miles of the abortion clinic.  Again, making it safer for women who may be involved in a botched abortion.  This bill not only protects the lives of the unborn, but also protects women....something the pro-choice folks are supposedly fighting for, yet oppose this bill vehemently! 


This photo of Grace and I landed on the Texas Right to Life Facebook page.  I don't usually post unflattering pictures of myself, but the reason behind the photo is more important than my vanity.  My friends Donna, Charity, Lenee, and Grace and I were up early to be in line by 7am so that we could register to testify before Senate, as well as register our position on Senate Bill 1.  We stood in line for two hours before registration began.  This was taken by Texas Right to Life while waiting in line.



Grace's First Pro-Life Event 

It was quite an experience testifying before Senate.  And what a privilege to be heard by the people who have the power to change state law.  We did a LOT of waiting, but when it was finally my turn, I challenged the senators to watch a video I saw years ago called The Silent Scream.  It's an ultrasound video of an abortion being performed on a 12 week baby.  It is the most horrific video you will ever watch.  I won't go into detail here, but as soon as the suction instrument hits the baby, his mouth opens wide to indicate a scream.  The Silent Scream!  This baby was experiencing the pain that so many argue is not possible.  My heart is breaking at this very moment just thinking about it. 

*You can watch the video here, but let me warn you, it is graphic and NOT to be watched by children.  It will change you for sure (especially if you are post-abortive), so proceed with caution!*

You should have heard some of the testimonies from the people who are against this bill.  If you've ever doubted our human depravity, just sit in on an abortion hearing.  Friends, WE. NEED. JESUS!  One young man said that the "sovereignty of his own body was more important than the pain a baby would feel during an abortion."  WE. NEED. JESUS!  Another young woman said that she was thankful that her mother aborted her sibling, because had her mother not done that, she wouldn't be here.  Though I believe this young woman's life certainly has value, how can she possibly believe that HER life was more valuable than the sibling who was aborted?  WE. NEED. JESUS! 

We also heard wonderful testimonies of redemption and grace, and testimonies about how the abortion industry (and it is an industry) hurt women and families.  We heard experts argue the reality that babies can in fact feel pain during an abortion procedure.  Senator Donna Campbell, who is also an ER physician gave powerful evidence to this fact. 

It was wonderful, and heartbreaking, to be involved in the legislative process.

Once we testified, we left the Capitol to head back to the hotel and to grab lunch.  As we were making our way back to the Capitol for the big #Stand4Life Rally, we were involved in a car accident.  Thankfully, no one was hurt, but it did shake us up a bit.  At that point, we had a lot to do to figure things out since we were out of town, and we missed the rally.  Donna's daughter came to pick us up, and we headed home.

Although we missed the rally, we were grateful to have been there to participate in an important aspect of passing this bill.  We heard the rally was a huge success and we're so thankful for the thousands of people who came out to support life.

 

 

House Bill 2 PASSED last night after 10 hours of debate and amendments.  To God be the Glory!  Tomorrow, Thursday, July 11th, it will go before Texas Senate.  Please pray that eyes would be opened and hearts would be softened.  Pray that Senate will pass SB1!

 

"Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, before you were born I set you apart..."

Jeremiah 1:5

 

"For you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother’s womb.  I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well.  My frame was not hidden from you when I was made in the secret place, when I was woven together in the depths of the earth. Your eyes saw my unformed body; all the days ordained for me were written in your book before one of them came to be."

Psalm 139:13-16

We Know! 40 Years of Roe v. Wade

We Know They Are Killing Children-All of Us Know by John Piper

For forty years this has meant that any perceived stress is a legal ground for eliminating the child. We have killed fifty million babies. And what increases our guilt as a nation is that we know what we are doing. Here’s the evidence that we know we are killing children.

Read full article here...

Good Story

Too Good NOT to Pass On.....

"Fellow members of the congregation where we attend were told that their unborn grandchild had no brain. The parents were urged to abort. They were assured there was no brain, and this child would die once born anyway.They decided that since their doctors' best advice ended with the same heartbreaking scenario no matter what they chose- they were going to be the parents of a dead child- they would prefer to at least have the chance to hold her gently before she left them rather than dismember her, and they continued the pregnancy.Their baby was born on Sunday. She has a clean bill of health, including a full neurological exam and battery of tests which revealed a healthy, normal baby."

God is good!

ht: Kim C.

I couldn't have said it better myself........thanks Jess!

Questions to Consider

Have you ever wondered...

*what life would have been like during your growing up years if 1/5th of the population hadn't been aborted?

*if one of those aborted people would have been your best friend? A co-worker? A pastor in the church down the road? A plumber in your community? The Mayor? A special-ed teacher?

*if our economy would be stronger now with 20% more people contributing ideas, work, taxes, and energy, had they not been aborted?

*how the average Nazi lived with the knowledge that millions were dying in their midst, and then stopped to realize that we're no different?

*if we might end up like the aborted nations of Russia and almost every European nation, with dwindling populations and the death of our culture and nation around the corner?

What would happen if every Christian...

*committed to love and serve pregnant women and their children, no matter the circumstance?

*gave sacrificially of their time and money to support crisis pregnancy clinics and stand as a silent protester and potential counselor for those women walking into baby killing centers?

*publicly loved and welcomed even "the least of these" (those deemed less desirable because of handicaps, learning difficulties, or family situation)?

Everyone knows it's a baby. Just like the Germans who could smell the smoke near the killing centers in WWII, the murder of our brothers and sisters is unthinkable and yet undeniable.

As I type this, my ten-month old son is grizzling as he falls asleep... and I can't help but weep as I think of those babies who will never exercise their lungs with a good healthy cry. Those who have their skin seared by salt solution, administered by a doctor who swore to protect life. Those who have their limbs ripped from their tender bodies in the one place they ought to be completely safe and protected. Those who could have grown up to be your friends, or mine... those who could have grown up.

As I type this, I think of my friends who have had abortions... and I hurt for them. I don't want to increase their pain, but even more, I want to stop other women from ever feeling the pain of having had an abortion, if it is at all within my power.

As I type this, I want to cry out, "Oh, Christian women, be a light in your community! Find ways to ACT on behalf of the unborn among us!"

And merciful Father, give each of us a burning passion to see your glory reflected in each and every individual created by Your wise and sovereign hand. Give us a desire to love the unborn and their mothers with the love that You have... love that bears all things, is kind, shares the truth, and never fails. Help us to rejoice over life, in every shape and form!

Oh, that we would view each birth and new life with the joy that John Powell describes as he for the first time witnessed a baby being delivered:

It was as if my mind were saying, 'Cannot compute! Cannot compute!" What I was witnessing was too big, too beautiful, too sacred to fit easily into my mind...

God had waited from all eternity for that moment of birth. And now, He would show His little boy the adoring face of the mother that had carried him so lovingly. He would show that little boy the magnificent stars He had strung in the sky. He would introduce him to the music of lullabies and the softness of his mother's arms, the gentleness of his father's hands. The "I" of God had been saying to the "Thou" of that small baby: "With an everlasting love I have loved you. This is why with lovingkindness I created you" (from the prophecy of Jeremiah, 31:3).

Cannot compute. Cannot compute. The miracle of life.

HT: Jennifer

Walk For Life

Walk For Life

For you formed my inward parts;
you knitted me together in my mother's womb.
I praise you, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made.
Wonderful are your works;
my soul knows it very well.
My frame was not hidden from you,
when I was being made in secret,
intricately woven in the depths of the earth.
Your eyes saw my unformed substance;
in your book were written, every one of them,
the days that were formed for me,
when as yet there was none of them.
Psalm 139:13-16

The Agape Pregnancy Help Center will be hosting our annual Walk For Life Fundraiser this Saturday in San Antonio. Please join us in our efforts to save the lives of precious babies by raising the necessary funds to keep our centers open. There are several ways in which to offer support. You can walk, run or crawl along with us, you can sponsor me as I walk for life, or you can simply donate to the Agape Pregnancy Center online. If you'd like to walk or donate, visit www.agapeprolife.org to get a sponsor form or to donate. If you'd so graciously like to sponsor me, email me at gsabo1@sbcglobal.net with your donation amount, your name, address and phone number.

Whether we want to think about it or not, the fact is, millions of babies are being killed each year due to abortion and we can't sit idly by and ignore it. Here are some of the ugly statistics:

UNITED STATES

Number of abortions per year: 1.37 Million (1996)Number of abortions per day: Approximately 3,700

Who's having abortions (age)? 52% of women obtaining abortions in the U.S. are younger than 25: Women aged 20-24 obtain 32% of all abortions; Teenagers obtain 20% and girls under 15 account for 1.2%.

Who's having abortions (race)? While white women obtain 60% of all abortions, their abortion rate is well below that of minority women. Black women are more than 3 times as likely as white women to have an abortion, and Hispanic women are roughly 2 times as likely.

Who's having abortions (marital status)? 64.4% of all abortions are performed on never-married women; Married women account for 18.4% of all abortions and divorced women obtain 9.4%.

Who's having abortions (religion)? Women identifying themselves as Protestants obtain 37.4% of all abortions in the U.S.; Catholic women account for 31.3%, Jewish women account for 1.3%, and women with no religious affiliation obtain 23.7% of all abortions. 18% of all abortions are performed on women who identify themselves as "Born-again/Evangelical".

Who's having abortions (income)? Women with family incomes less than $15,000 obtain 28.7% of all abortions; Women with family incomes between $15,000 and $29,999 obtain 19.5%; Women with family incomes between $30,000 and $59,999 obtain 38.0%; Women with family incomes over $60,000 obtain 13.8%.

Why women have abortions: 1% of all abortions occur because of rape or incest; 6% of abortions occur because of potential health problems regarding either the mother or child, and 93% of all abortions occur for social reasons (i.e. the child is unwanted or inconvenient).

At what gestational ages are abortions performed: 52% of all abortions occur before the 9th week of pregnancy, 25% happen between the 9th & 10th week, 12% happen between the 11th and 12th week, 6% happen between the 13th & 15th week, 4% happen between the 16th & 20th week, and 1% of all abortions (16,450/yr.) happen after the 20th week of pregnancy.

Likelihood of abortion: An estimated 43% of all women will have at least 1 abortion by the time they are 45 years old. 47% of all abortions are performed on women who have had at least one previous abortion.

Abortion coverage: 48% of all abortion facilities provide services after the 12th week of pregnancy. 9 in 10 managed care plans routinely cover abortion or provide limited coverage.

About 14% of all abortions in the United States are paid for with public funds, virtually all of which are state funds. 16 states (CA, CT, HI, ED, IL, MA , MD, MD, MN, MT, NJ, NM, NY, OR, VT, WA and WV) pay for abortions for some poor women.
Statistical resource: http://www.abortionno.org/Resources/fastfacts.html

Other resources: http://www.all.org/imnew.php , http://www.lovelife139.blogspot.com/ , http://www.nrlc.org/ .

Pro-Life Thoughts

I have been mulling over this concept of Palin's pro-life stance and how it has raised her to "hero status" in the eyes of evangelicals. Obviously, I share this pro-life stance.  However, I've had trouble putting my thoughts into words concerning this sudden glorification of she and her daughter.

I just read an article that puts this issue into perspective; here is a small portion of the article. Dr. Voddie Baucham writes:

"I think the approach conservatives are taking with the Palin issue is problematic. Christians are calling both Sarah and Bristol Palin heroes for choosing not to kill their children in the womb simply because the rest of the culture seems to have little problem with it. This is the wrong argument. This is like saying a police officer is a hero for not shooting an unarmed man. That’s his job! It is not heroic to stay pregnant; it should be expected. This is a sort of lowered expectation argument. Sure she got pregnant out-of-wedlock, but that is common; that makes them ‘real’ Americans (this is an actual argument I have heard no less than half-a-dozen times from “Christian” conservatives). But look at what happened next; they didn’t kill the baby... that makes them super human moral giants. What grit!

This line of argumentation makes the abortion debate sound pragmatic. The Palins did not make a tough choice. They made the only logical choice given their profession of faith. In fact, there was no real choice to make. We mustn’t lower the bar just to make ourselves look good. In fact, the conservative Christian response to the Palin pregnancy actually makes abortion sound like a reasonable option that the Palin family heroically chose to forego."


I know that her pro-life stance can certainly make an impact on those who struggle with pro-choice vs. pro-life, and I'm thankful for this. But I'm talking about conservatives who are basing their whole support system on a concept that should be a no-brainer issue among us!  What do you think?

To read the complete article click here! (Framing the Abortion Debate)