Fidgeting as they waited to hear their names called, “Bethany” and her boyfriend “David” stood out from the rest of the people sitting in the busy waiting room. Dressed in the latest trends and strikingly beautiful, the young couple looked as if they’d walked off the pages of a fashion magazine. But looks can be deceiving.
Behind their pretense of perfection, Bethany and David were falling apart inside. For several weeks, Bethany had suspected she was pregnant, and a recent home pregnancy test had confirmed her greatest fear.
Although she and David had been together for nearly a year and had even talked from time to time about getting married and starting a family one day, they agreed that now was not the right time. In the process of finishing up their senior year at the local university, they’d already begun to plan their post-college careers. Bethany was awaiting acceptance from a renowned grad school, while David was receiving job offers from some of the nation’s top technical firms.
They were both adamant — now was not the time to have a baby.
After breaking the news about the pregnancy to David, Bethany went on the Internet to search for abortion-related terms. As part of her search results, Online for Life had provided an option for Bethany to contact a nearby life-affirming pregnancy center where she could receive all the facts about her pregnancy — and a free sonogram.
Holding Bethany’s hand tightly in his own, David wept at the sight of their child and exclaimed, “He’s so big…and perfect.”
As the couple sat in the pregnancy center’s waiting room and nervously waited for their names to be called, Bethany and David held hands.
At last, a nurse escorted Bethany to a comfortable room where the two could sit and discuss her pregnancy, the baby, and life. Bethany began pouring out her heart, explaining all the reasons why she couldn’t have a baby at this time…she “wasn’t ready”…they were “too young”…their futures “would be ruined.” The nurse listened intently to Bethany’s fears and reassured her with words of encouragement before openly sharing about the painful emotional scars of her own abortion years earlier. As Bethany learned more about life in the womb and the details of an abortion procedure, she began to reconsider parenting.
Finally, the moment of truth arrived when David joined Bethany in the ultrasound room. As the nurse rolled the probe over Bethany’s abdomen, an image of a beautifully formed, five-month-old baby appeared on the screen. Holding Bethany’s hand tightly in his own, David wept at the sight of their child and exclaimed, “He’s so big…and perfect.”
The couple left the life-affirming pregnancy center that day with renewed hope and excitement at the idea of becoming parents. While they were still uncertain about how all the pieces would fall into place, they knew the staff at the pregnancy center would be there to support them all the way into parenthood.
Here at Online for Life, we know Bethany and David’s journey would most likely have ended tragically if they’d entered an abortion clinic. Fortunately, the Online for Life team — using advanced Internet technology — was able to help direct them to a nearby life-affirming pregnancy center where they were educated about life and learned they could return to the center as often as they wanted and take classes and receive the support they needed to help them become better equipped for parenthood.
Through our unique combination of technology and grace, Online for Life has helped to verifiably rescue over 1,900 babies from abortion since its founding!
To find out more about how Online for Life works to help rescue babies and their families from abortion, please visit OnlineforLife.org.