I want things to change. I want my children to grow up in a world that values life and in a world where people are working towards building a more just and humane society.
At home, I am working hard to reinforce good virtues, but that is not enough. It cannot be enough. With the Culture of Death continuing its pursuit for souls, I must do more to be an agent of change to lessen the burden my children and all children will face as adults.
A new year is coming and many are thinking about resolutions and new starts. I’m thinking about what my pro-life resolutions will be, knowing I must do more to defend and support the pro-life movement. I invite you to intentionally begin this next year with the same goal that I have, which is to be an agent of change.
Here are four ways we can build a culture of life in 2015:
- Educate: When I gave pro-life talks in public high school classrooms, I asked the students to take a survey before the talk, and then again after the talk, to gain insight. I wanted to know if the presentation made a difference. Without showing any graphic images and just focusing on factual information about the unborn and what abortion really does to the unborn, I was able to change minds in a 50-minute class period. The initial surveys would usually reveal nearly a 48/48 split among the students: 48% for abortion, 48% against abortion, and the rest undecided. By the end of those short encounters, the majority of the students who said they were pro-choice at the beginning of class changed their position to either pro-life or undecided. I should mention that for many of these talks, I came the day after an abortion agency representative presented their case for being pro-choice, so these students had information from both sides. That was consistent each time I gave a presentation. What I discovered speaking with and teaching these students is that most people are uninformed about what abortion really is and what it really does. Just a little bit of information makes a difference. Imagine what would happen if every pro-life person committed to sharing facts about abortion with those around them. The great part about this is you don’t even have to give a speech in a classroom. Education can happen naturally in conversation or through sharing articles and blogs from LifeSiteNews.com on your social media sites. Through honest pro-life education, hearts and minds will change. The truth is powerful!
- Political Involvement: As a mom of two young ones, it is difficult to be knowledgeable about what is going on politically when I am so busy. However, coupled with education, political wins strengthen our ability to make concrete changes. We have to take time out of our busy schedules to read up on candidates and proposed laws, and we must show up to vote. Even more, we need to be willing to help pro-life candidates in their races and promote and encourage others to vote for life-affirming people and laws. We have already seen great pro-life victories in the past few years. The tide is turning, and we need to keep the momentum going with our personal efforts, never choosing to sit back and assume someone else is undertaking what each one of us should be invested in doing ourselves.
- Support: When I was single, I felt like I could conquer the world! Now that I have a family, I realize that on many days I want to be an agent of change only to discover that my plans have been derailed by something that has come up that requires my attention. I cannot do it alone. No one can. We are all in this together! If I can’t do the work myself, the least I can do is support those in the community who have the time and resources right now to do so. It is important to support pro-life organizations by offering any amount of our time, talent, and treasure to help them advance. Those of us who desire to help in some way should let those places know we exist and are eager to assist.
- Pray: I used to pray in front of a specific abortion clinic regularly for many years. Every year I was there the bush that stood between the clinic and me would grow taller and taller, to the point where I could hardly see the women going inside. I prayed the Lord would remove the bushes so I could see and talk to the women I was praying for. One day I attended a Christmas Eve prayer event with our local bishop outside the same facility. Hundreds showed up to pray. Three days later, the news reported that that same facility had an electrical fire late that night when no one was there (thank God). The fire, which was deemed a no-fault accident, did so much damage that the facility closed for good! I prayed God would remove the bush, and he did so much more: He made it so no abortion ever happened on that street again. We cannot stop praying. Whether we pray on the front lines of an abortion mill or with our family and friends, we must pray fervently. God is listening; let’s not be timid to ask for abortion to become illegal in this country and that hearts would change to support a culture dedicated to virtue and morality.
Through pro-life education, political involvement, supporting pro-life organizations, and praying for an end to abortion and change of hearts, 2015 will keep us busy! If we do our part and others do their part, the great relay race will continue. Innocent lives will be saved, the culture will shift, and our children, and our children’s children will have hope for a world that values the dignity of every human being, from conception to natural death.
If you are looking for more ways to engage in pro-life activities, check out my last blog on 23 ways to help build a Culture of Life…that cost way less than $91,000.
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