What Does it Mean To Fight Evil Biblically

I went to my first political rally. It was a pro-life rally in front of Sen. Hagan's office protesting her refusal to let the "Pain Capable Unborn Child Protection Act" come before the senate for discussion. (The bill would make it illegal to perform abortions after 20 weeks since science unequivocally has determined the baby feels excruciating pain from at least 20 weeks on.) I had a blast!

Before leaving home, I told my husband to have his cell phone on in case he was my one phone call from jail. (I've never been to a political rally but on TV, they are always getting dragged by their ankles off to jail.) (Just in case, I wore underwear without holes in them.) It was great to see a bunch of my sidewalk counselor buds from the Abortion Mill there. In fact, listen to this little "miracle." I parked at a meter, not far from Hagan's office. She closed her parking lot, I heard, so none of the rally group could park in her building's public lot. Which my taxes pay for. Nice, huh? Anyway, I only had one quarter. That only got me 15 minutes in the meter and I needed at least an hour. As I stood there wondering what to do, a fellow sidewalk counselor I had never met walked by. I thought it looked like him from pictures I had seen on Facebook. I took a chance.
"Are you Russ?" I asked.
He looked shocked, "Yes?"
"I am a sidewalk counselor for Cities4Life...and I need quarters."
Anyway, Russ had a bunch of quarters which he gladly gave me. I only had to use two, because then the meter went ballistic and said, "Out of Order."
"You can stay here all day now and not get a ticket," assured Russ.

We walked on to the rally together. There were maybe 50 people. I had expected more, but was told that was a good turn out. There were tons of police around, as well as reporters and cameras. There was one opposing protester - a pro-abortion lady I know from the Abortion Mill where I volunteer as a sidewalk counselor. This woman, JA, is security/bouncer for the mill, and is forever yelling at us counselors to "Stop blocking the road!!!" when cars with abortion-minded women pull over to talk to us. In fact, last week she asked me, "Is it so hard to ask cars to pull over so you don't block the road?" I quickly retorted, "Is it so hard to soften your heart to the children you are helping to kill?"
"If they were children, I would be in jail," she snapped.
"They are children, and you should be in jail!" I said. She walked back to her post as Abortion Mill Security/bouncer. I went back to stopping cars.

At the rally, she was carrying a double sided sign. One side said, "Keep your religion out of my vagina" which frankly was more appropriate for her to hold than the male bouncer that had been holding it earlier this month at the abortion mill. The other side of her sign said: "Don't listen to junk science. If pro-lifers are right, then blows-jobs are cannibalism."
Nice, huh?
(And logic is apparently not high on her list, since no pro-life advocate I know of has ever voiced protection of sperm.) Forgive me for my un-Godly laughter as a policeman asked her to get off the road, and "stop blocking traffic." (Proving again that what goes around, comes around.)

Anyway, back to the rally. There were wonderful eloquent speakers, who cited all the scientific reasons for abolishing all abortions, but at the minimum, at 20 weeks and beyond. By 20 weeks, the pre-born baby feels pain as her body is being ripped apart in the abortion procedure. Probably excruciating pain. There is now no question about that.

One of our most ardent and long-standing pro-life leaders spoke to me afterwards. He understands why the bill is proposed, but he says we Christians are adopting Satan's tactics. Incrementalism is a tool of evil and deception. He voiced the concern that we are called to stand firmly for what God says in the Bible, and not concede "exceptions" to gain a victory. When we say no abortions should be permitted after 20 weeks because the fetus feels pain...are we representing what the Biblical view is? Clearly no baby should be so cruelly dealt with, particularly when the scientific evidence tells us she is in unbearable agony at least by 20 weeks. But, beyond a shadow of a doubt, the God of the Bible says life is sacred from the moment of conception. Not from the moment of pain perception, not from the moment of viability outside the womb, not because he is conceived in love, not because he is wanted. Life is sacred because God created humans in God's image and knew each of us before He formed us in the womb. All abortion is wrong. From God's perspective as His word proclaims, human life from the womb "is wonderfully and fearfully made." I commented that at least the pre-born babies after 20 weeks would be spared with this bill. My friend wants no baby to die, but he feels unless we proclaim unashamedly the whole truth, that no baby at any age should be aborted, we may win a victory but lose the war. God is not an incrementalist. Human life is either sacred, or it is not. Any line drawn determining a point when it "becomes" sacred or worthy of protection is arbitrary. I am pondering his thoughts. I agree with his premise, of course, but am still mulling over how one is called to best right or fight such evil. At least this incrementalism is chipping away at the total bad instead of chipping away at total good, as Satan does.

The rally ended, and since I had unlimited time on my parking meter (thank you Russ!), I went and introduced myself to the rally leaders. The crowd dissipated, though a full complement of police remained. As I started back to my car, I stopped to thank an officer.
"Thank you for being here," I said, "Providing protection."
"You are welcome, ma'am," she told me, "This was about the nicest group of protesters I have ever worked with."
"Yes," I agreed, "But how could we not be? A bunch of people who love God and think all life is sacred."
"Yes, ma'am," said the officer, smiling at me.

After the rally, I interviewed an abortionist. I was researching opposing views for a character I am developing in a book I am writing. This abortionist at one time was simultaneously an abortion doctor and an Ob/gyn who delivered babies. She told me how in the abortion clinic, she had one patient, the woman, and that woman alone was the focus of her treatment and concerns.
"The baby is not your patient?"
"No."
"But when you would see your next client, a pregnant woman who wanted her baby, you had two patients, right?"
"Yes," she told me.
I asked the question again, to be sure I understood her position."And in both cases, the women carried a baby. That baby could even be the same gestational age, but with the baby of the abortion-minded woman, you considered only the mother as your patient."
"Yes."
"And in the next hour, with the woman who wanted the baby, you considered both the mother and baby as your patients?"
"Yes."
"How could you do that?" I asked, "What changed?"
"If the baby is younger than 24 weeks, it is not viable. I don't consider it a patient until 24 weeks,"she answered. (She only performed first trimester abortions.)
"Is the baby not a human being under 24 weeks?" I asked.
"No, it is a 'potential' human being."
"What is the difference for you when it changes from 'potential' human being to human being?" I asked.
"There is no guarantee of survival before 24 weeks of life," she said, "So it is not 'human life' if there is no guarantee it will survive."
"Do any of us have a guarantee of tomorrow?" I asked.
She paused.
"Good question," she said.
"What about a newborn baby?" I asked, "Can it survive without its mother?"
"Yes," she said, "Of course not for more than a few days, but it can."
"I have read of cases of a 24 week old aborted fetus that survived for several minutes after being aborted," I said.
"Then it wasn't properly aborted."
"You mean killed before being expelled?"
"Yes."
"I have read of 21 week old babies who are born and survive," I said.
"There are miracles," she agreed.
"You told me you don't believe in God," I said, "What then do you attribute miracles to?"
She did not know. Things we don't understand, perhaps.

She told me of one mom who aborted her baby, then came to her later, distraught. She was overcome with remorse and asked why the doctor had not counseled her against abortion.
"But there was no flexibility of time available for extended counseling," the doctor told me.
"You feel bad about that incident?" I asked softly.
"Yes, I have never forgotten it. But it is a lie of the pro-life movement that this is a common occurrence. It is rare. That is why it sticks in my mind."
"But it was irreversible," I said, "You could not bring that baby back."
"No," said the abortionist.
***********

Isaiah 49:16 

Behold, I have engraved you on the palms of my hands; your walls are continually before me.

Psalm 127:3 

Behold, children are a heritage from the Lord, the fruit of the womb a reward.

Ephesians 2:10 

For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.

Luke 12:6-7 

Are not five sparrows sold for two pennies? And not one of them is forgotten before God. Why, even the hairs of your head are all numbered. Fear not; you are of more value than many sparrows.

Job 31:15 

Did not he who made me in the womb make him? And did not one fashion us in the womb?

Isaiah 49:5 

And now the Lord says, he who formed me from the womb to be his servant, to bring Jacob back to him; and that Israel might be gathered to him— for I am honored in the eyes of the Lord, and my God has become my strength—