A Woman Wild With Grief of Abortion Meets Our Sweet Volunteer Nurse

Courtney and her 8th child who both bring the cuteness factor to the sidewalks of the abortion center

Yesterday, the rest of our Cities4Life team had left and the RV nurse Courtney and I were the last women left on the sidewalk. I was getting ready to go to my car when I saw a car pull over in front of the abortion center. I hurried over to hear all kinds of wild screaming. The man, who was driving, was shouting at a woman who was frankly the scariest looking woman I've ever seen. Her face was contorted, she had cut marks and scars all over her body. It was clear she was either high on drugs, or had some psychiatric disorder.

I asked, "Please tell me what's going on. I can help." Probably no less true words were ever spoken, but if anyone was going to help, it was going to have to be me because no one else was around. Courtney was already on the mobile ultrasound RV along with the driver, Patrick, packing things up for the day.

The woman was frantic, screaming and writhing, saying she had to have an abortion, no she didn't want an abortion, no she couldn't do this again, and no she couldn't have a baby!

I first assumed the man was trying to coerce her to abort, and I hurried over to her side of the car and said, "No one can make you have an abortion. We can help you."

The man then yelled that she was always blaming him and saying everything was his fault but he was not forcing her to have an abortion. In fact he would support the baby if she chose to have it. But, he warned me, she was crazy and making things up.

It was likely she was either crazy or high on drugs but since I needed to find out which, I told her that if she would be calm, I would listen to her and decide how we could best help her. After a few moments of freaking out, she sat down on the curb with me and we sent the man away to go sit in his car since he was making her angrier.

The story tumbled out in bits and pieces. She had had prior abortions, and she said it had destroyed her soul piece by piece and she would not do that again. I glanced at all the cut marks and scars all over her body and knew that she had harmed herself to deal with the emotional trauma of what abortion and life had clearly done to her. We talked about the sacred value of the child within her and she said she would place the baby for adoption. She would not have another abortion.

She could not sit still, and kept clutching her stomach and saying she was in great pain, which she claimed was due to a hernia. She said that she had been to the ER but then was scared and left. She had been on methadone treatment which I knew was for heroin addiction.  Sadly, she had stopped taking the treatment drugs. Having no experience with this, I had no idea if her symptoms were drug withdrawal, or what.

She was filled with guilt and self revulsion over the abortions. She screamed, clutching her head, and sobbing about how abortion had destroyed her. At that point I tried to talk to her about the love and forgiveness of Jesus when we truly are sorry for our sins. She said she didn't know about God, and I told her I did, and would be happy to share with her. It was pretty clear however that her mind could hardly take in any of God's truths at that moment.

I saw Courtney out of the corner of my eye motioning to me and asking if I needed help. I quickly waved Courtney over, praising God. The cavalry had arrived! This was way out of my league and way out of my experience.

Courtney took over, and while she dealt with the frantic woman, I talked with the man separately. He actually seemed reasonable and was trying to help her but said she was obviously relapsing with drugs, and he just didn't know what to do. He said he would provide for the baby but that she was flipping out on him. I gave him lists of resources that could help with her housing situation and adoption, and then we looked up the name and number of the drug rehab center she had skipped out of. I urged him to call them immediately and tell them what was going on.

By this time, Courtney had assessed the situation and determined through a pregnancy test that the woman was indeed pregnant. However, Courtney said the woman was in too much pain to even think of doing an ultrasound and that they needed to get back to the ER. Fortunately the woman now agreed, and the man said he would bring her there.

Courtney told me later that this was no real big deal for her because in her nursing background, she had worked on a unit that dealt with drug addicts. She knew just what to do. So after that long introduction of the invaluable Courtney, I will let her tell us why she is on the sidewalk counseling women to choose life.

I first started coming out to the abortion clinic at the insistence of my husband.  As a nurse I was working every weekend to be able to stay home with my children during the week.  He had started coming out with some friends from our church and really felt a burden from the Lord that this was where we were called to minister together as a family.  I didn’t want to go. I felt like that it was too extreme and as an introvert it was really, really scary for me.  But what was first done out of obedience to my husband, God quickly captivated my heart for this ministry.  

You see, as a teenager I became pregnant when I was in high school.  My family was so supportive and rallied around us to help us be successful parents.  I saw so many young women going into that abortion clinic with stories so very similar to mine, and I know without my family’s support, and without God’s forgiveness and grace, my own story could have brought me to the same exact place.  Many of these young ladies don’t have the amazing support system that I had, and I knew then and there that my husband was right (as usual), and that God had certainly called us there. 

We continue to share our testimony on the sidewalks week after week for the past 10+ years, and I love being able to encourage women who see nothing but hopeless and hard situations to trust in and surrender to the Lord, in all their ways, and He will meet them where they are and begin to bring beauty out of the ashes they have made of their lives.  If He did it for me, He will certainly do it for them too.  I have since surrendered my nursing career to the Lord, and He has provided more riches and rewards than I could have ever asked for.  Now, as a nurse sonographer, (provide ultrasound), I get to use my skills as a nurse and my testimony of redemption through Jesus to minister to women in crisis pregnancy situations.  Looking back I am able to see clearly, that He truly does work all things together for our good.
*********************** 
Our prayer for the tormented woman Courtney and I counseled is that she too would one day understand that God can and will bring beauty from ashes when we turn to Him. We intend to stay in touch with that woman, and pray that God will use us to bring her to Jesus and healing to her soul.
********************** 

Isaiah 61:3 

To grant to those who mourn in Zion— to give them a beautiful headdress instead of ashes, the oil of gladness instead of mourning, the garment of praise instead of a faint spirit; that they may be called oaks of righteousness, the planting of the Lord, that he may be glorified.