Protect Us and Convict Them

Yesterday was one of those days when God just said, REST. The message at our church service was that we are loved, and with God, positive change is possible. Inspiring messages to meditate on while resting.

But today, as every Monday, I head to the abortion center to plead with the conflicted mamas there to choose life for the little humans inside them. It is frigid, so I will bundle up. I will wear my massive New York winter coat and ski gloves, and warmest hat. I know from past frigid mornings that my fingertips will be numb within a few minutes.

But I would rather be freezing and on the outside calling in to those in the abortion center, than toasty warm inside that terrible place contemplating the violent demise of my own child.

We have a choice. Every day, every moment we have a choice. Do we stand in discomfort doing the will of God, or find an easy, warm, comfortable place outside His will? He never forces us to make one choice over another, but one leads to a place of eternal fire, and the other to eternal joy. The long term view is what matters, not our present comfort and ease.

So I choose to stand in the frigid cold today.  Where will you be standing?

As the mamas scurry like lemmings over a cliff of destruction, I would appreciate prayers to protect us, and convict them.
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charlotte.cities4life.org

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John 16:7-11 

Nevertheless, I tell you the truth: it is to your advantage that I go away, for if I do not go away, the Helper will not come to you. But if I go, I will send him to you. And when he comes, he will convict the world concerning sin and righteousness and judgment: concerning sin, because they do not believe in me; concerning righteousness, because I go to the Father, and you will see me no longer; concerning judgment, because the ruler of this world is judged.

Compassion on the Child of her Womb

 One of the mamas, C,  I counseled to choose life some time ago and to whom I send daily Bible texts, sent me this photo yesterday. She had been a Mom I had to counsel for quite a while before she was convinced her baby was worth saving. Her mother tells me that now C is so excited, especially upon seeing the very clear image of her baby. All doubt of 'humanity' within her womb was gone.

And just in case there was a remote chance of missing the fact that a little human of inestimable worth resided temporarily within her, the little baby raised her arm and waved. C's heart melted in love for the child she had considered aborting. She cried out, "It's so amazing!"

It is. The miracle of human life, created in the image of God, is amazing. What a blessing that women have the privilege of carrying within them that sacred form as the baby grows and develops. The bond of mother and child is one of the deepest and most precious bonds on earth, one that every mother knows is never broken. The child, like that precious baby in the womb waving hello, may one day wave goodbye instead, but may it never be by the brutal act of abortion. 

My heart, like all mothers' hearts who love their child, is always scanning the horizon where those precious fingertips finally dip out of sight. We never forget them and a piece of us always goes with them.

Isaiah 49:15 

“Can a woman forget her nursing child, that she should have no compassion on the son of her womb? Even these may forget, yet I will not forget you.

The Victory Belongs to God

I catapulted from teaching art to very young kids two days ago to teaching my nursing home residents yesterday. The elderly folks had the same absorbed attention, gratitude, and surprise at the final product as the kids did.

I love my life. Praise God He gave me the ability to draw and to remember how I learned to draw. It is how I teach others, and it is fail-safe. What a precious gift it is for me to watch young and old delight in the ability to create something beautiful with both smooth and gnarled hands.

Another wondrous event occurred yesterday. Many days ago, I wrote about a pregnant teen that Cities4Life counselors were trying to rescue from some pretty horrific circumstances. I cannot share details, though one day, I will tell her story.

The basic facts are the girl was being coerced to abort, and when she saw her baby on ultrasound, she was adamant she would do anything, including risk her own life, to save her baby. The coercion was so severe that the county Sheriff, police, and DSS all became involved. Cities4Life counselors and supporters went into full gear to help her. I have slept little, worked not at all on my books, and made thousands of phone calls between many trips to a host of places to insure her safety. Every day, a new obstacle faced us, and threatened to defeat us.

However, as of yesterday we overcame the last major hurdle, and she is safe. She and her baby are in an incredible, wonderful situation now, and a bright future awaits them. We plowed through a path that had never been tread before (at least not by me), and succeeded. The model of the church working together to save a vulnerable soul was successfully executed.

It sure feels good.

There was one brief  moment when I literally felt I was having a heart attack during a tense time in 'the negotiations', but it subsided, and I didn't call 911. And then miraculously, the pieces fell in place, and suddenly, all the problems were solved. The symptoms of a heart attack dissipated. God was glorified, and His providence and mercy again exalted.

While I have had no time to work on my books which is my income producing job, God is always working. Check out this screenshot this morning of the top Amazon sellers in Horse books:

The first two books in the series are #2 and #3 top sellers, and the third book in my series is the top 'hot new release'. I am ecstatic. (Book 2 - Gidget: The Horse Formerly Known as Witch, is only 99 cents for the next three days, FYI.)

So what did God teach me?
1. Don't give up in impossible situations if the core issue is one of deep moral significance. It will not be easy as Satan hates giving God the victory in things like building the moral fiber of anyone to follow His commands.
2. Obstacles do not mean God is blocking you if you are prayerfully helping someone who is vulnerable and in need. It means God trusts you to persevere and rely on His strength when your strength is depleted.
3. His miraculous power is often most spectacularly revealed when the obstacles are so great that you know you cannot overcome them on your own.
4. Don't worry about your needs. When you must put them aside to help others who are vulnerable and truly helpless, God provides.
5. Follow the desires of your heart. When you love God, your desires begin to transform to His desires, and His purposes will be fulfilled.
6. Never go into spiritual battle alone. Surround yourself with like-minded believers who will help you, uphold you, and bathe you in prayer.
7. When you come out victorious, praise God. The victory belongs to Him.

Finally, draw pictures often, and delight in the wonder of creation.

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Colossians 1:16 

For by him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities—all things were created through him and for him.

1 Chronicles 29:11 

Yours, O Lord, is the greatness and the power and the glory and the victory and the majesty, for all that is in the heavens and in the earth is yours. Yours is the kingdom, O Lord, and you are exalted as head above all.

Exodus 14:14

The Lord will fight for you, and you have only to be silent.”

Psalm 28:7 

The Lord is my strength and my shield; in him my heart trusts, and I am helped; my heart exults, and with my song I give thanks to him.

Gratitude For the Lessons We Are Taught

For the first children's art class I have taught in several years I invited the parents to stay and draw. I was a little nervous, as I always am when I am in front of a group, but soon was in my element. There were fifteen people drawing, and every one of them looked happy. Every parent, to my surprise, stayed. Many of them followed along, drawing their own picture.

Thank you Lord for giving me the ability to do this.

It has been such a long time since I have taught young kids. I had forgotten how much fun it is. They are so eager, so enthusiastic, so filled with wide-eyed wonder. When we reached the shading segment of the process, they could hardly believe how their two dimensional rendering of a horse seemed to rise off the page in a three dimensional trot.

Every person, including the moms, drew a beautiful horse. All the nervousness in the kids (and me) had vanished. We were united in a new kinship- the love of the magic of drawing.
I taught them that there were four major steps I always follow:
1. Block in the drawing with basic shapes
2. Correct the outline or contour
3. Determine the light source and shade accordingly
4. Add details.

This is not a bad prescription for life.
1. Block in the major goals
2. Outline the best way to reach them
3. Look to the light source, Jesus.
4. Don't neglect the little things in life, the details. They are sometimes what make it all worthwhile and bring the whole picture to life.

As the class ended, I bade them all goodbye, and began cleaning up. One little girl came up to me. I glanced up.
"Thank you," she said. And then she hugged me.

This little girl who had been a total stranger two hours ago was so delighted with the lesson that she hugged me. I had forgotten what it felt like to be so simply appreciated. I need to keep that in mind when the lessons for me from God conclude.

Thank you God. I am hugging you in my heart.
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Luke 17:11-19

On the way to Jerusalem he was passing along between Samaria and Galilee. And as he entered a village, he was met by ten lepers, who stood at a distance and lifted up their voices, saying, “Jesus, Master, have mercy on us.” When he saw them he said to them, “Go and show yourselves to the priests.” And as they went they were cleansed. Then one of them, when he saw that he was healed, turned back, praising God with a loud voice; ...

Psalm 118:28-29 

You are my God, and I will give thanks to you; you are my God; I will extol you. Oh give thanks to the Lord, for he is good; for his steadfast love endures forever!

Ephesians 1:16-18 

I do not cease to give thanks for you, remembering you in my prayers, that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give you a spirit of wisdom and of revelation in the knowledge of him, having the eyes of your hearts enlightened, that you may know what is the hope to which he has called you, what are the riches of his glorious inheritance in the saints,

John 11:41 

So they took away the stone. And Jesus lifted up his eyes and said, “Father, I thank you that you have heard me.

Bad News or God's hand?

Some setbacks with one of the mamas who chose life over abortion that I work with...yet another delay in what I had hoped would be an easy and quick process getting her into her permanent safe maternity home.

"Bad news" I texted to my friends helping me in this endeavor. (I cannot share details.) My friend responded perfectly.
"Bad news, or God's hand?"

See, we usually look at bad news as...well...bad news. Setbacks. Disappointments. Cause for ripping hair out, wailing and gnashing of teeth.
But my friend's comment changed everything for me.

If God is in control, AND HE IS, then nothing happens without His notice, and "all things work together for the good of those who love Him who have been called according to His purpose."

Bad News is not Bad News.

It is opportunity for the light to shine in the darkness. Opportunity for God to display His power. Opportunity for us to rely on nothing but faith and trust in the only one who can change all outcomes. Opportunity to remember that the temporal will one day vanish in eternity and we have a choice over where we spend eternity.

"Probably God's hand," I texted back to my friend, "He has been with us all along, so of course, He is still with us."
"Amen," said my friend.
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Psalm 112:7 

He is not afraid of bad news; his heart is firm, trusting in the Lord.

Romans 15:13 

May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that by the power of the Holy Spirit you may abound in hope.

Mark 5:36

But overhearing what they said, Jesus said to the ruler of the synagogue, “Do not fear, only believe.”

Jeremiah 29:11

For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope.

Psalm 28:7 

The Lord is my strength and my shield; in him my heart trusts, and I am helped; my heart exults, and with my song I give thanks to him.

Psalm 9:10

And those who know your name put their trust in you, for you, O Lord, have not forsaken those who seek you.

In The Power of God

An impossible situation, a million road blocks, and an incredible dream. A pregnant teen Cities4Life was in the midst of rescuing stood before me, on the cusp of an amazing new life. The pieces were miraculously falling in place.

This young lady had told me her dream was to be a lawyer, to help others who cannot help themselves. Given the struggles in her life and her powerlessness, it was a noble dream. Was it realistic? I don't know. But all of us need impossible dreams. If we don't, we never see the most awesome power of God displayed on our behalf.

So I gave her a gift. My son had left behind a Harvard Law sweatshirt when he went on to law school and then his career as a lawyer. He had harbored the same dream as this young lady since he was eleven-years-old.

I know the power of a dream. 

I wrapped the sweatshirt and presented it to her yesterday. When she opened the gift bag, her eyes widened. There was a moment of confusion, and then a gasp of understanding as she read the logo on the chest.

Someone believed in her.

Instantly she put the sweatshirt on. She did not speak but I knew what was in her heart, enveloped in this expression of hope and faith.
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for more info on this life changing ministry, go to charlotte.cities4life.org
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Jeremiah 31:3

The Lord appeared to him from far away. I have loved you with an everlasting love; therefore I have continued my faithfulness to you.

Jesus Wept

I have never seen the abortion center parking lot so full. There had to be fifty cars or more, and even more were in a lower lot. All were there to terminate a baby's life. Two women left, having chosen life for their unborn child. Each of the rest of those cars would be driving away with a mother huddling in her seat, contemplating the fact that she had brought her own child to a violent end.

Mind numbing despair.

The women we saw were probably not what most people imagine would frequent a low-cost abortion center. They were largely young, Caucasian women of college age. Many drove fancy cars. Some had Christian stickers on their windows. We surmised this was the last chance to get an abortion before returning for the College Spring semester.

This is the ugly truth of abortion. Young women, hanging on the arms of young men engage in sex outside of marriage, get pregnant, and then destroy human life, all before they are even out of college. What kind of way is that to start life as an emerging, responsible, moral adult?

Our pastor's message Sunday was to speak the truth in love.

I must admit, speaking in love is not always easy when the sheer numbers of dead babies being piled in the trash bin overwhelms my senses.

Two babies were safe...but look at that picture of a parking lot with every space filled, like coffins lined up in a morgue after a gruesome battle. The carnage of innocent, tiny human beings. Oh Lord, how despairing!

How innocent and fun it all seems...all those TV shows and movies with provocatively dressed women, engaging in casual sex as though there were no consequences. What fuddy duddies we are to raise an alarm. How silly we are with our message of abstinence, and protective boundaries, and strict moral code regarding sex outside of marriage.

The shortest verse in the Bible applies here. Jesus wept. How could He not? And He was not alone. Several of the young mothers were weeping as well, as they drove away. The shook their heads as we asked if we could help, tears streaming like open wounds from their heart.

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On a positive note, today is an important day for the young lady we recently rescued from a coercive abortion. Please pray all goes well. We are confident God is working miracles for this brave girl.
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John 11:35 

Jesus wept.

Revelation 1:7 

Behold, he is coming with the clouds, and every eye will see him, even those who pierced him, and all tribes of the earth will wail on account of him. Even so. Amen.