What's the point?

Some of you might wonder in the back of your heads at intervals, "What's the point of standing here? Is this really accomplishing anything?"

David Bereit addressed this concern on the 40 DFL national blog today where relates the story of a taxi driver who pulled over to tell the prayer vigilantes in Providence, RI that they truly make a difference:

The driver went on to explain that he'd been seeing
people praying outside the facility for a few years.
"Sometimes there's just one," he said. "I don't like
that, when one of you is left alone."

It made this man think. "I asked myself why anyone
would come out in the rain, the snow, the heat, the
night, the morning -- even when you're alone, and even
when people were mean to you. I figured what you were
doing meant something big. Why else would you do it?"

The regular prayer presence, and the sign he often saw
with a scripture passage -- "Before I formed you in the
womb, I knew you" -- made a deep impression.

"What you do, standing and praying and holding that
sign, standing no matter what -- that is enough," he said.

"It speaks for itself. That's the message. It's true."

So take heart, dear friends. Sometimes standing and praying speaks louder than words, letters, protests, or logic ever could. When we stand, we stand with the One who has known and loved us before we were in the womb. We stand with people in Providence, RI and hundreds of other cities.

This Saturday, as you pray at 320, recall what Christ did for each of these children, for each of the staff, for each of the mothers, and for each of us. Recall who stands with you and give thanks~

Pray for Congress

As the Senate bills come up for vote, with so much hanging in the balance, it seems only a miracle could change the outcome when such a concerted effort is being made on the part of those who promote abortions no matter what the will of the people indicates.

We merely have recourse to a just God, a loving God who sees all and hears the prayers of a just people.We can submit ourselves more faithfully to the will of God in this time in our nation's history, and in doing so, we fulfill the purpose for which we have been created by that same loving God.

We can pray that our elected representatives in Congress will seek to fulfill the purpose for which they have been created, that they will seek justice for all, will seek to defend the dignity and rights of all, will seek the health, wellbeing, and care of all. Our president recently affirmed this truth, however misplaced and myopic it sounds coming from him: "It's a debate about the character of our country -- about whether we can still meet the challenges of our time, whether we still have the guts and the courage to give every citizen, not just some, the chance to reach their dreams."

I couldn't have framed the question better myself...do we as a nation have the courage to give every citizen the chance to reach their dreams? We must pray that regardless of the outcome of this vote, citizens will continue to seek the protection of the rights and dignity and very lives of their fellow citizens: those in the womb, those who do not value human dignity, and those who stand, like each one of us do, in sinfulness, in need of mercy, in need of loving, cherishing respect and forgiveness.

Pray for the members in Congress who believe every citizen has the right to live, and pray especially for those who deny this right. May God have mercy on us all!

Pray for those who persecute you

If you follow this link, you will find a list of all the abortionists in this country.

I can't think of a better way to spend your Saturday vigils than to offer up prayers for these fellows and all those who staff the places where they work, places like 320 E. Fulton. Pray that the scales may fall from their eyes, just as they fell from the eyes of Abby Johnson.

So far in the spring 40 Days, there have been 108 children saved by your prayers, your humbling yourselves before the Lord, and seeking His face.

Lent is fast upon us

Yesterday I went to 320 for my first Saturday of prayer on behalf of the children in the womb, their mothers and families, and all those who will influence the outcome of what happens to their precious young lives.

I contemplated anew the moment when Jesus meets his mother on the via dolorosa.

Jesus, more than any other human being, identifies with the children aborted every week in Grand Rapids. He knows each one of them intimately, for he fashioned each one of them in the womb; he knows what it's like to suffer at the hands of those who find your life an encumbrance to their plans; he knows what it's like to die despised, to bleed without solace, to be discarded by those you have come into the world to love.

What will it be like when those children, crucified in the womb, meet their mothers? We pray that such a meeting in heaven will be possible. We pray that the Lord wash over these women His love and mercy. We pray that they may heal from the wound their choices made. We pray that they may embrace their child with love, with tender hearts, with love of Jesus written in their hearts eternally.

We, more than many other human beings, can stand in union with Mary, the mother of Jesus. Like her, we watch this endless series of crucifixions, limited but not powerless to change the outcome. We stand in prayer, sorrowful, hopeful, maternal prayer, knowing that with God all things are possible.

Please stand with us each Saturday in Lent, as we join cities across this nation, praying and fasting for an end to abortion at 320 E. Fulton, and in every place that God has prepared for Life to thrive and dwell with Him forever.

Your perpetual light

The vigil ended quietly into the wee hour before All Souls Day.

Jane and I stood with our candles, praying that the Lord will establish peace at 320.

Peace and healing for the mothers who will taste the bitterness of a horrid choice.

Peace and new life for the children they have killed.

We also prayed in thanksgiving for the blessings of our vigil:

We had more night coverage than ever before, more non-Catholic churchgoers than ever before, more reports of lives saved than in years past.

We outlasted our friends holding their protest signs as we lovingly, silently prayed.

I hope everyone who came will continue to enter more deeply into the love of Christ.

Glory be to God, now and forever, and unto ages of ages!

3:20

Revelation 3
20	Behold, I stand at the door and knock; if any one hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and eat with him, and he with me.
21	I will give the victor the right to sit with me on my throne, as I myself first won the victory and sit with my Father on his throne.
22	He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.

Let us pray on this day of victory that those who work at 320 Fulton will hear His voice and open the door.

Let us pray that the churches of this city will hear His voice and open the door to Jesus present in the children perishing weekly while we busy ourselves in other tasks.

Let us pray that we will join those children at the throne of Jesus, one fine day, when the banquet is served.

Blessings of the Lord be upon all those who stood through rain, protests, and zoning complaints on behalf of His victory. Dear reader, never forget that the Lord loves nothing more than to share in your company. Praise Him! Go to Him! Open the door of your heart to Him! Make His victory known!!!

Choosing Life

One of the sidewalk counselors shares this prayer request:

Dear Friends,

I had a very dear girl show up at the Fulton Clinic today late. I asked her if she had an appointment and she replied that she did.....but went on to say that she was only here for an ultrasound.....was going to keep the baby.....and that Planned Parenthood had warned her about protesters.
Immediately I was able to connect with this friendly girl that faced a difficult road ahead.
She explained the dilemma that lay before here and still confirmed that no matter what, she was committed to life but she needed the ultrasound today. Since she was only a few weeks along, I could not get a free ultrasound for her today at our care centers. After talking about her situation in depth and begging her not to go into the abortion clinic for an ultrasound and wait the few weeks, she gave me a hug and said that she had to go in.
After about a half hour, she came out with the picture of her baby. She confirmed that they were short and cold in the abortion clinic and was so grateful that the two of us were out there to talk.
She plans to talk to her parents soon and it is uncertain how they will react to her pregnancy. After speaking with this girl for only a short time, I trust that she will continue to protect her unborn child. Without giving you all the details, I just ask that you pray for "E", a strong, happy girl who is doing the right thing in spite of the conflicts that lie ahead. Ask our dear Father to keep her strong and send support to her through the next months ahead.
We all treasure your commitment to prayer!!! Praise God for another LIFE choice!

from the President's desk

Through the grace and mercy of God -- and the
faithful prayers and fasting of well over 200,000
people standing vigil outside abortion facilities
-- an incredible miracle has taken place.

Starting with the first-ever 40 Days for Life
campaign in Bryan/College Station, Texas in 2004, and
continuing through the international 40 Days for Life
effort that is under way this fall, we now have
received cumulative reports of ...

... OVER 2,000 BABIES whose lives have been saved
from the tragedy of abortion!

Who knows what wonders each of these children will
bring to the world!

Two thousand children would be enough to fill at
least 80 classrooms. Two thousand children would be
enough to make up 180 teams of little soccer players
-- and just as importantly, 180 teams of soccer moms
-- women who will enjoy watching their children run
and jump and shout, blessings they would have never
known if they had fallen for the lies that are so
often disguised by the rhetoric of "choice."

Whose Victory?

Deuteronomy 1
----------------------------------------------------------------------------

30 The LORD your God who goes before you will himself fight for you, just as he did for you in Egypt before your eyes,
31 and in the wilderness, where you have seen how the LORD your God bore you, as a man bears his son, in all the way that you went until you came to this place.

Dear reader,

please join us at our Victory Celebration, to begin at LaGrave Church this Sunday at 2pm, and to end in thanksgiving prayer at 320 Fulton.

Victory? you might ask. But there are still abortions taking place at 320! That may be so, but there are also mothers choosing to spare their child's life and seek real help for their pregnancies. But not all the time slots were filled! That may be so, but there was more coverage from the Knights of Columbus during the Knight Shift this year than ever before, there were more non-Catholic churches involved than ever before, and there was almost total coverage during the hours when abortions are scheduled at 320. But...someone submitted a stupid zoning complaint to the city and we weren't allowed to park at Omega House anymore! Settle yourself. This was barely a setback. We had to walk a few more steps from our cars was all. In the end, we'll have a lovely parade of prayer from LaGrave Street all the way up to 320 that will draw quite a bit of attention from citizens who otherwise may not have known there are children perishing in their neighborhood every week. But...but...there were protesters...with signs...protesters? Where? I don't see any protesters. Oh-- you mean those two people coming on days it doesn't rain? Yeah, well...there aren't many people willing to get up every day and proclaim to the world, "Abortion rocks! Honk if you hate babies!"

Fortunately, there are many, many people in this city who chose to stand and proclaim before God and Grand Rapids, "I love life! I love Jesus! I want to humble myself through fasting, pray for an hour in the cold and rain, and seek the face of God in my brothers and sisters in need of healing at 320 Fulton!"

God's victories have never exactly made sense to our frail human minds. The Almighty Savior of the Universe, for example, was knitted in the womb of a virgin, a woman of low estate, was born in a small backwards speck on the map, and was first adored by shepherds, people who belonged to the most demeaned rung of their society. This same Almighty and Everlasting Prince would be whipped, stripped, and executed in the most abominable method known...and this was victory.

God's victory is that every single day, for forty days, someone stood at 320 and acknowledged His greatness in the silence of their hearts. God bore each one of us, dear reader, as a parent bears a child, while we made our way to 320. God will continue to bear each one of us, will continue to shelter us, caress us, forgive us, bring us peace, bring us victory. God will continue to love us, will continue to love each child who perishes, has numbered the hairs on each of their dear little heads, has cherished every cell in their tiny infant bodies. God will show mercy to those at 320 who change their evil ways. That includes the both of us, dear reader. I too am in need of healing, and thanks be to God, healing will come. God will love me, even when I neglect Him, even when I behave like the wayward people of God have always behaved since the time of the Exodus to the present day. God bore them, bears me, bears you, as a father bears his son. God holds us tenderly to his breast and whispers in our ear, "I love you!"

That victory we could spend an eternity trying to comprehend.