It has been said, “Don’t just shout at the darkness. Light a candle.” Often, the church finds itself shouting into the darkness with a hopeless plea for the darkness to stop being, well, so dark! However, WE are the light of the world, Jesus says. That means, we don’t need to be afraid of the darkness. We simply need to be faithful to him, allowing the light of Christ to shine through us. When it comes to the issue of abortion, however, how exactly can the church shine the light? I want to spend a moment unpacking this.

  1. We can love single/at-risk moms. You may have noticed our new flags in front of the church, proclaiming, “We love single moms” and “Hope and help found here” This is Bailey’s commitment, along with other Newaygo county churches, to let women know that, no matter the circumstances through which their pregnancy came about, they and their unborn child are welcome here! In conjunction with this network called Bridge Newaygo (www.bridgenewaygo.org), churches in our area are working together to help, love, and hopefully even be able to provide housing for these women.. We want these mothers to know the church is here for them; that Jesus is here for them.
  2. We can love women and men who have experienced the pain of an abortion. The guilt, and shame that often continue on for years, can leave a person feeling as if God has rejected them. Moreover, they may fear that if people in the church knew, they would surely reject them. Sadly, this might be true in some cases. That needs to change! All brokenness is covered by the healing grace of Jesus, no matter the issue.
  3. We can champion adoption. There are so many families who would love to be able to adopt a baby. “Yes, but,” the critics say, “how are we going to find homes for 900,000 babies each year?” However, as Dr. Marc Newman, professor and pro-life advocate, shared recently, “We’ll find a way to care for them!” Moreover, many of the women who might actually carry their babies to term may find that the mother-child connection kicks in, and they don’t want either abortion or adoption. Granted, a task of this size won’t be easy, but our God is the God of life, and he will provide! BTW, just think about the logic in the other direction. “Since it might be hard or cost us something to care for 900,000 babies, let’s just get rid of the burden.” Let that sink in!
  4. We can help people know the reality of abortion’s impact. Abortion may arise out of a desperate situation. Groups like Planned Parenthood, however, are not likely to counsel pregnant mothers coming to them about the emotional or spiritual impacts that often continue throughout a woman’s life, not to mention the physical complications that can sometimes occur. More importantly, the goal of the abortion industry is to shield people from the reality that what lies within the womb is not simply a mass of tissue or cells, but is a person; a boy or girl made in God’s image with all the potential of growing and developing. This is why some in the abortion industry are not interested in showing ultrasound images to women considering abortion. Otherwise, these clients might begin to see this “mass” as an actual  human being. 
  5. We can help people know the truth behind Michigan’s Proposal 3 on this November’s ballot. An article on https://www.bridgemi.com/guest-commentary/opinion-proposal-3-bad-idea-michigan notes:
The ACLU and our nation’s largest abortion provider Planned Parenthood drafted the proposal to further its own extreme ends.  How did we arrive at this conclusion?  Their own words, which reveal three facts about Proposal 3: 1) it eliminates parental rights, 2) it allows abortion through all nine months of pregnancy up to delivery, and 3) it guts the state’s right to regulate abortion, leaving abortionists to regulate themselves.

   I have been doing research to make sure I know the issues at stake with Proposal 3. My biggest concern when dealing with a hot-button issue of this magnitude is to make sure I understand it and speak accurately about it. In reading over the proposal again, I see some things I had not caught or had misunderstood from my earlier reading. Accuracy and integrity matter. Having said this, what is clear is that this proposal would throw off all previous restraints in our current law regarding abortion and make it very, very difficult to put future restrictions on abortion once the Michigan constitution has been amended. That is why I believe it is so important to vote NO on Prop. 3!

   As Christians, we are called to “speak up for those who cannot speak for themselves” (Prov. 31:8). What group is more vulnerable, more powerless in our society than unborn children? Let’s speak up for the unborn, even as we embrace and love the mothers who will carry them to term.

   Lastly, if you have experienced the pain of an abortion and need people to lovingly walk alongside of you, please reach out to us, or you can contact Insight Pregnancy Services (insightpregnancy.com). Also, if you would like to discuss this issue further or have concerns or questions, please feel free contact me, as well  (darenp1@gmail.com)

In Christ,
Daren