day 7 - public vigil

My little son... Only 24 weeks... Not much more than a pound.
i carried him in my womb the day of our kick off rally. He made it impossible to button my coat, he also made it impossible to be mentally removed from the reason we gathered as he wiggled in my belly - a tiny life - unready for the outside world, stretching muscles, practicing movement, growing and developing.
After we had gathered in a dark little room we rented at the community center - sharing light and strength and encouragement for an hour, we drove to the vigil site. We climbed out of the protection of our vehicles onto that sanctified Holy Ground. Obeying the bubble zone court injunction to the letter, four by four we walked that side walk carrying simple signs and praying for a Holy God to intercede on behalf of the weak.
And my little son - tucked safe and warm inside the body of his mother was not counted in our number as i took my turn with three others.
It becomes easy in those moments to walk in silence - or to talk with those kindred spirits who walk beside us... but i forced myself to lift my voice - just a little - lest it be lost in the wind, "Oh, God..." i began, and my simple prayer - uttered in weakness floated over the grey icy ground we walked.
"Yes..." i heard beside me... Agreement. "Amen, Father..."
As i stumbled over my words and thoughts, this, "so be it" of the figure walking beside me strengthened my prayer and as my prayer subsided, his began. We slowed our stride as each of the four voiced our petition and we acknowledged with gratitude that we served a worthy God - one who neither slumbers nor sleeps.
And the motion of our walk - the swaying of his mother's body as i walked and prayed outside the clinic that brings death - rocked my tiny son to sleep.

"If I speak in the tongues of men or of angels, but do not have love, I am only a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal. If I have the gift of prophecy and can fathom all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have a faith that can move mountains, but do not have love, I am nothing. If i give all I possess to the poor and give over my body to hardship that I may boast, but do not have love, I gain nothing. Love is patient, love is kind, it does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. Love never fails." 1 Corinthians 13:1-8

"Dear Lord, your love is so far above my own, I confess that I am not sure how to love people i've never met. But your Word says we love because you first loved us (1 John 4:19). You love each woman entering and leaving every abortion facility. As I read the voices of some of those women today, I could sense their loss and pain. Today, I pray for the women in my town who have gone through the painful experience of abortion. I thank you for the people you have called to the front lines to stand and pray and be a witness that you love us all. Increase my love for those women today, Lord, and give me the boldness to take the next step in showing your love to them in concrete ways. Amen." (excerpt from book, 40 Days for Life, available on Amazon).