Chandra White-Cummings
Day 14: Even Now
I tell you what. Just when I thought, “What else can we say about ending abortion? How many times can we write about women in pain, children losing their lives, and hurting families?” Well, Father Frank Pavone answered me in spades with his devotional for today. He reflects on such a familiar passage of scripture that I almost blew past the richness of the message.
Lazarus has died, and Martha confronts Jesus on his way to their home with words that we too often have wrestled with ourselves: if only you had been here. That sentiment expresses a certain level of faith because it is based on a confidence that God has the power to prevent awful situations from happening when He shows up. Certainly true. I think about how some Christians felt when political power changed hands this past November. God could have prevented that from happening. But He didn’t. And now the full implications of that transition are being felt in the pro-life camp. The swift repeal of the Mexico City gag rule, the attempt to include government-sponsored abortion funding in the stimulus bill, and the apparently imminent rescission of the provider conscience regulations all point to some rough waters ahead for those concerned about the life issue.
So what shall we say then? Will we throw in the towel and say there is no hope? Or will we let our faith take us to a deeper level, as Martha did. She could have stopped her assessment of her brother’s death at her first statement, If you had been here … But she went further. “But I know that even now God will give you whatever you ask.” I think we’d do well to have the same attitude. Whether our guy won or not, God is still able to save children from death, still able to raise up living testimonies of His grace and power to a lost world, and still able to accomplish His will in the hearts of men. The very thought of it sets my soul on fire.
Find out more at the 40 Days for Life website.
Previous Posts
• Day 13: Wondrous Love
• Day 12: The Real Reason Why
• Day 11: Exhausted and Spent
• Day 10: Every Breath We Take
• Day 9: First Things First
• Day 8: In the Power of Our Hand
• Day 7: Somebody Prayed for Them
• Day 6: Knowing Us
• Day 5: Mercy in the Midst of Judgment
• Day 4: Not for the Faint of Heart
• Day 3: The Unborn Child as Lazarus?