I turn 71 years old today (7-18-22), and I usually allow myself longer than a 1-minute devotion on my birthday. This year I want to take a few extra minutes to talk about an issue that God has laid on my heart. And I also want to express my gratitude that the Lord knit me together in my mother’s womb.
I was an unplanned, unexpected baby, born only 15 months after my older sister, and when my mother had me she almost died from complications during my delivery.
I was unplanned by my parents, but I was planned by God, who prepared things for me to do in advance (Ephesians 2:10).
"For you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother’s womb. I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well. My frame was not hidden from you when I was made in the secret place, when I was woven together in the depths of the earth. Your eyes saw my unformed body; all the days ordained for me were written in your book before one of them came to be." Psalm 139:13-16
The passage above and the passage below give all of us a strong, compelling reason to speak up for unborn children.
“Speak up for those who cannot speak for themselves; ensure justice for those being crushed. Yes, speak up for the poor and helpless, and see that they get justice.” Proverbs 31:8-9
I'm unashamedly pro-life! But before I tell you a bit more of my personal story, let me share a few facts to counter the pro-abortion propaganda we've been hearing since the overturn of Roe v. Wade:
✔ If a pro-choice person is genuinely pro-choice, they should be happy about the overturning of Roe v. Wade.
Overturning Roe did not make abortion illegal. It allowed the citizens to have a choice and vote about the abortion laws in their states. It gave each of us a right to choose instead of having the federal government deny our choice.
In Roe v. Wade, the Supreme Court overstepped their bounds and took on the job of the legislature by making law instead of interpreting it. This short video explains how to reply when someone says, "Abortion is a Constitutional Right."
✔Despite pro-abortion rhetoric, restricting abortion will not lead to increased back-alley deaths.
That's simply a scare tactic. This short video by a former abortion doctor explains how to reply when someone says, "Women Will Die from Back Alley Abortions."
✔ All abortion laws since the 1800's have allowed abortion if the mother's life was at risk.
This was true before Roe v. Wade and it will be true after the overturning of Roe v. Wade. The strictest abortion laws have always made this exception.
But pro-abortion groups continue to claim that women in this situation would die if abortion was illegal. In fact, some pro-abortion groups are now spreading the lie that women with ectopic pregnancies and miscarriages will be denied treatment because Roe was overturned. This short video done by a neonatologist doctor sets the record straight: "Abortion Can be Medically Necessary."
✔ Pro-abortion groups use rare cases to justify unlimited abortion.
Rape accounts for approximately 1% of abortions and incest approximate .5%. But people use these two exceptions to claim that abortion should be legal for any and every reason. Please listen to this video featuring a woman whose mother was raped: Abortion in Cases of Rape.
✔ If a person believes abortion should be legal for rape and incest cases, they should still rejoice at the overturning of Roe.
Roe forced every state to make abortion available for women "at any time, for any reason, in any way they choose." Since 1973, 63 million babies have been killed through abortion, some of whom were torn limb from limb only days before they would have been born. If a person thinks it should be allowed only in cases of rape and incest, they should strongly oppose laws that allow it for any and every reason.
✔ Millions of women in our country are suffering from post abortion syndrome.
Pro-abortion groups ignore or deny the truth about PAS. Pro-life groups are actively involved in counseling women with this problem, helping them find forgiveness and healing. If pro-abortion groups were genuinely pro-woman, they would warn women about this problem and be involved in the cure.
To read more, see Satan's Tactic: Use Lies to Scare People.
Back to my story...
Many of you know that I have a book coming out next spring (see Update at bottom), and I can't help but think how God had plans for this unplanned baby girl to one day publish a book that honors Him. And He has plans for each of you as well (Jeremiah 29:11).
"For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do." Ephesians 2:10
If you haven't read how God brought the circ*mstances together so I could share His truth in a book, please see A Bible Love Notes Book in 2023.
The book will be 100 1-minute devotions from the books of Psalms and Proverbs. And I’ll let you have a sneak peek of a paragraph from one of the devotions in the book. It's based on Psalm 139:13-16:
“Verses 13-16 praise God as our Creator, confirming the sanctity of unborn human life, telling us that God knits us together in our mother’s womb and keeps His eye on us before we ever see the light of day. We are His creation. He has known us from the moment we were conceived. He knows every detail of our childhood and every fear of our adult years. He loves us, and He’s always with us.”
As a young woman, my mother made Jesus her Lord, and even when she thought she’d die after my birth, she knew that her Lord would never leave her nor forsake her (Hebrews 13:5). And that’s what she taught me.
She taught me about Jesus and lived what she taught. And God allowed me to be at her bedside 41 years after my unplanned birth so I could pray for her as she went to be with her Lord and mine.
As I celebrate my birthday this year, I want to celebrate my momma as well because she accepted my untimely birth as part of God's plan, giving me physical life under difficult circ*mstances. And then she helped me find eternal life in Christ.
Please pray that the overturning of Roe v. Wade will allow more unplanned babies to have the gift of life. And pray that more women will see God's hand in their unplanned pregnancy as my momma did.
Do you have a "God-story" about an unplanned pregnancy? Why not share it with someone today!
I started Bible Love Notes in July 2011, and I haven't written a birthday devotion every year, but you might enjoy some of the older ones:
Today's My Birthday: 2012
2013, updated: A One-Minute Testimony of My Life
2017: God Placed You in My Life
2018: 7 Characteristics of Modern Christians
2019: Eight Years of Good to Bad
2020: Tomorrow is my 69th Birthday
UPDATE: you can now order theWisdom for LifeDevotional. It contains 100 one-minute devotions to challenge, encourage, instruct, and inspire your love for God's Word:Wisdom for Life. Read the story behindWisdom for LifeHERE. And find out about the twofreeBible studies with purchase HERE.
I also encourage you to sign up or a free subscription to Bible Love Notes and get a free e-booklet. Find out moreHERE.
Bible Love Notes
