As I began this post, the country was anticipating the possible announcement of a Supreme Court decision regarding Roe v. Wade. Everyone knew that it could come in the next few days, but no one knew for sure when it would be, or even whether it might be postponed. Well, the news hit before I could wrap it up, and given its potential historical and cultural significance, ignoring it was not a reasonable option. So, I’ll simply acknowledge the significance of this major spiritual and moral victory with a few comments that I hope will be relevant and appropriate.

Disturbing Reactions and Hard Questions ~
Those who still believe in God in this land will be sickened again as the mainstream “news” media brings out their parade. They will scour the realms of entertainment, movies,  politics, sports, academia, celebrity elites, corporate billionaires, and social media to find people to wail about how awful it is that they won’t be able to randomly kill babies who might be inconvenient. They will fan the flames of hatred, validate the mayhem, distort the truth, and deny the facts. We will wonder again how a nation whose motto is “In God We Trust” could have allowed all this to develop. Then we’ll wonder what we should do about it. Those are hard questions with no quick or easy answers. Our first response should be obvious. We must go before the Source of all life and thank Him for the lives that this ruling will potentially save. Beyond that, there are a few other suggestions we might consider:

• • Don’t think the battle is over.  Abortion is a cardinal doctrine in the only kind of religion that Marxism allows, and they will never give up the fight. If anything, the battle will only intensify from this point onward. There will be a well choreographed, systematic campaign not only to re-establish abortion as a “right,” but to expand it even more. There will be legal battles, political battles, ecclesiastical battles, and even physical battles in the days and months again. Pro-abortionists and their accomplices will seek to make this the paramount issue throughout the land. Not being able to kill unwanted babies will be presented as more damaging than runaway inflation, an economic recession, food shortages, human trafficking, school systems attacking parental rights, or the danger of  fentanyl poisoning.
  • Don’t be intimidated.  The ruling is only hours old at this point, but the range and the nature of the threats are incredible. Everything from civil disobedience, to property destruction, to outright anarchy are being advocated by everything from reporters, to media personalities, to elected officials. In almost any case, being confronted by enraged people calling us names, falsely accusing us, threatening to harm us and/or destroy the source of our livelihood, is pretty hard to handle. It’s even worse when they seem to have an army of supporters behind them and we have few or none coming to our defense. Fear can often be a more daunting enemy than a physical opponent. There’s never been a better time for us to remember that we’re not helpless little orphans left to face the bullies alone. Through faith in Jesus Christ, we are sons and daughters of God, and whatever the threat, our Father can handle it: 

For you did not receive the spirit of bondage again to fear, but you received the Spirit of adoption by whom we cry out, “Abba, Father.” (Romans 8:15 NKJV)

• • Don’t be misguided by talking points and slogans.  Lies and distortions are already flying around like mosquitoes on a muggy summer evening. Talking points like “Nobody can tell a woman what she can do with her body” are being recycled in some form with nauseating repetition. It’s interesting that those in this same crowd are helpless to answer the simple question, “What, exactly, is a ‘woman’ anyhow?” You’ll notice also that we never heard this declaration being screamed at the government bureaucrats who were telling these same women that they had to put a mask on their face. And where was all this defiance when they were told to surrender an arm to get some chemicals injected into it? The hysterical screams of “My body, my choice!” were strangely missing back then. The slogans are hypocritical and disingenuous, and the claim that a baby is just a blob of fetal tissue is a satanic lie. There is no recognition of truth by pro-abortion advocates, so praying for them is a better investment of time than debating them.
  • Don’t look for a neutral place to hide. Most of us do not like conflict, and that’s probably a good thing. Otherwise we’d be running around starting fights all the time. But spiritual warfare is going on, and our job is to engage the enemy effectively. The Apostle Paul’s admonition cannot be clearer or more vital: 

Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places. Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand. (Ephesians 6:11–13 NKJV)

• • Don’t be distracted from pursuing God’s will for your life.  This abortion issue will be one of those that, at least for a while, will, as they say, suck up all the oxygen in the room, especially the newsrooms. The rhetoric is already intense and inflammatory, and it’s tough not to get so mentally and emotionally engaged that we sort of lose ourselves in it. Thankfully, there are spiritual warriors God will call to fight this battle full time, but it may not be you or me. God has called every one of us to engage the enemy and to counter the deceitful world system that is sucking everything good out of life as God intended it to be. How we do that, as well as when and where, is God’s call to make, not ours. We are His to direct, and our mission begins by opening ourselves to hear from Him.
  • Don’t miss this opportunity for personal cleansing and revival.  One of the things that grieves my heart as I write these things is the awareness that there are multitudes of families whose lives have been affected in some way by abortion. Obviously, I have no doubts or questions about the fact that a child inside a womb has the same right to life as I do, but I harbor no animosity against those who have taken that life away. I have deep sadness and regret for all that led up to it and all that followed after. My prayer is that God will extend mercy and forgiveness to all of us. We are guilty of leaving the Word of God out of our lives or on the sidelines in too many ways. As our churches became spiritually and morally weaker, our families began to disintegrate, and healthy boundaries disappeared. Sins became personal identifiers, and behaviors that God condemned were heralded not only as acceptable, but desirable. We have much to confess and forsake.

So, as today’s historical event collides with our lives, we must not miss this opportunity for personal confession and cleansing. If we don’t have that, we will never see a real awakening and revival. But if we do, it will be astounding what the living God might do.

“TWEETABLES” ~ Click to tweet and share from the pull quotes below.  Each one links directly back to this article through Twitter . . .

• • “Don’t think the battle is over. Abortion is a cardinal doctrine in the only kind of religion that Marxism allows, and they will never give up the fight. If anything, the battle will only intensify from this point onward.” @GallaghersPen (Click here to Tweet)  
  • “There’s never been a better time for us to remember that we’re not helpless little orphans left to face the bullies alone. Through faith in Jesus Christ, we are sons and daughters of God, and whatever the threat, our Father can handle it.” @GallaghersPen (Click here to Tweet)  
  • “Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil . . .  Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand.” (Eph 6:11–13) @GallaghersPen (Click here to Tweet)  
  • “God has called every one of us to engage the enemy and to counter the deceitful world system that is sucking everything good out of the lives of everyone he can. How we do that, as well as when and where, is God’s call to make, not ours.” @GallaghersPen (Click here to Tweet) 
  • “As today’s historical event collides with our lives, don’t miss this opportunity for personal confession and cleansing. If we don’t have that, we will never see a real awakening. If we do, it will be astounding what the living God may do.” @GallaghersPen (Click here to Tweet)

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