Join us for Alive from New York on May 4th in Times Square!
This week, President Donald Trump met with New York Governor Andrew Cuomo to discuss a variety of issues. While the details of the meeting have not been made public, New York’s new radical abortion law was definitely one of the topics of discussion. In fact, abortion has been at the center of a media storm over the past couple of weeks garnering attention and debate.
But for a woman in the midst of an unplanned pregnancy, politics are perhaps the furthest thing from her mind. The decisions that she and her boyfriend/partner/husband will have to make are deeply personal, and sometimes painful if abortion is the decided outcome. The media often makes abortion sound like the better and easier option, encouraging women to make a decision they will likely regret.
That’s why pregnancy resource centers are so important. These organizations present women with all their options and support them as they work through their decision, and many times they not only help save the life of the preborn child, but his or her parents as well.
That’s what Justine, and her now husband Dave, discovered as they began their journey through an unplanned pregnancy.
“Petrifying, I was petrified.” That’s how Justine described the moment she learned that she was pregnant. It was something that she wasn’t anticipating, especially as she and Dave had just started their path towards sobriety.
“It was kind of like you’re drowning because it is so overwhelming,” Justine said. “My mind was racing and thinking how we weren’t ready financially.”
Justine admitted that she was considering an abortion at first, but under the direction of the pregnancy resource center the couple came back a day later for an ultrasound. Then, everything changed.
“I cried from the time we found out to the time we got the ultrasound,” said Justine. “Then I saw the flickering of the heartbeat and said to Dave, ‘That’s our baby.’ I (initially) told him that I didn’t want to hear the heartbeat. But you can’t hide the heartbeat, it looks like a strobe light on the screen.”
“I knew in that moment that it was like God told me that this is your baby,” she said. “I’m giving you this baby, you do what you need to do.”
Although Justine and Dave were familiar with God and had learned more about a “higher power” during their sobriety program, they had yet to accept Christ. But God was working on their hearts. The pregnancy resource center staff, in addition to helping them with an ultrasound, had also been subtly sharing the Gospel with the couple the entire time.
“We ended up going to the church we’re going to now because of the pregnancy center,” Dave said. “We are the type of people that know God, He’s in our house but we (thought that we) don’t need to go to church. The pregnancy clinic, after talking with them before and after the decision, but then continually throughout five years that we’ve been with the pregnancy clinic. They would slowly and subtly (share about) Jesus.”
“It stuck to the point where I was by myself one day,” Dave said. “I was at a park and something said, ‘Go to church. Stop what you are doing right now and go to church.’ I did, I heard exactly what I needed to hear and got back from church and told Justine that we will be going to church every Sunday.”
And they do, with their two daughters.
An unplanned pregnancy can be unexpected and overwhelming, especially if a woman feels like her options are limited. That’s why pregnancy resource centers are so crucial to communities and are critical to help minimize the influence of New York’s new pro-abortion legislation.
On May 4th, consider joining Focus on the Family for Alive from New York in Times Square. The event will feature music, a live 4D ultrasound and several great speakers. Take a stand for life.
