January 22, 1973

On January 22, 1973 the United States Supreme Court legalized abortion in this country.

On that same day, one year prior, I was being carefully knitted in the womb of my 17 year old mother. If my calculations are correct she would have been close to her 2nd trimester and I would have been growing itty bitty fingernails! I guess I was looking something like this:

















Had her choices been different in the fall of 1971 when I was conceived, I most certainly would not be here today. If she had been given the option to abort her pregnancy and save her family the embarrassment and expense of a baby then without question the decision would have been swift and firm and most likely out of her hands. She would have been considered "unfit" and my grandparents were in no position to care for another child. In the eyes of the world, to end this pregnancy would be "best"......for everyone.

By grace alone I am here. Through that same grace I came to surrender my life to the Lord and acknowledge the complete sinful nature that sets me apart. I am grateful and humbled for the gift; the grace gift of forgiveness and reconciliation. How grateful could I be if I failed to acknowledge the reality of what "could have been" and what sadly has come to be for so many unborn babies?

The bible is so very clear about where God considers *life* to begin.

Jeremiah stated, Then the word of the Lord came to me, saying: “Before I formed you in the womb I knew you; Before you were born I sanctified you; I ordained you a prophet to the nations." (Jeremiah 1:4-5)

King David, in one of his Messianic Psalms, states "But You are He who took Me out of the womb; You made Me trust while on My mother’s breasts. I was cast upon You from birth. From My mother’s womb You have been My God." (Psalm 22:9-10).

King David also praised God’s perfect knowledge of Man when he sang "For You formed my inward parts; You covered me in my mother’s womb. I will praise You for I am fearfully and wonderfully made; Marvelous are Your works, And that my soul knows very well. My frame was not hidden from You, When I was made in secret, And skillfully wrought in the lowest parts of the earth. Your eyes saw my substance, being unformed. And in Your book they all were written. The days fashioned for me, When as yet there were none of them."(Psalm 139:13-16).

Mary, while pregnant with Jesus, visited Elizabeth who was pregnant with John the Baptist. "Now Mary arose in those days and went into the hill country with haste, to a city of Judah, and entered the house of Zacharias and greeted Elizabeth. And it happened, when Elizabeth heard the greeting of Mary, that the babe leaped in her womb; and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit. Then she spoke out with a loud voice and said, "Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb! But why is this granted to me that the mother of my Lord should come to me? For indeed, as soon as the voice of your greeting sounded in my ears, the babe leaped in my womb for joy.”

I could write pages about the graphic facts on abortion but it shouldn't be necessary. Do people need to witness a murder with it's vile images to determine that it is wrong? I could also write pages about the misconceptions that most people have in regard to what is *legal* in this country. Again, it shouldn't be necessary. Conception is life- enough said. Still, there are those who will argue about when conception begins and so I'm sure they would be stunned with disbelief to learn that there are small percentages of abortions performed each year on babies who are close to full-term and yes- it is legal.

On Sunday, January 21st the President of the United States has again made the proclamation for the National Sanctity of Human Life Day, 2007 . While he is a president that stands amid great controversy and public ridicule I am grateful to live in a time where our nation's leader has spoken up for the unborn.

My goal for this year is to regularly volunteer at our local Crisis Pregnancy Center and to include my girls in that. They are a beautiful legacy that speaks of His grace, His perfect plan, and his love for the unborn. They exist because in the fall of 1972, Roe vs. Wade did not.

On July 20, 1972, two days after my mother turned 18 years old she gave birth to me:


















What a porker!