By Jessica Evans

Pastoral Note:  As the one that carries pastoral responsibility for the Pro-Life Ministry, I’ve invited Jessica to write about our recent experience in Washington, D.C.  Our hope as a pastoral team is simply to keep this issue in front of us all from time to time.  Often, perhaps too often, this is an issue that may drift from the front of our minds.  We encourage you all to pray for our legislators, our justices, our president, women with unwanted pregnancies, and the safety of the unborn.  Stefan Bomberger

On January 22nd, a group of twenty Covenant Fellowship Church members made the trip to Washington D.C. for the annual March for Life. Reports estimate that over 300,000 people came out in support of the pro-life cause: individuals from different states, different ages, races, religious backgrounds, and physical abilities were all united in our burden to protect the unborn.  These were record numbers!

As you may know, this year marks the 37th anniversary of the Supreme Court's infamous Roe v. Wade abortion decision. Since the court ruling in 1973, a recent analysis (from the National Right to Life Committee) estimates that we have lost over fifty-two million children to abortion. This number is nearly impossible for us to wrap our minds around.  May this reality stir conviction in our hearts, that we would embody Doug Hayes’ Sanctity of Human Life message [click here] to “act justly,” extend mercy, and “walk humbly” as we speak up for those who cannot speak for themselves (Proverbs 31:8).

Here are some questions that we can ask ourselves as we seek to embody Doug’s message:

• How am I representing the body of Christ?
• In my attempt to speak truth, am I doing so in a way that is condemning or that extends God’s love?
• Am I doing so in a way that recognizes and fully appreciates that I’ve undeservingly received mercy and forgiveness from God for my own sin through Jesus?

We should desire to share the redemptive truth of the gospel and extend that same mercy to the many women who have been wounded by abortion.

Here at CFC, our Pro-Life Ministry is helping to equip church members on how to engage others on the issue of abortion in gospel-centered, winsome ways.  In so doing, we hope to provide a context for meaningful pro-life outreaches and involvement in pro-life fundraisers.