I've written and edited and re-written this so many times now...I hope it makes sense. I wrote this post in my head in the shower on Monday morning and couldn't get these thoughts out of my mind, so I had to write them down. I don't intend to bash any one person or group, so if you perceive that, it's not my intention. This is my perspective.
For those of you that don't know me, let me start by saying I'm a Christian. And not a lily/poinsettia Christian. I attend church each weekend. I serve once a month parking cars at my church. (Because I'm at a big church and people need help parking.) I attend Bible Study each Wednesday night with a group of people that hold me accountable and challenge me. I prepare each week for our study and while I could spend WAY more time in the Bible, I do know God's word! If you don't know me, none of that means anything, because I could be a hypocrite. It's a matter of my heart being right with God's, but you can't know that...only God can. I hope you might be able to see that in my actions: (They will know we are Christians by our love. John 13:35) I'm a work in progress and I'm a sinner. I fail every single day. Thank God for his grace that covers this imperfect person! Let's be honest. We're all imperfect people. We're all sinners. We could do better.
I marched last Saturday in the Women's March that organized in Raleigh, NC. Literally! I didn't walk one step, I lifted my knees in a march each step of the way...it just felt right and maybe I burnt more calories (not the point). How could a Christian march in favor of abortion, you say? I'm sure that's what many of you are thinking. And the answer is I wasn't marching for abortion. There are many reasons I was marching. The sole topic of abortion wasn't a highlight of my reason to march, but let's talk about it because many have made assumptions and we all have an opinion/stance.
I'm largely pro-life. I think each life is precious to God (1 Peter 2:4). I think we're fearfully and wonderfully made (Psalm 139:14). I think God has knit us together in our mother's womb (Psalm 139:13) and knows the number of hairs on our heads (Matthew 10:30; Luke 12:7). We are his special creation. Each life matters. Every single one.
My problem comes when the government starts passing legislation to defund Planned Parenthood and make it illegal to get an abortion. It's not the government's place to do that. What about the rape victim that is now pregnant? The case of incest? What about the girl that's 15-years-old and had unprotected sex- maybe because she was pressured to lose her virginity, maybe not? What about the career woman who would rather move up the ranks at work than start a family? I'm not saying these situations are "outs" or reasons for abortions. But think about it. Put yourself in those ladies shoes. It's no one's place to tell another how to live their life or take care of their body. And Christians, hear me on this. If all we're doing is pointing fingers and judging people for getting abortions, we're not making disciples of anyone. What about loving the people that find themselves in a situation where abortion is an option? What about getting into the nitty gritty with them and actually hearing where they come from and loving them through it? If you think anyone is going to just decide to become a Christian because you got rid of abortion, think again! Yelling at folks that they're baby killers isn't going to make anyone come to Christ. Those people, if they do want an abortion, regardless of what the law says...they're going to find someone who can do it. In a back alley, in someone's home, without proper medical care. I can't stand to think of those situations.
Now, I want to take you back a step. Those people wanting to term their pregnancies, how did they get pregnant? Clearly they had sex. In a loving marriage relationship? Maybe, but probably not. Christians! Christians who are judging others for abortions. How many of you had sex before marriage? (I can't find specific Bible verses on this because it's just listed as sexual immorality, but you know what I'm saying. It's a sin.) Could that be you? Could you have made a mistake and accidentally gotten pregnant because you weren't following God's will for your life-abstaining until you're married? I get it. We're all sinful. Now let's put our stones down and walk away! And those using birth control. Good job you, right? You didn't have to get to a place to term a pregnancy because you didn't allow yourself to get pregnant. I don't even know if that's in the Bible, but there are Christians that feel strongly against birth control as limiting God's will for you to procreate. Let's not be hypocrites.
If we defund Planned Parenthood, you're not just talking about abortions (which according to my research cannot be funded by federal dollars, so defunding isn't helping the pro-life stance). You're talking about STD screenings, free or reduced birth control/contraception (which could help avoid abortions), cancer screenings, and basic medical care that will be lost. The majority of patients are middle and low-income. Where are those people going to go to get healthcare? Can we be the church? Can we change the course of all of this and come alongside those people that need this basic healthcare and help them get it? Let's act instead of pointing fingers and reacting to things. Let's make a difference (for good) in the lives of those people. Can we come up with a solution to help the people that rely on Planned Parenthood? I have two male co-workers that have told me how they relied on Planned Parenthood for care. It's not a dirty word, it's a low cost service to the community that real people use.
A co-worker recently told me about a female on social media that was going to get an abortion. It was someone neither of us knew. The girl had written a whole post about how she didn't want to get pregnant and she was just starting in her career. She didn't have the money for a family and she didn't want to start a family right now. She was off to get an abortion and she was thankful she could do that. I said to my co-worker, "Well, it's never the right time to start a family. We all wish we had more money." Reasoning why she should keep her child. And then I felt so, so sad. Brought to tears sad. A precious life was being cut short. But you know what? It's not my place and has NEVER been my place to condemn that woman. She will have to work it out and I just pray (seriously...this isn't just something I say) that she has people that can come alongside her if the going gets tough. Or who can talk it through with her years down the road if she's carrying guilt. Or can love her through it all if she decides it's the best thing she ever did.
So why did I march? Because I'm a woman. And not long ago we didn't have the right to vote. We still don't get paid the same as men across-the-board. My body is MY BODY! We all deserve healthcare! (Obamacare wasn't without flaw, but it was a great step in the right direction and instead of cutting it, it could be re-formatted to work better.) The environment is important to me. I want the world to be in good shape for my kids. Black lives matter! (Your life matters too, but this movement is for a reason...our black friends and friends of color need to feel the love right now.) Refugees deserve a safe place to live. And I wanted to be there to show my support for those marginalized groups. Christians- is Jesus Christ not your savior? Was he not of middle-eastern descent? Can you really judge all of those people as terrorists? Hebrews 13:2 always comes to mind when I think about this. "Do not forget to show hospitality to strangers, for by so doing some people have shown hospitality to angels without knowing it." How can we turn our backs on people in need? An unborn life is not more or less important than a living being from a war-stricken part of the world.
I marched because if Jesus were walking the earth today, I think he would have been at a march. Talking to the people, encouraging them and loving on them. I marched because when we were in Israel this year, after visiting Yad Vashem, the world holocaust remembrance center, our guide gave us a challenge. Our guide was the grandson of holocaust survivors and he gave us the famous Martin Niemoller quote: "First they came for the Socialists, and I did not speak out- Because I was not a Socialist. Then they came for the Trade Unionists, and I did not speak out- Because I was not a Trade Unionist. Then they came for the Jews, and I did not speak out- Because I was not a Jew. Then they came for me- and there was no one left to speak for me." Something I've heard before, but it echoed so much louder standing in a place with hundreds of thousands of names of Jews that had died. Maybe you didn't need to march because you haven't been affected yet or would rather forget/pass from your mind the climate in our nation right now. I just hope you never have to. Can we turn this around before it gets worse? I marched because we have to do something before it's too late.
Let me also mention that the Raleigh march was so peaceful! I have no idea what the media coverage said, but I was moved to tears at least three times during the day. Ugly cry tears! There were children and elderly. Men and women. There were all colors and sizes and races and creeds and religions. And everyone was smiling at everyone. Strangers were helping to lift strollers and children around downtown. There was no shoving or pushing or negativity. And maybe that's because it was a gathering of like-minded people, but it was amazing! I challenge you to talk to people who were at a march in your hometown or in DC. They'll tell you the same thing. The violent people highlighted on the news, rioting, weren't part of the peacefulness.
I was upset this week. I wanted to hear from my friends that voted for Trump that they too were disappointed with the rhetoric, excessive tweets, etc. that have come since the inauguration. I wanted my Christian friends to understand that I see a man, who I believe has claimed to be a Christian (and for anyone who doesn't know me, his claim probably holds the same amount of weight mine does). A man I think is a hypocrite by his words and actions. When I look on a high ranking official and seek to respect them, I look for their fruits. What are the fruits in their life? Love, Joy, Peace, Patience, Kindness, Goodness, Faithfulness, Gentleness, Self-Control. What I saw instead was very one-sided blanket statements and memes on facebook clearly promoting Republicans or Democrats. I wasn't able to understand. And then I went to Bible study and I brought it up...a really tough, but good conversation. And I asked those ladies if they could explain to me how they could still support Trump. Here's what I heard...That for the majority of people, we're not 100% behind a candidate (and I'm guilty of judging others for this..I was convicted). And so for the most part, those people that voted for Trump clung on to one issue and went with it. That for both sides, we really just want the best for our country. (Which is not the climate on facebook, but might very well be in real life.) That we don't know if Trump is qualified, but he's in office now, so we need to support him because where will we be if he fails? We need to pull for him and pray for him and hope he does a good job. I'll tell you what...there was healing for me in that conversation. It doesn't change my beliefs or my feelings about certain things, but it allowed me to connect with people I care about and understand where they're coming from. What if we all did something crazy? What if we stopped this grouping of Republican vs. Democrat and we just spoke people-to-people about what we're going through. I'm sure there are plenty of people that have judged me wrongly because I'm a registered Democrat. Those people don't know that I'm a Christian, that I am so empathetic that I cry when others do, that I strive for harmony, that I believe in equality, that I'm pro-life and pro-choice, that I'm unashamed to stand up for what is right, that I'm loyal and will fight for those I care about. Let's have those difficult conversations, because that's what is going to bring us together!
I'm happy for those that marched in the March for Life yesterday. I hope those participants feel the feelings I felt last Saturday and feel empowered that they're making a difference. What I can't get behind is the, "My march is better than your march. You kill babies and we speak truth." Because it's not loving. It's dividing. And it's mean! We can't understand another person's experience if we're not there and we don't try to understand.
My church is currently doing a series called Unlocking the Music Vault. It's about the sins in our lives that people can't really see and what God says about them. Week one was Depression, week two was Racism, this past week right after the march, we went to church to hear about Anger. This week is Greed, and then Pride, Lust, Slothfulness and Failure. I encourage you to listen. Our pastor for sure is a Republican, so there are some digs in there. And please continue listening after the week on Racism. Pastor Mike apologizes for it sounding like it was black men against the police. I think it's going to take big strides for all of us in these areas before we can change our country. Let's work on our own hearts!
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