Misplaced Priorities

“O grant us help against the foe, for human help is worthless. With God we shall do valiantly; it is he who will tread down our foes.” Psalm 60:11-12, NRSV One of the more troubling but deeply revealing emails I received while serving at the center of the pro-life movement was from a dear mom whom I’ll call Sarah. Choosing … Read More

The Great Dechurching

The Great Dechurching: Who’s Leaving, Why Are They Going, and What Will It Take to Bring Them Back? is a rigorously researched book that’s getting a lot of attention right now and says we’re at a crossroads: One path is to keep “fighting for power and influence in society.”  The other is to “embrace our position as exiles, exercising our … Read More

Human Life is Sacred and Full of Wonder

“Just as you cannot understand the path of the wind or the mystery of a tiny baby growing in its mother’s womb, so you cannot understand the activity of God, who does all things.” Ecclesiastes 11:5, NLT It’s no secret that I work for a pro-life organization– one that, albeit, is on the care side of the issue rather than … Read More

Why Women Have Abortions

Here’s a four-minute clip of Pastor Tim Hawks of Hill Country Bible Church in Austin, TX trying to help some in his congregation understand why women have abortions. What I love about it is he uses Planned Parenthood’s own research and helps us all start with empathy. Again, I encourage you to watch the clip, but I have also written … Read More

Healing Our Divide

Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God. Jesus (Matthew 5:9, NIV) In the evangelical, pro-life culture I serve in, I have some of the best of friends. Politically, we don’t always see eye-to-eye; in fact, sometimes it can seem like we’re on different planets. BUT… we love and trust one another and, post-election, we’re trying … Read More

The Adoption, Foster Care, and Special Needs Addendum

A friend wrote me this week and encouraged me to write up one additional and important addendum to the article I shared last week on “Four Gospel-Centered & Non-Political Things Every Pastor Can Do to Decrease the Impact of Abortion“. Here it is– a fifth thing every pastor can do: Encourage healthy families to consider adoption and foster care. Further, … Read More

Halt vs. Help, Part 2

Thanks so much for the wonderful feedback on the article last week. Below are just some of your great observations. For clarity, I’ve added a few words in brackets and put key ideas in bold: “I was… raised on the mission field… I find myself identifying more with the ‘help’ idea… I never thought of myself as part of a … Read More

Recovering the Lost Art of Civility

Believe it or not, my biggest challenge in my role as Executive Director of Church Outreach and Engagement at Care Net is to de-link pro-life efforts from politics. If I can’t do that, I can’t gain a hearing among those who most need to hear my message about how to offer compassion, hope, help, and discipleship to the abortion-vulnerable. Sadly, … Read More

Reflections on the March for Life

A person is a person no matter how small. – Dr. Seuss Last week marked my one year anniversary with Care Net and my second year participating in the March for Life. It was the 45th march protesting and marking the anniversary of Roe v. Wade, the now infamous Supreme Court decision that legalized abortion through all nine months of … Read More