DAY 14: Lights in the Darkness

When I graduated from seminary back in 2005, I planned on heading to the mission field overseas.  I did end up on the mission field, but it was not the one I had in mind.  God sent me to Santa Cruz where I served as Prevention Services Director for the Pregnancy Resource Center.

For three years I went into public schools and talked to students about abstinence, because – to quote Benjamin Franklin – “an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.”  In other words, what if we could help young people avoid STDs, pregnancy and abortion altogether by embracing a lifestyle of abstinence until marriage?  We used to describe our prevention services ministry as a railing at the top of a cliff, rather than a mattress at the bottom.

At the Pregnancy Resource Center I discovered some of the most amazing, compassionate, committed Christians I have ever had the privilege of knowing.  People who remind me of Philippians 2:14-16…

“Do everything without complaining or arguing, so that you may be blameless and pure, children of God without fault in a crooked and perverse generation, in which you shine as lights in the world, as you hold forth the word of life…”

Did you know that there are roughly 2752 pregnancy help locations throughout the U.S.?  Every year they provide almost 2 million people with a range of free and confidential services, including:

• Pregnancy tests
• Ultrasound examinations
• Counseling services
• STD testing & treatment
• Community resources & referrals
• Port-abortion support groups for men & women
• Parenting, nutrition & childbirth classes
• Abstinence education
• Material assistance such as maternity clothes & baby supplies

At Pregnancy Care Centers lives are saved, families are strengthened, women and men find healing from the trauma of abortion, and the good news of Jesus Christ is proclaimed!

Suggested things to pray for:

• Pray for the Pregnancy Center staff & volunteers (about 90,000 in the U.S.) who “shine as lights in the world” and hold out the word of life to so many hurting, fearful and confused people.