PURITY – The Will of God

Originally from Jim Phillips, Biblical Counseling Center, Arlington Heights, IL

Patient Wait on God’s timing – it is always perfect (Isaiah 40:31)
Understand God’s purpose/place (Gen. 2:18-24; John 10:10; Heb. 13:4)
Run from lust and temptation (Psalm 101:3; Rom. 13:14; 2 Timothy 2:22)
Intimacy with God first (Deuteronomy 6:5; Mark 12:28-30)
Trust GOD! (Psalm 56:11; 118: 8-9; Proverbs 3:5-6; 1 Corinthians 10:13)
Yield thoughts, plans, actions to God (Jer.29:11; Rom.6:12-13; 12:1)

1 Thessalonians 4:3-8 clearly says that God wants us to pursue moral purity in our lives: “For this is the will of God, your sanctification, that is, that you abstain from sexual immorality.” For those who are unmarried, it means saving your intimacy for your spouse. For those who are married, it means enjoying God’s gift of intimacy with your spouse alone. Sadly, many people blindly accept the culture’s unprincipled attitudes in this crucial area.

1 Thessalonians 4:5 tells us not to live in “lustful passion” like unbelievers, but in “sanctification and honor.” Paul’s words in verse eight make it clear that this is not a matter of man’s opinion or changing social norms.

When we reject moral purity, we are rejecting God’s loving and protective guidelines for healthy and fulfilling relationships. When we choose to yield to the cravings of our flesh we make ourselves servants of sin unto death (Romans 6:16). When we reject moral purity and buy into the message expounded over the airwaves, we reject God’s good will. When we make our feelings and our pleasure our gods, we assure ourselves of heartbreaking consequences (Proverbs 5:15-23).

Do you want God’s best? Our decision to honor God in this area contributes to a lifetime of enjoying sexual love in marriage as God planned, if He chooses to bring you into a marriage relationship. Sexual purity before and during marriage is the will of God; therefore, it should be the desire and will of every believer.

Ultimately, it is about ownership and worship.
Who owns you? Who are you worshipping?

On the Road: 1st Calvary Baptist

Sunday brought us to 1st Calvary Baptist in Inver Grove Heights. We had a wonderful day sharing a purity message [here] with the moms and teen girls and sharing the ministry. The teens and whole church provided 20 bags of diapers for the Center. Thanks so much for being a blessing!



A family from the church shared their story of parenting 3 children with disabilities and also raising a daughter who had been conceived after a sexual assault. The daughter has been a blessing to the family and a “protector” for her brothers. What a testimony to God’s grace for each moment and situation! Truly a story of taking your challenging circumstances to the Lord in prayer and watching Him work EVERYTHING out for good!

Watch the March for Life in Washington DC right now!

You can watch the March for Life in Washington DC right now!
Click here.

March for Life - St. Paul, MN - January 22, 2011

What a great day! Praise the Lord for opporunities to share the Gospel with people! God allowed some wonderful interactions today, and I was so encouraged that churches sent buses of marchers to the rally.



Silent No More men and women shared our testimonies about how abortion did not help us, but harmed us. Praise the Lord for two new women who spoke out about their past abortions. There are men who also speak out about how abortion has affected them. No matter who you are, it takes courage to share, but the Lord gives grace! We speak out so that others who are hurting in silence will have courage to come forward and receive spiritual help.

If you or someone you know is suffering from a past abortion, man or woman, below are links to helpful, first step Bible studies by Linda Cochrane. If they are helpful to you, I would encourge you to find a good Bible teaching church and connect with people who can encourage you and support you in your spiritual walk.

Forgiven Set Free Post-Abortion Bible
Healing Father Heart Post-Abortion Bible



As the legislative session in Minnesota continues, please be in prayer that our representatives and congressmen and ALL public servants would affirm a culture of life in the legislation they put forward. [Congressman John Kline pictured above.]

For the first time since the 1973 Roe vs. Wade decision, the Minnesota House and Senate are controlled by pro-life legislators. They have already introduced a bill that would bar public funding for abortions. This bill would directly challenge Doe vs. Gomez, a 1995 Minnesota Supreme Court ruling that said the state must provide abortion services for low-income women.

MN man accused of trying to kill wife's baby

Information from The Brainerd Daily Dispatch
AITKIN, Minn. -- A 24-year-old northern Minnesota man is charged with attempted murder of an unborn child after he allegedly kicked and punched his pregnant wife in the stomach. Rory Northrup was arrested at his rural Aitkin home last Thursday. He is charged with first-degree premeditated attempted murder of an unborn child and third-degree assault.

The 29-year-old woman reported that Northrup had beaten her. Investigators learned that the woman was pregnant and that Northrup allegedly had threatened to kill her fetus. The woman was taken to a Brainerd hospital.

Aitkin County Sheriff Scott Turner tells the Brained Dispatch he has heard that both the woman and her unborn child are going to recover. Bail for Northrup is set at $500,000 with no conditions or $100,000 with conditions. He remained in jail Tuesday.

Web post: MN man accused of trying to kill wife's fetus

Comment:

Wait a minute! It’s ok for a pregnant woman to pay to have someone terminate her fetus via abortion, but if she is assaulted by someone else, there is a charge of first-degree premeditated attempted murder of an unborn child? When a woman makes an abortion decision, both she and the abortionist “premeditate” (plan to make an appointment, pay money) and “murder” (terminate the life of the fetus). What is the difference?

This is similar to the pregnant woman in Fargo (1992) who was facing “reckless endangerment” charges because she was addicted to smelling paint fumes. Read the New York Times article here. After she was arrested and jailed, she chose to have an abortion (paid for by the state, mind you). After the abortion, the charges of “reckless endangerment” had to be dropped because there was no longer a child in danger.

Are we really foolish enough to not see the hypocrisy in this situation? Neither women or their children deserve to be assaulted by anyone, be it the father of the baby or the abortionist.

Mark your calendars now
for the
2nd Annual Amazing Grace Walk
Saturday, May 7th
Clifton E. French Park
9:00 a.m. - noon

More details to follow!

Great Day at Normandale Baptist!

We had a wonderful time sharing the MWC ministry at Normandale Baptist Church in Bloomington on Sunday. We thank the Lord for churches that speak the truth about life in the womb from the pulpit, openly welcome those who are recovering from the devastation of abortion in their lives, and that also support ministries like MWC which provide peaceful, life-affirming services to individuals in the larger community.

Thanks, Normandale Baptist, for being a pro-life partner! And thanks for giving us Dave Sebald, MWC Board President, and new board member Pastor Chuck Raichert, your pastor!

Praise the Lord – Minnesota Gets a C+ Rating!

Check out this LifeNews.com article that reports on NARAL’s ranking system for each state in the US. Thankfully Minnesota did not get a A+ from them. Instead we received a C+ indicating that we are in the middle on laws protecting the unborn and their parents! We should be thanking our legislators and those organizations in the state who make it their mission to work on the legislative side of pro-life issues.

At MWC we work on the people (or direct services) side, and we are thankful to others who defend the unborn by encouraging legistlative restrictions on abortion in our state. It takes many different organizations, working together through peaceful avenues, to protect the unborn and to insure that individuals considering abortion are fully informed of life-affirming options.

Are We Ready?

Check out this great blog post from Jill Stanek about unPLANNED.

As I think about Jill's post, I think it's important to know that American Life League’s Stop Planned Parenthood project (STOPP) reports, in part, that a 2009 survey of PP facilities revealed the following:

· A total of 38 PP facilities closed in 2009 and the number of PP surgical abortion facilities has decreased. Over a two-year period, six surgical abortion facilities were closed.

· In the last four years, PP has increased the number of facilities that commit medical abortions by 74. Drugs administered by doctors for this deadly purpose include mifepristone (RU-486) and methotrexate.

The large increase in medical abortion facilities is due to the fact that medical abortions are more profitable for PP, since the first drug dose (which kills the preborn baby) is taken at a PP facility, and the second dose (which causes contractions) can be taken at home (where the mother then gives birth to her dead baby). PP spends less to commit those abortions, but charges as much as it charges for surgical abortions. By providing chemical abortions, PP can schedule abortions every day of the week, whereas surgical abortions are limited to the days that an on-site abortionist is available.

Barbara Ellis, at a 1996 National Abortion Federation Annual Meeting said, “The right to abortion doesn’t mean a thing if you can’t access it.” I pray that she is right and that there will be help available for women who choose life.

Here in Minnesota, there are seven clinics providing abortion services for women. Additionally, Regions Hospital houses a HealthPartners clinic that performs over 700 abortions each year. This fall, Planned Parenthood began preparing the site where they plan to build a new “mega-abortion clinic” at the corner of Charles and Vandalia in the Midway area of St. Paul.

So, even as clinics are closing in some cities, others may rise up to fill the void. As more abortion clinics close, abortion doctors age, clinic workers leave the business and access to abortion becomes more challenging, that we will be ready to help those women who choose life. As the need for REAL practical help grows, I pray that we will be ready.

“I have noticed that everybody that is for abortion has already been born.”
--Ronald Reagan

March for Life - MN State Capitol - January 22

The January 22nd MCCL March for Life at the State Capitol in St. Paul will commemorate the 52 million unborn children killed since abortion on demand was legalized in the United States on January 22, 1973.

In Minnesota, more than 555,000 unborn babies have been killed in that time.

What is the March for Life? Watch the video.

Make plans now to be among the thousands of Minnesotans marching at the Capitol to support pregnant women and the rights of unborn children.

Invite others to join you!

The MCCL March for Life begins at noon on Saturday, January 22, followed by a brief program at 12:30 on the Capitol steps. In addition, an ecumenical prayer service will be held at the nearby St. Paul Cathedral at 10:30 a.m.

Help promote the march by making copies of MCCL's flier and posting them in your church and around your community. In addition, please forward this blog post to all of the pro-lifers you know.

Thank you for your commitment to the equal dignity of all human beings, including unborn children and their mothers. See you at the Capitol!

Right to Abortion?

This is a great post by Ric Schnekenburger. I couldn’t have said it better so will repost it here!

Modern technology has given us the awesome ability to gaze into the womb and spy on growing unborn children. We can see them suck their thumbs and smile, cry and kick. We can count every delicate rib and make sure their developing hearts have all four chambers. We can count the toes of tiny feet that are not yet one inch long.

The blessings of ultrasound and modern 3-D imaging have enabled us to see that human embryos are miniature human beings just months away from life in the outside world. They have enabled doctors to see potential birth defects and problems in advance, and have given parents the chance to have surgeons operate on their unborn children before the tots have even blinked in the light of day.

January 22 will mark the 38th anniversary of Roe v. Wade, and prayer vigils and march events are planned to commemorate the 1973 US Supreme Court decision. Those 38 years represent 58 million abortions, 58 million faces gone from our classrooms and streets, our businesses and our homes.

According to a recent Guttmacher Institute report, the abortion rate dropped each year in America for 15 years straight from 1990 to 2005, after which it has basically leveled out. The US abortion rate in 1981 was its highest at 29.3 abortions per 1000 women, and was 27.4 per 1000 women in 1990, the year that marked the highest number of abortions at 1.609 million. By 2005 the abortion rate had reached a low of 19.4 abortions per 1000 women. Since then, however, it has waffled just a little. It rose to 19.9 in 2006, dropped to 19.5 in 2007 and rose a little to 19.6 in 2008. There were 1.206 million abortions in 2005 and 1.212 million in 2008.

The numbers vary greatly between the states, however. Wyoming had the lowest abortion rate in 2008 with less than one abortion per 1000 women, and Washington DC's abortion rate decreased from 54 to 30 per 1000 between 2005 and 2008, leaving Delaware with the highest abortion rate at 40 per 1000.

On January 24, the annual March for Life rally will begin at the National Mall and 4th Street in Washington DC and will proceed down Constitution until the march ends at the US Supreme Court. At least four of the Supreme Court justices are believed to be willing to overturn Roe v. Wade if it came up.

For his part, Justice Antonin Scalia has blatantly called Roe v. Wade is a constitutional "absurdity."

"You want a right to abortion? There’s nothing in the Constitution about that. But that doesn’t mean you cannot prohibit it," he said in an interview with California Lawyer. "If people wanted abortion to be legal, they didn't have to find a non-existent right to it in the Constitution," he said.

"If indeed the current society has come to different views, that’s fine. You do not need the Constitution to reflect the wishes of the current society," he said. "If the current society wants to outlaw discrimination by sex, hey, we have things called legislatures, and they enact things called laws. You don’t need a constitution to keep things up-to-date. All you need is a legislature and a ballot box."

Heart Matters:
While abortion numbers are still high in many parts of the country, crisis pregnancy centers outnumber abortion clinics three-fold in America. After 38 years, America has grown to realize that "choice" can cause grief and heartbreak that few women in 1973 truly understood.

Mothers are known for their protective instinct. Woe to the person who hurts their kids. It's a painful decision for the vast majority of women who choose abortion, going against all the nurturing, mothering nature in a woman's heart. Telling women they have a right to abortion is rather like telling them they have a right to saw off their legs. Most would rather not have to make that choice, and the more we can find ways to support and care for scared, agonizing pregnant women, the better they and their children will be in the end.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

National Hypocrisy!

Sorry to be a downer this week, but I have to address our national hypocrisy about life.

In his address to the nation at the memorial service for the victims of the senseless shooting in Arizona this past week, our President stated in that he wants everyone to “sharpen our instincts for empathy” towards others.

A great idea, but it seems to me that as a nation we have succeeded in dulling our empathy for the unborn and their parents over the past 38 years through legalized abortion with the full ascent of the government. Because we kill over 4,500 pre-born citizens each day, our nation needs to take the “log out of its own eye” [Matthew 7] before we start searching for and casting blame at one group or the other.

The 9-year-old little girl (and others) who died in that senseless act of violence were given the chance to live and someone took it away – what a waste of the natural resource of lives created in the image of God! This week all eyes were focused on the carnage in Arizona, while the carnage of governmentally sanctioned abortion continues across the country, day in and day out! These humans are destroyed not by chance with stray bullets, but by choice with surgically accuracy! Abortion deaths continue, hidden and discounted.

When will be wake up and realize that ALL human life is sacred!? Our hearts should ache, not only for those already-born humans who die in horrendously public and reprehensible ways, but for every life lost!

Spontaneous Abortion and Miscarriage are Not Justification for Targeted Terminations!

a response to the Star Tribune letter of the day: ending unwanted pregnancy is legitimate but never easy
by Colleen Tronson

I am stunned that Rev. Kendyl Gibbons (Letter of the Day, January 9, 2011) attempts to validate the use of elective abortion because a pregnancy is “unintended” by pointing out the large numbers of natural pregnancy losses in our nation. As a woman who aborted three pregnancies, I have never experienced a “spontaneous abortion” (prior to 20 weeks gestation) or miscarriage (after 20 weeks), and I would be mortified to compare my deliberate choices with the losses other women experience due to spontaneous abortions/miscarriages.

Women who experience natural pregnancy disruptions do not intentionally choose this outcome, while other women like myself deliberately choose to terminate via elective abortion. Yes, there are some women who are coerced into abortion against their will, but most of us are mistresses of our own choices. It is wrong to equate targeted termination (elective abortion) with natural pregnancy loss when one is primarily about choice and the other is clearly about chance.

The failure of conception to result in a live birth is in no way comparable to the human carnage of abortion on demand in our state. According to the 2009 Report to the State Legislature on Induced Abortion in Minnesota, more than 13,000 targeted terminations occurred in 2009. The main reasons stated for these terminations were that the mother did not want more children or for economic reasons.

If natural miscarriage or early pregnancy loss does not allow a live birth, that is one thing, but let’s not use those numbers to justify the intentional targeting of over 13,000 pregnancies that overwhelmingly, could have been brought to term. According to the above mentioned report less then 1,400 of the 2009 terminations were done due to physical health or impairment of bodily functions of the mother or due to fetal anomalies (which may or may not have been life threatening for the child).

Rev. Gibbons says there is no reason why “human aspiration and necessity shouldn't be a factor in determining whether or not a particular pregnancy is brought to term.” I strongly disagree because neither of those reasons--human aspiration or human necessity--considers the fate of the one being targeted: the preborn human child.

unPLANNED

Breaking News:
Abby Johnson, former Planned Parenthood director turned pro-life, releasing book titled unPLANNED

On January 11, 2011, former Planned Parenthood director and 2008 "employee of the year" Abby Johnson will FINALLY be able to reveal all the secrets from behind the closed doors of the abortion business ... and why she left to join the pro-life movement!

Abby was the director of the Planned Parenthood abortion facility in Bryan/College Station, Texas. Yes -- her clinic was the site of the first-ever 40 Days for Life campaign back in 2004.

Six 40 Days for Life campaigns were conducted outside her workplace before Abby experienced a profound conversion during the Fall 2009 campaign ... with deep remorse and a deep desire to get out of the abortion business.

Planned Parenthood immediately filed a massive lawsuit and restraining order against Abby with the intent to silence her.

But she finally WON that legal battle, and Abby is now able to blow the whistle on her former employer and reveal ALL the shocking details of her experiences inside the abortion industry ... and her conversion.

Abby's story has never been fully revealed publicly ... UNTIL NOW!

On Tuesday, January 11, Abby's story will be released to the world in a landmark book titled unPLANNED, which is being published jointly by Tyndale House, Focus on the Family, and Ignatius Press.

One night before -- on Monday, January 10, at 9 PM Eastern (8 PM Central, 7 PM Mountain, 6 PM Pacific) -- join a live webcast sneak preview of the no-holds-barred revelations which fill the pages of unPLANNED.

Register for the FREE event at: www.UnplannedWebcast.com.

During the webcast, you will discover ...

* What initially attracted Abby to volunteer and then work for Planned Parenthood -- America's largest abortion chain -- even after being raised in a faithful Christian home

* The hidden personal secret that Abby had kept buried for years

* The shocking discovery that suddenly caused Abby to question everything Planned Parenthood had told her over eight years

* Planned Parenthood's confidential plans to expand its biggest money-maker -- abortion -- all across America

* The abortion industry's furious reaction when Abby decided to quit her job and join local and national pro-life efforts

* What Abby's court battle brought to light about Planned Parenthood's REAL agenda

* The single most effective way to reduce Planned Parenthood's abortion business and change the hearts and minds of clinic workers

P.S.- When you register for the webcast, you can get the first chapter of Abby's breakthrough book -- for FREE! You'll be among the very first to peek inside the pages of the book the abortion industry tried to stop. Get chapter one now at: www.UnplannedWebcast.com.

NYTimes.com: The Unborn Paradox

I have often thought, "What would happen if all the babies aborted each day were placed in a large pile and shown on the nightly news in the city where they were aborted?"

This will never happen because we are not “comfortable” seeing what the result of our “choice” does to unborn children. We want the choice, but we must continue to dehumanize the “object” of that choice in order to legitimize it. We publicize other tragedies that result in loss of life, why keep this one under wraps? We see the results of child abuse and cringe. We cry, "Foul!" when animals are harmed by their owners. Yet we don’t want to look at the “unseen” aborted children who are terminated--not just scarred or emotionally damaged-- but TERMINATED!

Today, women who are older and want to start families struggle with infertility for many reasons. Who knows how many of them aborted pregnancies earlier in their lives thinking that there would always be another chance! Some may have never aborted, but due to the use of chemical birth control or other factors, they are now on a quest for that elusive child.

Sadly, as Ross Douthat, author of the attached NYTimes.com article points out, only 1% of babies are available for adoption and one in five pregnancies ends in abortion. Babies that are a “throw-away” burden for one group are now a hot commodity for another.

I wish that the “self-preserving” act of abortion would be relegated to a cultural taboo and that the “selfless” act of adoption would be elevated to cultural heroism! It will never happen, but one can dream. The law of supply and demand needs to apply here: those who don’t want to be parents need to connect with those who do. Problem solved!

Thank You, Adoption Panel Speakers!

“We always thank God for all of you, remembering you constantly in our prayers. We recall, in the presence of our God and Father, your work of faith, labor of love, and endurance of hope in our Lord Jesus Christ.”
I Thessalonians 1:2-3

We spoke at Totino Grace High School, Fridley, this a.m about the option of adoption. I am thankful for our speakers who share from their hearts about building their families through adoption.