Inversion
And Jesus answering said to him, “Simon, I have something to say to you.” And he answered, “What is it, Teacher?” “A certain creditor had two debtors; one owed five hundred denarii, and the other fifty. When they could not pay, he forgave them both. Now which of them will love him more?” Simon answered, “The one, I suppose, to whom he forgave more.” And he said to him, “You have judged rightly.”
Luke 7: 40-43
I found this an interesting scripture to meditate on in relation to abortion. We all have tremendous debts that need to be forgiven, but some of us (for any number of reasons) may possess them on a larger scale. Isn’t it so hopeful that Christ can use even the very magnitude of sin to inspire greater love for him? This should be especially motivating for those of us who are regularly in close proximity to the extreme darkness at Planned Parenthood. If we can effectively allow Christ to lovingly inspire repentance through our actions, that darkness can literally become fuel for greater light. Andrew
Keep reading for today’s shift reports…
7:30-9:00: Kathy, Bill & Tracy
Mostly workers going in during our shift this early morning. More than one doctor, though, I thought to myself. Kathy did a great job reaching out, but not many, if any, takers of info. Bill and Anthony prayed all four sets of the Holy Rosary mysteries. Perhaps we saw two couples and two single ladies heading in. Business was slower and maybe would be picking up later, but we hoped NOT!
9:00-11:00: Beth & Linda W
Summer’s over so bundle up, just in case. PP was moderately busy today. Few homeless people just sad men and women entering and exiting the abortion clinic.
A side note: when I arrived I was shown women’s bible with a ten dollar bill inside, left there for the poor, by a local church group. A homeless woman who said she was hungry came past and she was given the bible. Our security guard kept an eye on her as she promptly bought beer. We should help the poor but next time, we’ll give the cash to the Red Door or similar group. Just thought.
11:00-1:00: Rose
1:00-3:00: Kim & Mike
The security guard was great today. He was very vigilant and made Mike and I feel protected and safe. One man pulled up right be side us on a motorcycle revving his engine, spewing exhaust on us and it was really loud- just to heckle us and the security guard asked him to move forward, that he didn’t need to be antagonizing us while we were praying – there was plenty of parking spaces for him to be anywhere. The man peacefully drove away.
The best thing that happened to us was when Juan spontaneously stopped walking down the sidewalk, turned around and came back to pray with us. We were by ourselves so we felt so blessed that God sent us some help. He prayed a decade with us when we introduced ourselves. We asked him if he was willing to sign in as a peaceful participant. He did. He had stopped to pray in the past but didn’t know that we were 40 Days for life. He had never heard of 40 days before. We gave him a several brochures on 40 days and info on woman’s resources. I will send you the picture of his sign in information. I hope he will come back and become a regular. He seemed willing and interested. A very faithful man who has mentored youth in a soccer faith formation program. He was the only person who prayed with us.
The very pregnant woman who went in, I did not see come out during our shift. The Pagan member came out and I offered him free resource info which he declined. I few passerby’s blessed us and a few cursed us. Normal day.
3:00-5:00: Bill & Virginia
There are lots of people walking by PP at this time of the day in this section of downtown. A middle-aged man stopped by carrying a small pizza box with a bag or two atop, and began a conversation asking about women’s “rights” to have an abortion. Initially the conversation was about a woman having an abortion, he would ignore comments pointing to the life of the baby. One comment was “are you against health care”? Responding and pointing to the fact of life of the baby would lead to another comment from a different perspective. Mike began speaking with the fellow emphasis on the life of the baby. As Mike’s shift was over, the fellow said he would return. During my conversation with this fellow and Mike’s, this man’s facial expression never changed. It was as though he was on a mission. Later on a 20+ girl came out of the building looking a little distressed (possibly intoxicated?) when offered information, she responded with the F word and turned her back, refusing anything. There were 2 ladies leaving with brown bags at different times. Everyone passing by was greeted with a “Hello”,
we prayed a rosary and the shift ended quietly.
That very pregnant woman sounds like the same one who went in and out yesterday during our shift. I did not think she was there for pre natal care. I told her I was praying for her and her baby. The man with her told me to mind my own business. Incredibly sad.
Praying daily for your witness. God bless you.
Jim McInerney
Monetary donations given by passersby could be donated to the Little Lamb Resale Shop.