For what great nation is there that has gods so close to it as the LORD, our God, is to us whenever we call upon him? Or what great nation has statutes and decrees that are as just as this whole law which I am setting before you today?
Deuteronomy 4:7-9
These words of Moses to the Israelites make me think of the amazing PRIVILEGE we have as Christians…to KNOW GOD’S LAWS! Think about it. Up to the time of Moses, humanity was in the dark. We didn’t know what was right and what was wrong. We were lost. God chose a special people to be his very own, and He revealed his law to them. Through his own children, the Jews, He planned to reveal Himself to all of humanity…when the time was right. But just as a new wick on a candle is more difficult to light than one that has already been primed…humanity was a stubborn and hard-hearted bunch. We needed to be “primed” before the coming of the Savior. He “primed” us by giving us the Law.
The awesome power and authority of God would be frightening to anyone, if we were able to see Him as He truly is. The Israelites trembled with fear when they watched Moses as he spoke to God on the top of the smoking mountain… in the thunder, lightning and trumpet blast. They begged Moses to speak to them on behalf of God, for fear they would die if God spoke directly to them.
After God established His people, who knew His law…He was finally able to come “in Person,” in the Person of Jesus Christ. Out of love for all of us, He made Himself small and meek, so that we wouldn’t be afraid to approach Him. He loves all of us…those of us who pray in front of Planned Parenthood, as well as those who work there…and all of those who enter those doors to abort their children. He loves us all.
If we refuse His offer of love and mercy…sadly, we will have to face Him as the Just Judge….and it surely will be a fearful thing. But for now, there is still hope of salvation. Think of the most fearsome person you can imagine…this is not a good analogy because God is all GOOD…and powerful men usually are not. But to give us something we can relate to in our human thinking…just imagine someone that you would be afraid of if you were under his power and control. Maybe someone like Attila the Hun, or Joseph Stalin. Think about the power these men would have to destroy you if you were under their authority. But then think about their CHILDREN. Did they have babies? Did their toddlers ever sit on their laps? Did they ever look into the faces of their children and give them a tender kiss on the cheek?
That is the kind of relationship that the all-powerful, fearsome God of the Universe…offers to each one of us. We can become His little child. He is nothing like any of the evil men that I have listed, of course! He is all Goodness and Love. But He is to be feared if we are not His. If we do not live by His commandments and stay close to His love through a relationship with Jesus Christ.
It is not too late for any of us! If you have taken part in an abortion, if you are actively working in the abortion industry…there is still time. The all-powerful, fearsome God…YOUR CREATOR…is waiting for you to come back to Him. He loves you!
Now, on to the reports from today!
7-9 Charlene, Peggy & Randy
Tuesday night, before my Wednesday shift, I usually wake up at 2 am and stay awake the rest of the night…every Tuesday before the sidewalk. Is it the Devil? Is it anticipation of darkness and cold…even if it is sunny and warm? No one likes the sidewalk. I have Peggy, Randy, and Beth that share the darkness but bring light. Today was a rainy, cold one with experiences to match: a homeless gentleman stopped to talk. He said his Mom was going to have an abortion but jumped off the table to save him. He said he wished she had gone through with it.😢Next, a couple walked past. He is screaming that the girl he is with is a “baby killer and this is her second abortion.” The lady is crying. They get to PP door…he yells again, “You’re a baby killer”…spits in her face and walks away. She says,”You have my car keys.” She follows him, he is on one side of Liberty, she is on the other. They talk on the phone, cross to talk in person and go into the parking garage. Did he save that baby? Dads and male partners have a lot more influence than they think. Tactics aside…a live baby is a live baby. Keep praying that someday we will go to 933 Liberty and it will be a place to save babies, not kill them.
9-11 Terri & Elsie
I arrived to meet Elsie and her son Gerard who will be returning to Germany soon. It was wonderful having him with us these past few weeks. It wasn’t busy the first hour, but it picked up a bit. We were able to hand our resources to people passing by and did reach out to all entering and exiting the building. The traffic on the street was light today due to the weather. We were joined by Jack from Saint Thomas More Parish, who braved the rain to stand with us. There were no negative encounters today. Our shift went quickly, and Katie and Sharon soon arrived to take over.
Last evening, I was preparing for a bible study that I moderate at my parish each Thursday. It was talking about how Jesus, as he hung on the cross, was again confronted with taunts from the crowd. These remind us of the same taunts that Satan hurled at Jesus. It went on to state that these taunts are a tactic of the evil one. He tries to have us doubt God and His love for us. It reminds me of all of us on the sidewalk. We must not allow the taunts from passersby or others involved in the wounding of others take root in our hearts. It is the evil one who wants us to despair. God did not abandon his Beloved Son and he will never abandon us, especially in our darkest hours. Let’s pray that all will let His light shine upon them.
11-1 Sharon & Katie
1-3 Chris & Claudia
It was cold and dark when I arrived on the sidewalk. For the next two hours, Dave and John joined me in praying the Sorrowful Mysteries of the Rosary. During that time, shift buddy Claudia patrolled the outer edge of the semi-circle, in the street, while Beverly was vigilant on the east side of the semi-circle. Katie stayed for half my shift, extending her already-long shift in order to bring love, compassion, and offers of help to pregnant women in need. Toward the end of the shift, the sun shone brightly on us and Marilyn (from the next shift) arrived to lead John and me in a Chaplet of Divine Mercy. Next Shift Manager, Jeannie, parked and showed us the lovely baby clothes she had just purchased at The Nest on the North Side, run by Women’s Choice Network.
3-5 Eileen & Jeannie
It was another very fulfilling day on the sidewalk. The rain stopped, the skies opened and beautiful sunshine was with us for most of our shift. We had a bonus crowd today —we had the usuals, Eileen and Marilyn and I; but we were also blessed with Rose, John, and Kathy, who really allowed us to have a strong presence on both sides of the circle. Pittsburgh was super busy today. Most notable was an incredible number of policeman on bicycles. We enjoyed interacting with the school kids, too — who definitely have spring fever — and we had some good conversations with passersby. A couple good plus a couple bad exclamations came from passing cars.
I think God makes it so that we can’t really hear exactly what the negative people say, but we clearly hear it when someone’s pro life.
During our shift, the Life Flight helicopter was moving a patient. It was ironic to think how much commitment, resources and care were being expended on a single life in jeopardy when inside the doors of PP, reckless disregard for the beautiful lives of innocent children was occurring!
Thanks to everyone who came today to witness and pray. Hundreds of people walked by & took note of our presence. Several stopped at the models for a moment. The new pamphlet continues to be very popular too — thank you, Sheila!
5-7 Joe & Bill
“Upon us all a little rain must fall…” and I expected that today for this shift, but it held off for the most part. Just a little-bit-o spritzing on us near the end of the shift.
I was joined by my new shift buddy, Bill, and was shortly joined by SA Judy and well,
a whole lotta “chalking” (note I didn’t mean talking) going on.
There was enough foot traffic today, but still it was very quiet — a few comments, some unloving — and we had one Mr. “Ridiculous” pass by.
An extremely small amount of traffic exiting 933 this evening.
I caught a glimpse up the sidewalk of someone trying like heck to smear out the 1-800-712 HELP (4357) chalked on the sidewalk with her feet. To me, she didn’t look angry…just extremely sad. Please pray for this young lady.
Later in the shift, we got a surprise visit from my old shift buddy, Charlie, and his wife Amy. A belated Happy “29th” Birthday, Amy!
One amazing observation was that a strategically-placed 40DFL sign all by itself on a chair for a few minutes got more attention from passersby than the rest of the whole evening.
The shift ended just in time as the spritzing picked up.