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Taking the Long View of Pro-Life

Taking the Long View of Pro-Life

Last updated on: July 28, 2015 at 8:36 pm by Brandon D. Smith

Taking the Long View of Pro-Life 2015-07-28T20:36:15-05:00 Brandon D. Smith

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The third of 12 undercover videos recorded behind Planned Parenthood’s veil was released today. With a testimonial by a former procurement tech and video of doctors price-haggling over the body parts of a dead 11-week-old aborted baby, another step was taken toward revealing this wicked, disgusting, mortifying auction house for what it is.

I’m thankful that these videos are being released and for the courage of the 26-year-old man behind them. I’m also thankful that public officials are quickly forming an offensive against Planned Parenthood. But with all this hoopla, I got to thinking–how can we make a difference? One way, of course, is to be obnoxiously pro-life and to share these videos with everyone we know. I tweeted this last week:

https://twitter.com/BrandonSmith85/status/624665615056269313

https://twitter.com/BrandonSmith85/status/624666373055066112

https://twitter.com/BrandonSmith85/status/624667735214063616

We can “kick the doors wide open” in a number of ways. I mentioned sharing the videos in an attempt to trigger the gag reflex of those on the fence or who are confused. We can also make our voices heard on Election Day 2016, when we refuse to vote for a candidate who openly supports the atrocities of Planned Parenthood’s black market. We can also join in church and parachurch ministries that focus on crisis pregnancy.

As a pro-lifer, I’m becoming keenly aware that simply sharing videos and voting for a pro-life president won’t be enough to change the abortion culture in America. Viral videos might even lead to Planned Parenthood being defunded by the government and shut down, but it won’t eradicate abortion. Brave men and women, like my friend Owen Strachan, have been doing great ministry outside of an abortion clinic in Louisville. Every life matters, and so these tactics are all commendable and right.

These are short-term ideas, a few things we can do with a quick-fix in mind. But even in best-case scenario results from these ideas, there will still be more work to do. We should also take the long view, considering how we can foster a culture of life for generations to come.

Traditions are built in communities, among families and friends and neighbors. It should be no secret to us that we are impacted by those closest to us more than our favorite politician or celebrity. Relationships are key to human flourishing and culture-building, which is why God the Son put on flesh and blood and stepped into the muck and mire of humanity, and why he was so adamant about loving our neighbors and loving our brothers and sisters in Christ.

Community is, then, where the long view takes place, where a life-loving culture is built. We don’t want to simply vote pro-life; we want to value life and teach the next generation to value life, to be the champions of babies and families. Here are a few ways this can play out in our everyday lives:

1. Speak well of your children and of being a parent publicly.

I’ve found that many of my newly-married friends are terrified of having a child because they fear expected consequences. They fear the loss of freedom, the cost of raising a child, the responsibility of overseeing another life. These are all valid concerns, no doubt.

But why do they feel this way? It’s at least partially because they hear their friends with kids complain about being a parent. I’m guilty of this. “Harper is being awful today!” “It was terrible–we didn’t sleep for the first six months!” “We’re struggling to pay off the medical bills from labor and delivery!” The challenges of parenting are real, and we should be honest about that. But shouldn’t we be heaping more praise than contempt on our children and the gift of being a parent, especially in front of an outside world that’s approved of the execution of over 55 million children?

In my experience working in youth ministry and schools, abortions among young mothers are usually caused by the fear that they’re losing their childhood and/or the fear that raising a child is simply impossible. This is largely because we as parents have given them this concern. Perhaps if we talked more highly of the joys of parenting (and didn’t shame young mothers for getting pregnant, mind you), there wouldn’t be such an automatic (but no doubt genuine) fear about life as a parent. They could look at parenting with hope, even when the situation seems hopeless.

2. Speak well of your children and of being a parent privately.

On the flip side, are we letting our children know how much we value them as human beings and how grateful we are to be their parent? Are we constantly reminding ourselves of the joy of being a parent, even when we want to grow bitter? I want my daughter to grow up in a home where her life is valued, and I hope that impresses upon her a value for life as she grows older and begins thoughts of having her own children.

Someone close to me has said that she never wants kids because her childhood was abysmal. She always felt unloved and unwanted by her parents. So her perception of raising kids is that this world is unfit to sustain a joyful life for children. You might say, “She can make a difference by being the parent she never had.” Fair enough. But that’s the thing–she doesn’t feel equipped, and she is terrified of being just like her parents.

When we raise kids in a loving home, we set the precedent for perhaps generations of life-loving people. My mom had an abortion later in my life, and it wasn’t until Scripture taught me to value life that I actually began to oppose abortion. I pray that our children will, instead, learn directly from us to value children and family.

3. Speak well of your friends’ children and of potentially being a parent.

What about those who don’t have kids? What about those who don’t feel called to marriage or becoming a parent? The single person can at least publicly and privately value children in general, and families in their life in particular. A member of our church in Fort Worth is a prime example. She’s always babysitting and playing with children in our church, providing them with the value that their families already show them. More than that, she’s an example to other singles in the church.

Further, you might be the only one who values them. The kindness of an adult toward a child in an abusive or unstable home can be the driving force behind their own self-worth, and their view on the worth of children in general. Don’t underestimate your value in this area, dear single. Let them know that being a parent is a joy, even if some–like their own parents, perhaps–don’t agree.

I’m convinced that the handing down of ethics is not only preferable–it’s essential and godly. In our desire to cure short-term problems, we forget that our greatest impact is often the traditions we pass down from generation to generation–good or bad. We underestimate the power of our words and the power of perception.

May we advocate life in the pulpit, in the voting booth, in our neighborhoods, and in our homes.

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