First of all, I want to say a huge THANK YOU to those of you who emailed me and messaged me to tell me about your pro-life ministry or about your church that has devoted itself to being a presence at the nearest abortion clinic. Many of you have been in the pro-life movement for 40 years, pray outside of clinics regularly, or run Crisis Pregnancy Center’s. I am SO grateful for you!
Most of the messages I received were from many who felt convicted to do more but don’t know how or where. One man said, “You have our attention. Now tell us what we can do to help.” That’s what this blog is for.
Sidewalk Counselor/Prayer Warrior
Abortion clinics need people outside of them EVERY day. Many perform abortions on a daily basis (like the one in Orlando) and many offer discounts on Sundays! Can you believe that??
The first thing you should do is find out where the closest abortion clinic is. You can go to abortion.com, type in your city and state, and a list of all of the abortion providers around you will come up. The Internet will be one of your greatest tools. (I’m pretty sure the disciples would have used Google!)
Once you find the nearest clinic, you can begin by praying. Pray for the abortionists, the nurses and the clinic workers. Pray for the medical waste companies who make money picking up the bodies of dead babies. These people desperately need to see the light!
If you’re like me, the thought of being at one of those places makes you want to vomit. I completely understand how you feel. But at some point I had to ask myself, “If not me, WHO?”
There are many great sidewalk counselors and pro-life ministries who are wiling to train you. One of those is Pro-Life Action Ministries. Volunteers are trained, encouraged and scheduled to stand in front of abortion clinics for the purpose of talking to those seeking abortions and offering them the full array of alternatives and assistance so they choose life for their babies. They also hold regular prayer vigils throughout the year. You can also take a look at Pro-Life Action League or just do a search for pro-life ministries in your city.
Perhaps, you would rather go to an abortion clinic to pray and not say a word. That’s ok too! One of my favorite groups is Bound4Life. Maybe you’ve seen them with the red LIFE tape over their mouths? They are a grassroots prayer movement who believe their stand is not a protest but a prayer meeting. What is more powerful than prayer? You can visit their website and find the chapter closest to you.
Post-Abortion Help
Because I’m a spokesperson for the Silent No More Awareness Campaign (and a post-abortive woman myself), I am always aware of the regret that women and men who have participated in abortions live with. The Silent No More website has a page where you can enter your zip code and it will give you all of the post-abortive counseling places near you. This is SO helpful!
Here are links to some great places where post-abortive men and women can find healing:
Rachel’s Vineyard
Forgiven and Set Free
Surrendering the Secret
Healing Hearts (online)
Abort73
Also, we need men and women to register their regret on the Silent No More website. If we had millions of ‘disgruntled customers’ talk about what abortion has done to their lives, surely others would take notice. When we hold our “I Regret My Abortion” signs at the March for Life every year, the response is truly overwhelming. Many see our voices as the loudest.
Crisis Pregnancy Centers/Adoption Advocates
Pregnancy centers are a VITAL part of the pro-life community. The resources they provide make it possible for sidewalk counselors to have a place to take women who choose life. Many of them have sonogram machines, post-abortion counseling, baby supplies, parenting classes, etc.
There are pregnancy centers in almost every county in the United States. You can use websites like Option Line and Care Net which have search engines that allow you to find a center near you that offers free pregnancy tests and other confidential services.
There are many great adoption agencies in the United States. Parent Profiles is a very helpful website for a pregnant mom has chosen adoption for her baby. Bethany Christian Services and Christian Adoption Consultants are adoption agencies that I am familiar with. We are hoping that 2012 will be the year we finally adopt!
Lastly, I would urge you to go to your Pastor/Priest/Bishop and ask them to get your church involved. Many see abortion as a controversial or political subject, but I believe that it grieves the heart of God. If we are silent, we will be held accountable.
Imagine if EVERY Christian would stand outside of an abortion clinic at least once a month. Imagine if just ONE out of every 100 post-abortive women would stand outside and tell the women going in of our regret. While I am just one rain drop by myself, imagine the VAST ocean we would be TOGETHER!
LifeNews.com Note: Kelly Clinger is a pro-life advocate who is a former background vocalist for Britney Spears and had two abortions before becoming a Christian at age 25. She now is married to Matt Clinger and has two children, Evin (age 15) and Logan (age 9). Clinger is a spokeswoman for the Silent No More Awareness Campaign.
