“Women who have abortions sicken me.”
Those are the words she heard the very first time she shared a bit of her own abortion experience with other Christians. This dear, committed Christian woman had felt God calling her to this - despite her fear of speaking of her deepest, darkest sin with others in the church. She had struggled to maintain composure as she spoke to the crowd. When it was over, she felt a great sense of relief that she had gotten through it. Some of those who heard her speak came up to talk to her later and that’s when it happened. She was momentarily stunned to hear these words. Later, she said when the other woman realized what she had said – and to whom she had said it – there was a bit of awkward stumbling through the rest of their short conversation.
When you are a woman – or a man - who regrets your abortion(s), telling others can be a fearful thing. You fear judgment and condemnation and rejection. You believe that others will never look at you the same way again.
So, why would a woman ever share her story when she has those anxieties in her heart? She shares because she has discovered the truth that her sins have truly been forgiven by our loving Father. She knows that there are so many others out there just like she used to be - silent and filled with fear – sitting in churches, Bible studies and small groups who do not yet have the assurance that the work Christ did on the cross covers every sin, including abortion. She knows many are paralyzed by the lies the enemy whispers to them on a regular basis:
- Pastor just said that abortion is murder. You can’t tell anyone what you did.
- No one else has ever done what you did. Look around – no one else is a mess like you. They will never accept you if they find out your secret.
- Sure, sins can be forgiven by God…but not abortion.You committed the one sin that cannot be forgiven.
She wants to see others freed from that place of darkness and isolation. And so, she steps out in faith.
Thankfully, the woman in this story has not been deterred by her experience. She will go on to share as the Lord leads her to. For others, however, the comments they hear about abortion from Christians can cause them to fold their secret ever deeper into themselves. That secret becomes like a festering wound, infecting the heart, mind and soul. This just ought not to be.
The church should be the place where those who are in need of healing come to find wholeness, forgiveness and freedom in Christ. Instead, many times they face the expectation that they should not be bringing their sick, messy lives into the church. In Mark 2:17 we read that Jesus said, “Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick. I came not to call the righteous, but sinners.
We need to change the conversation about abortion in the church and among Christians. We need to figure out how to speak the truth about the atrocity that is abortion, while we extend grace and love to those who have been impacted. Warren Wiersbe has stated it this way:
“Truth without love is brutality, and love without truth is hypocrisy.”
Let’s work to truly extend the love of Christ to everyone we encounter, regardless of their sin.
Until next time -
Kay
