LIFE IS LIFE

I will praise You, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made; Psalms 139:14a (NKJV)

      As a doctor, Timothy Henderson enjoyed his job. He loved being around people and being able to help them and make them better. He often thought of himself as an extension of Jesus even though he couldn't preform the miracles that Jesus did. Today was an exception, today he was not enjoying his job, today he had to be the bearer of some bad news.

     At the Peterson household, it seemed as if it would be another normal day. Harold and Stella were fighting while trying to get ready for school, Bill was trying to remember where he put his brief case the night before so he could go to work and Martha was in the bathroom throwing up because of her pregnancy but all was about to change.

     Just after the kids had left for school, Martha came out of the bathroom shaking like an earthquake.. When Bill saw her he was about to start teasing her but he held his tongue and it was a good thing he did for Martha was shaking because she was scared, because something wasn't right. “Bill,” she called out to her husband, “You need to get me to the hospital.” and than she passed out on the floor.

     After two quick phone calls – one for an ambulance and one to say he wouldn't be coming to work, and not knowing what else to do, Bill grabbed some water and started splashing it on his wife's face. After a few minutes of this, Martha opened her eyes and started to say “I'm scared.” At the same time the ambulance showed up and off they went to the hospital.

     Soon, Bill found himself barraged with a ton of paper work while Dr. Henderson examined Martha to try and figure out what was wrong. He ordered up several blood tests and an ultra sound and after what seemed like ages he had the results.

     “Bill.” the doctor called out when he found him in the waiting room, “You better come back here.” As soon as Bill got back to the examination room he sat down next to Martha and held her hand. “I'm afraid I have some bad news.” Doc started to say, “And I wish I didn't have to tell you this.” “Is my wife dying?” Bill had to ask when he heard that.

     “No.” Doc assured him, “Your wife isn't dying but the baby..” The Doc got a lump in his throat and had to stop talking. “What about the baby?” Martha asked as she started to shake again and with tears in his eyes Doc told them that the baby had died and Martha was having a miscarriage. Upon hearing the news Bill wrapped his arms around his wife and they both cried.

     Later that evening as Harold and Stella received the news they put aside their fighting and when they went to see their mom, together they wrapped their arms around her in silence.

     How precious is an unborn child to you? This Sunday is Sanctity of Human Life Sunday.

     I'm not sure who put this together for I found it in several places on the Internet but here it is.

     On September 11, 2001 evil doers killed over 4,000 people. They were future leaders of this nation, doctors who could have saved many, scientist who may have found a cure for cancer, evangelist who may have lead thousands to the Lord and they were loved. Yes on September 11, 2001, evil doers killed over 4000 people.

     On September 12, 2001 evil doers killed over 4000 people and again on September 13 and 14 and 15. Every day evil doers are killing over 4000 unborn babies. 4000 each day, 28,000 each week, 112,000 each month and 1,460,000 each year.

     All those deaths and why? The Alan Guttmacher Institute (the research arm of Planned Parenthood) states: * 1% are victims of incest or rape * 1% had fetal abnormalities * 4% had a doctor who said their health would worsen if they continued the pregnancy * 50% said they didn’t want to be a single parent or they had problems in current relationships * 66% stated they could not afford a child *75% said the child would interfere with their lives. (1)

     Children, babies, and even people no longer seem to be important, they are no longer special yet God's word tells us that children, babies and even us are;

• Created in God's image - Genesis 1:26-27 Then God said, “Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness. They will rule the fish of the sea, the birds of the sky, the livestock, all the earth, and the creatures that crawl on the earth.” So God created man in His own image; He created him in the image of God; He created them male and female. (HCSB)
• Formed by God in the womb - Psalms 139:13-16 For it was You who created my inward parts; You knit me together in my mother’s womb. I will praise You, because I have been remarkably and wonderfully made. Your works are wonderful, and I know [this] very well. My bones were not hidden from You when I was made in secret, when I was formed in the depths of the earth. Your eyes saw me when I was formless; all [my] days were written in Your book and planned before a single one of them began. (HCSB)
• A gift from God - Psalms 127:3-5 Children are a gift from the LORD; they are a reward from him. Children born to a young man are like sharp arrows in a warrior's hands. How happy is the man whose quiver is full of them! He will not be put to shame when he confronts his accusers at the city gates. (NLT)

     Long before a child is born he or she is very much alive - Medical authorities determine a person to be “alive” if there is either a detectable heartbeat or brain-wave activity. With that in mind, it is eye-opening for some to realize that unborn children have detectable heartbeats at eighteen days (two and one-half weeks) after conception and detectable brain-wave activity forty days (a little over five and one-half weeks) after conception.

      Here's Something To Ponder

• How do you see the life of a child before birth?
• Is life important to you?
  
  
  (1) Statistics cited in Rescue Update, June/July 1989, Southern California Operation Rescue, quoted in Sanctity of Life, C. Swindoll, Word, 1990, p. 12.