In Word & Deed
What does it look like to save babies from abortion?
(Roma involved at Stanton)
That is the goal of people in all parts of the pro-life movement, yet few consider the practical applications of that goal. For some, it’s argumentatively changing minds on street corners via apologetics. For some, it's political action. Others, it’s counseling on the sidewalks in front of the abortion clinics. For a large and crucial part of the American pro-life movement, it is being the support staff of pregnancy resource centers and clinics.
As someone who has done all of these things and more, the day-to-day reality of what it looks like to save babies at Stanton in the Mobile is much different than what it is on the street or in the policy center.
When the Stanton SoCal team steps into the mobile on any given morning, they are prepared to first and foremost provide exemplary care to every woman who steps through the doors. Not only that, they do it with the goal of sharing first the love of Christ, not arguments nor discussion of position on abortion, to which I am accustomed to witnessing.
Stanton Baby who’s mom chose life!
The Mobile staff, which I have been fortunate to call myself a part of in these past few months, takes each case with love, sympathy, and professionalism, and seeks first the well-being of the woman, her family, and her baby before we ever even try to convince her not to have an abortion. Every client interaction has been someone who we see first, as a human being made in the image of God, second, as a patient, and third, as someone who needs to be dissuaded from the tragedy of abortion.
All of these things do not mean that the work of the Mobile team is not as urgent or necessary as that of sidewalk counselors, protesters, or political advocates. However, the Stanton team has a much different role in saving babies from abortion, simply because we are in a way the front line: the first step of ensuring women have compassionate alternatives that promote their whole well-being in a way that they can conceivably have a child without having to resort to abortion.
Often, many pro-abortion advocates’ arguments are true: not everybody wants an abortion. Circumstantially, many women feel forced to have an abortion because they aren’t in a stable home or don’t have a stable job.
That’s where the Mobile comes in: practicing the Gospel call to care for those who cannot care for themselves.
In the High Desert (pictured right), many women feel pressured into having an abortion because they have inescapable domestic issues, financial insecurity, or indeterminate resident status. They often cannot get the proper healthcare that they need, and due to these problems, there is a lot of fear and a lot of sorrow when many of these women consider the next step in their pregnancy/consider what to do in pregnancy/something involving pregnancy. consider abortion as a viable option. That does not excuse the fact that abortion should n?ever be their first choice or their immediate thought. However, it should shift the way we think.
In the Mobile, when sitting across from a client similar to the one that I was privileged to serve a few weeks ago- a mom of two, without a stable family life, without a good relationship with the baby’s father, who was not planning on having a child- I saw her first and foremost as someone to treat with love, respect, and professional care. As much as her baby was a client as well, the main priority was making sure that she was made comfortable and that she felt seen, heard, and respected. When we discussed options with her, such as an OB/GYN, insurance care, and how she would manage having another baby, the more she talked with us, the more visibly relaxed and confident she seemed in her options and support system.
“And whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him. ”
None of our conversation was for the specific purpose of convincing her not to get an abortion- the aim was to show/represent the Gospel, give her care and support, and work towards the larger goal of ensuring her whole well-being. Once we aim for the well-being of the client in a Christ-centered way, abortion is removed entirely from the conversation.
Every single woman who receives care is a patient, a person, and an image-bearer of Christ. Serving them, the goal is to show their hearts the love of Christ, the life/hope that Christ brings, and the wholeness of having faith and & being known and loved. We may not get to share the Gospel with them explicitly, we may not even be able to pray with them, but we always strive to show them the love of Christ in our actions and pray over every client, whether they know it or not, and genuinely offer resources.
So what does it mean to save babies from abortion in the Stanton SoCal Mobile?
2024 Impact Report Baby Michael
In my experience, it means treating women as human beings in need of a Savior and removing abortion from the table entirely. It means being there as a point of contact in the community where women can come and feel seen and respected, and letting them know that whatever they trust us with will be given the utmost care. It means helping every woman, couple, and family that walks into the Mobile to feel human and empowered again. It means offering medical care that shows women the love of God and tangible hope.
As the Impact Reports show, this approach is effective and beautiful in practice when it comes to saving lives: both of the unborn children and their mothers. In an organization with the goal of replacing Planned Parenthood, we seek to not just be a better option, but to completely remove Planned Parenthood as a viable option in the first place.
So, even as someone new to the clinical side of the pro-life movement, I am grateful that I have been able to observe the courageous and professional ministry of those I work alongside in the Stanton Mobile, and what’s more, to observe the courage and the beauty of each woman who comes through the doors, trusting us to give her an alternative to abortion, whether she knows it or not.