Dear Friend of Life,
Please give a warm PRO-LIFE welcome to our BRAND NEW Sidewalk Advocates for Life locations!
The following cities will start around April 1 (or soon after), peacefully offering loving, life-affirming alternatives to women and men entering their local abortion facility…
- Ft. Worth, TX
- Greenville, SC**
- Harrisburg, PA
- Mesa, AZ
- Naples, FL*
- New York City — Brooklyn
- San Antonio, TX
- Tallahassee, FL
- Tempe, AZ
- White River Junction, VT
*Note: These locations will start later in the quarter.
**Note: These locations returned after a short break.
These locations join our existing locations who are continuing their program!
Total, we are now up to 55 participating Sidewalk Advocates for Life locations! Praise God!
If you live near one of these locations, you might consider attending a local training and becoming an active Sidewalk Advocate, offering loving, life-affirming alternatives to women and men entering the abortion center. The spirit is peaceful and the effectiveness of this method is undeniable — simply because it’s based in sharing the love of Christ!
Details on how to get involved in your local Sidewalk Advocates for Life program are found in the LOCATIONS tab on our main website: https://sidewalkadvocates.org/
What if you don’t have a location near you?
Consider bringing a Sidewalk Advocates for Life Sidewalk Advocacy program to your local community this summer! Applications will be open from May 1-31! Be sure to visit our website for more details: www.sidewalkadvocates.org.
Let us know if you have any questions! In the meantime, we ask you to keep all of our new and existing locations in your prayers, that many lives continue to be saved and many hearts transformed by the grace and power of God’s love!
It is our prayer that no abortion facility in America and beyond goes without peaceful, loving, well-trained sidewalk counselors! Thank you for joining us in this incredibly important mission to save lives and transform hearts!
Thanks to local Program Director, Karen, 50 new Sidewalk Advocates were trained near San Jose, CA this past weekend!
The feedback?
“Inspirational! …professional! …well-put-together! …organized! …dynamic!”
These advocates were on fire after the training, ready to hit the sidewalk, offering loving alternatives to those entering their local abortion facility.
During the weekend, a story surfaced of a life saved at the local San Jose facility!
One of the regular Sidewalk Advocates, Olga, was lamenting to Lauren about a mistake she had made the other day on the sidewalk: “Lauren, I cannot believe it. A woman came out of the abortion facility and said there was a problem with her BMI. I didn’t know what BMI was …but I gave her information and told her that whatever the problem, the local pregnancy center could help her. I felt so foolish because I went home and ‘googled’ BMI and found out it meant ‘body mass index’ …oh, well!”
During the San Jose gathering, a staff member from the local pregnancy center shared a victory story (leaving off confidential information, of course): “A woman came in today, letting us know that a Sidewalk Advocate had given her information about our center. She said she had gone to the abortion facility, but they wouldn’t do the abortion because her BMI was too high. She was referred to another abortion facility. Instead of going there, she chose to follow the information that the Sidewalk Advocate had given her. Today, she saw an ultrasound of her 15-week old baby …and chose life!”
It goes to show that when we think we’ve “messed up,” God still works miracles through us! Praise God! And thank you for being there, Olga!
WEEKLY DEVOTIONAL (FEBRUARY 15 – MARCH 14, 2015): “CONTAGIOUS JOY”
by Lauren Muzyka, Executive Director, Sidewalk Advocates for Life
Verse(s): “You will go out in joy and be led forth in peace; the mountains and hills will burst into song before you, and all the trees of the field will clap their hands.” — Isaiah 55:12
Reflection: As I arrived in California to prepare for a Sidewalk Advocacy training, someone asked me what we were doing that Thursday morning. I remember saying, “I’m excited! We’re going our to sidewalk counsel tomorrow morning!”
Then, I paused. Yikes, why did I respond that way? After all, I knew that my least favorite place was an abortion facility.
I quickly clarified to someone, “No, I absolutely hate going to the abortion facility …but it does bring me great joy to serve the people there.” Yes, it’s a JOY to do God’s work, to give them hope, to point them in the right direction, knowing that all His roads lead to life abundant!
And though we are going to the foot of the Cross every time we head out to the abortion facility, do we realize that our love, peace and joy is the net by which we catch souls (ref. Mother Teresa)? That doesn’t mean we’re bouncing up and down with giddiness as we hand someone a pamphlet to the local pregnancy center, but it does mean that we begin and end with a smile, letting that person know that they are loved by us and by God Himself. That, in and of itself, should bring us great joy!
Call to Action: Mother Teresa once said, “Peace begins with smile.” Do you exude the joy of the Lord in your being, proclaiming His holy ways?
Try to remember to smile at all you pass today in the checkout line, the grocery store, the gas station, and the post office. A kind nod or hello or simple word may just be enough to brighten someone’s day!
Remember that pro-life ministry begins with treating all you come across as a child made by a loving Creator; your simple smile can be the thing that turns someone’s heart to the kind, loving ways of their Father in Heaven.