On the Anniversary of Roe v. Wade, Can God Redeem the Choice You Regret?

Today is the anniversary of Roe v. Wade, the 1973 Supreme Court decision legalizing abortion in the U.S. In addition to the tragedy of the over 57 million lives lost, there are millions of men and women who grieve the decision they made, years, even decades, ago. For that, this day can be a bitter reminder of a loss they silently bear alone.What if one day, many years ago, you made that choice? What if deep down inside, you wish you would have done things differently? What if you have a silent, gnawing sense of guilt that never seems to go away? For Christians who've made the choice to end their child’s life, (yes, that happens), their secret may not be known to anyone inside their current circle of friends. They may wonder if God really has forgiven them, or if there is anything they can do to lift the weight of sadness.I can answer “yes” to both of those questions.When we confess our sin and repent, God forgives us. It’s so simple, it doesn’t seem possible, does it? But that’s what makes the Gospel such good news: Jesus paid it all—all of our sin can be forgiven. Like our pastor reminded us on Sunday, the apostle Paul was a murderer who killed Christians, and when God met him on the road to Damascus, he repented and became a new, and forgiven, man. So let’s put that to rest—if you’ve had an abortion, and you agree with God that it was sin, and you turn from that sin, He forgives you. It is finished.Yet there are times when we all feel accused and reminded of our sin and failures. None of us are immune from the struggle to walk in the forgiveness that God has freely given us through His Son, Jesus. Besides continued prayer and ignoring Satan’s accusations, what do you do with any lingering regret?

One of the ways God redeems our losses, whether they be of our own doing or someone else's, is for us to reach out to others with the help He's given us. He can take our biggest failures and use them to point others to Him. How?

We can:

1. Comfort those who mourn their abortions.
2. Counsel others who are dealing with unplanned pregnancies at a Pregnancy Resource Center.
3. Adopt children whose brave mothers carry them until birth but who are unable to parent them.
4. Volunteer and/or give to organizations that support parents dealing with a crisis pregnancy.

Here’s the scary part. You might need to share your story. And when you do, it's going to give hope to someone else. Hope for forgiveness. Hope that they can carry the baby with the help and support of people who care. This might be the year for you to courageously step out of your silence and speak. It could change someone's life. It might change your life. And, most importantly, it could save a life.