by Virginia J. Flo, Director of Volunteer Relations
“Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding” (Proverbs 3:5).
The mission of Lutherans For Life is to “equip Lutherans and their neighbors to be Gospel-motivated voices For Life.” As you are equipping, how are you doing it? Does it get frustrating at times, especially when you don’t see the results you are looking for? What then?
It’s easy to stray from using your voice in a Gospel-motivated way to becoming judgmental. It becomes frustrating when we see how the world continues to defy God’s Word and dishonor the sanctity of life. We want to do something to change things quickly, on our own timeline. The dreaded silence we often hear is deafening because we want to hear and see results. Now.
Are people silent out of fear of being chastised or ridiculed, or are they simply in agreement but don’t know how to express it? Being silent is safe. Yet, the results we want to see aren’t showing, and we want to know how we are doing. We want to personally see people having an open change of heart from something we have said or done.
Seeing how the world is content to live in a culture of death makes you want to shout out, “You sinners, stop what you are doing!” Maybe you want to make a list of all the commandments being broken and publish them for the world to see, especially when you see the terrible laws being passed in many states that not only allow but encourage the killing of babies through abortion and the sick and elderly through assisted suicide. Maybe you’d like to pull out those pictures of aborted babies torn apart through the evil act of abortion and put them on display also for the world to see. Do you feel it would be good to shock people into changing their thinking about a particular life issue?
Perhaps that practice might work on a few people, but for how long, and does that really bring them closer to God? Those practices are singularly Law focused. And without the Gospel, we might even push people farther away from our Savior. Is that what we want for a woman or man struggling with the guilt of having had or participated in an abortion? Are we really trying to change hearts through the Gospel or simply trying to do something to make people wake up? Then what? (Yes, we need the Law, but without the Gospel, the results will be minimal.)
So, when we talk one on one, make public statements in a presentation, write a newspaper article, or some other form of communication, what should be our approach? Scripture is full of heart-changing truths that are there for us to share. Using God’s Word may seem like a longer path to bring back sinners, but they are the exact words they need to hear. (We do, too!)
When those of us that are part of our Lutherans For Life family present ourselves as those fire-breathing dragons that tear people down, filling them with fear, what do you think will be accomplished? Announcing that you are a member of Lutherans For Life and because of that, people need to listen to you surely doesn’t hold the weight of God’s Word. We want our results to be a change of hearts for those supporting abortion, physician-assisted suicide, and the like outside of God’s will. In doing so, the best path forward is through the Gospel message. Am I saying we never point out that abortion is a sin and other means of death are not in line with God’s plan For Life? No. Of course, we must use the Law in order to point to the need for the Gospel. But when we do this in a manner that avoids sharing God’s love For Life, it might just be that we sin through our judgment.
May we never forget that our role is to plant the seeds of truth, and God is the one that nourishes and grows the life-affirming message He has sown throughout Scripture. If we expect to be the one to change hearts by sowing seeds of judgment rather than love, we are changing the mission we are sent to fulfill. Please use your Gospel-motivated voice For Life in love and may God bless your efforts! In Jesus’ name we pray!
“What then is Apollos? What is Paul? Servants through whom you believed, as the Lord assigned to each. I planted, Apollos watered, but God gave the growth. So neither he who plants nor he who waters is anything, but only God who gives the growth” (1 Corinthians 3:5-7).