Family Matters: Becoming Pro-Life Parents

Bethany Bomberger: Awesome. What a great day. It’s so wonderful to be with you guys today. I am Bethany Bomberger, and I am the Co-founder and the Executive Director of The Radiance Foundation. And it is so wonderful to take some time and talk about something that I’m absolutely passionate about: family and what it means to be a pro-life parent. 

Back in 2009, my husband Ryan and I, we began The Radiance Foundation, and we weren’t sure what we were getting into. We’re still not sure what we’ve gotten ourselves into all these years later, but we are just so grateful that the Lord has been with us on this journey. Our motto at The Radiance Foundation is illuminate, educate, and motivate. 

Our heart is to illuminate that every life has intrinsic value, irreplaceable, irrevocable, unique value. So we educate about a myriad of really culture shifting issues. We talk of course, about life because without life, nothing else matters, but we talk about abortion. We talk about adoption and fatherlessness and poverty and race all within the context of God-given purpose. 

And our heart is really to motivate people, not just to have knowledge, not just to have faith, but to actually put it into action and to live lives of purpose and to not be silent on these culture shifting issues. We have… the Lord’s blessed us. My husband has been blessed with this ability to take a lot of information and put it into small areas. 

So we do a lot of research and we look into the history of different factors that have lead into what we’re seeing in the culture, and we’ve created fact sheets because we want people to take some time and look at what actual numbers are. We know that you’re not going to turn on the TV and see things that are really giving you a reflection of what’s going on in the culture from a really researched perspective. 

And we want to do that for you. That’s on our website. That’s part of our education link. We have lots of postcards we tackle as I said, all of these different subjects and over the years, the Lord has just really given us opportunities to keynote a lot of places, 50 to 60 events a year, debates on Harvard campus, Columbia Law School, Princeton University. 

We had a great time. My husband was debating. I was along for the ride. Cause he, yeah. He needed support. No. Over in Dublin, Ireland, the Trinity Philosophical Society. And the Lord has just opened doors on UN panels and conferences and summits and churches all across the globe. And we are just so passionate about really engaging in this culture and understanding God’s heart about issues so that we, especially we as Christians, don’t remain silent. 

But we actually understand God’s heart and can speak a life-affirming message into what’s going on and we can be part of shifting culture. And even though the Lord has allowed us to go these different places and He was with us as we were sued by the NAACP and had to go through court hearings and an entire, very difficult few years of which we did end up winning in the end of that. 

But I think back to these types of things that, that court case, writing the books, going through adoptions with our children. And I think, “Wow, Lord, it’s just overwhelming how You’ve carried us. You’ve taken us places. You’ve taken us through valleys, up on mountains.” And we are just so blessed that the Lord’s allowed our passion and our calling to be our full-time work. 

And even though I could stand here for the next hour, which I won’t, and tell you really wonderful stories about how the Lord has come through for us and where we’ve been and what we’ve done, at the end of the day, I always say at the end of the day and at the beginning of the day, despite where we’ve gone, despite what we’ve been able to do, for Ryan and I, none of it is worth it if we don’t choose to put our family first, if we don’t choose to cultivate a culture of life within the walls of our home.  

Now, today we’re going to talk about family matters, what it looks like to be, become pro-life parents and even pro-life adults. So, if you think, “Oh, I’m not a parent, this isn’t for me.” Hold on. There’s a lot of good stuff for you. 

It’s very important that we understand our influence. It’s very important that we understand that some of you might not be physical parents, but you’re spiritual parents and becoming pro-life parents is very important. We don’t take parenting lightly. We don’t take it lightly at all. We know that as parents, we’re called to shepherd hearts. 

I know that, if you’re a parent and you haven’t read the book by Theodore Tripp, Ted Tripp, which is called Shepherding a Child’s Heart, do it. It’s so good. And I love that phrase, shepherding a heart, because it’s really just a really great visual. And it helps us to understand that parenting is an ownership. 

We don’t have children that we own. We have actually been given children and the Lord’s allowing us to steward their soul. We steward finances, we steward our time. He’s given us these souls to steward, to speak into the lives of children who just like us were created for eternity. And what we say and what we do will either point them toward life or death. 

So, Ryan and I have chosen to follow God’s call in our life. But we’re very much in tune with the fact that it’s our heart to pour into our kids to establish family devotional times. And you know what? Some weeks go by and we go we didn’t, what happened? We missed that. Some weeks go by and I’m like, guys, we’ve been doing this for years. Can you all just sit up and can we pretend we’re enjoying ourselves?  

And then there’s other times where we have a great time together, but it’s very important that we establish these family devotional times together and that we talk about hard things. And we talk about the realities of the culture that we’re living in. 

Now for us in our home, we run an organization where we talk about heart issues all the time. So our kids can’t escape it. We’re very conscious of being very age appropriate with them, but we know that the same Holy Spirit that resides in us resides in our children. And we want them to be equipped to not fear the culture, but to know that God has something to say about what’s going on. 

And so we pray and we encourage our kids to know and love the Lord with all of their hearts and their minds and their souls. And we encourage them to dive into the Word of God and really have a standard by which they’re going to weigh everything that’s coming at them, because our kids, it’s definitely an onslaught. 

You’re looking at a picture of my sweet kiddos and it’s amazing to think I have an 18-year-old, a 15-year-old, a 14-year-old old and a 12-year-old. And I mistakenly thought that if I just get them out of diapers and get them handling and wiping their own booties, that life would be easy. But I love the fact that they’re teenagers and we just grow together and we work together because we know that eternity is in their destiny. 

And we want them to reside with us for all of eternity in heaven. They have to grow up and make their own decisions. We know that very well. And prayerfully, there’ll be a lot of God-filled, wonderful decisions, despite all of Ryan and I’s imperfection, because I’m sharing with you the things that we are learning along our journey of becoming pro-life parents, but we are far from perfect. 

And I have learned. It’s okay to say, “I’m sorry. Can we do a reset?” It’s okay to say, “I’m sorry, I haven’t done. I should have said that differently.” I should have done something differently, but we’re passionate about growing up kids that are pro-life. And we’re passionate about pouring into our family because it matters whether or not that’s a priority. 

And we know that teaching our children to be pro-life is teaching them essentially to know the God of life, not just the God who thinks life is great. And oh, yes, would tell us that we should value life. No, the God whose name is synonymous with life, the God who is the life-giver, the life breather, and He Himself is life. It’s His very nature.  

We’re living in a culture and our children are growing up in a culture that celebrates death. It tries to normalize the injustice of abortion. It is awesome to be in D.C. this week that we’re taping this because we’re going to March for Life. Because we’re going to take a stand and talk about this injustice, and we’re going to say, it’s not okay. 

We’re going to live out our life. In fact, I can’t imagine doing anything other than fighting for life for the rest of my life. It’s that important. We are seeing that our kids are really in a culture that’s trying to normalize the injustice of abortion. And it’s imperative that we teach our kids before a broken world reaches them.  

We don’t have the luxury of staying silent and we don’t have the luxury of sticking our head in the sand. It’s just not a luxury that we have, especially as Christians. When we know the God of life and we know that life and death can’t coexist in the same place. So we want the God of life to fill up these empty places, especially when I think about our culture. 

And we’ve realized that there is a target that’s been placed on our children. There’s a very specific agenda. We are living in a culture that says what’s right is actually wrong. A culture that’s adamantly opposing the identity of Christ and humanity.  

My husband Ryan and I just finished writing a book, a kid’s book called She is She. The beautiful, undeniable biological differences of girls and women. And it’s amazing that we even had to write a book that would begin to tackle that subject. But we live in a society that doesn’t see the identity of Christ in each human. The definition of family is the foundational institution of a society ordained by God.

And as the enemy authors confusion and really sells and peddles death to our kiddos, we have to remember that what’s happening, what we’re seeing happening is the breakdown of family. And we all know that if we lived in a house where the foundation was destroyed, the house would crumble. And so we don’t want to stand for the crumbling.

We want to stand up and say, as a family, we are going to do our best to model what it looks like to stand firm on the Word of God and stand firm on the cornerstone of our society. There is an enemy that wants our families dismantled and our kiddos dead. That’s really what his job is. He wants them physically and spiritually dead.

And if the enemy can’t end a life in utero, he’s going to keep working and ending that life after a child is born. The enemy is relentless. And you know why he’s relentless? He’s relentless because he knows that he can never be a co-heir with the King of kings and the Lord of lords. He knows that his lot in life is to live in hell for all of eternity. 

And he hates the fact that we have opportunities. We have opportunities to actually accept the Lord as our Savior, turn our hearts to Him, confess that He is the Savior, and that we can live with Him for all of eternity. So he works overtime to eliminate precious life. And as parents who are really raising kiddos in the midst of this darkness and it feels really dark. 

Even just sharing this with you and talking about our culture feels, do you feel the hopelessness? You feel that darkness? Because our kids are combating a lot. They turn on the TV, the music, their phones, their friends. There’s a lot of a worldview that is opposed to a biblical worldview that’s coming at them, but I’m here today not to make a shrink back. I want to encourage you. I want to sound the alarm because listen, our children are here in the midst of this culture for a reason. Our children are not mistakes. They could have born been born at any point in history. I have one daughter who would have liked to have been born in the eighties, but she wasn’t. 

She loves 80s music and the 80s, dressing up as the 80s, but they weren’t. They, our children were born exactly when they were supposed to and they could have been born at any point in history, but God knit them together one stitch at a time. I say in my pro-life kids’ book, He knit you together one cell at a time with love and attention, a plan so divine.  

Our kids’ DNA, their gifts, their personalities, their talents were purposefully created to bring heaven to earth, and what God has placed in each of them can be used to combat the lies of this current culture.  

For the next few minutes, I’m going to leave you with a couple of points. And hopefully, my hope is that they’re hope-filled points And I know that when we’re talking about what it means to become a pro-life family, I look at it from the perspective of a mama. It’s my mama’s heart, it’s me and my husband and I, we pour into our kids because God created a system where mothers and fathers are really the physical representation of God.  

We’re not their savior. That’s not what I’m saying. But we are the ones that are their first line of defense. And we’re the ones who should be pointing them to the Savior. We’re the first example of what caring looks like and nurturing looks like and being authority figures. And when men and women come together as parents, there is a mighty revelation of God that is made manifest. 

And I know that not every parent is a godly representative because we live in a fallen world, but that’s the ideal. That’s the ideal. And as parents, we can be and should be our children’s biggest influencers. There’s a lot of competition for us, but this really is part of God’s plan. I want to talk to you for a minute about what it means to, to influence. 

And honestly, this was a revelation that hit me hard when I was pregnant with my first daughter, who’s now 18. It’s hard to believe my oldest daughter Radiance, and I don’t always share this part of my testimony, but it’s real. And it’s actually, walking through this was my beginning, my, the foray into parenting. 

Now at this time, I had grown up in church. And I had known the Lord from really a very young age, somewhere in my teens and in my twenties, I found myself second guessing the Lord, wondering about this, wondering about that, wondering where He was. And after going through really a series of very hard-hitting disappointments. 

I look back and I realized that I was really emotionally numb and I was in my twenties. I had, I had a master’s degree, I have a career, I’m living on my own, but I really felt isolated and was numb to my faith. And I look back, and right now I just, at this point in life at the age I am now, seeing how the Lord has taken me through so many things, I just have a soft spot for those folks that are in a place Where, you know, that the Lord is real, but circumstances and situations have really led you to maybe a dark moment where you’re feeling as though the God that you thought was so real might not really be there. 

And my hope-filled words for you are hold on, seek Him and you will find Him. There’s an awesome verse in the New Testament, which says, “Seek Me and you will find Me when you seek Me with all your heart.” And I know that our inclination is to shrink back when we’re feeling like we’re going through a dark time, but I encourage you to push forward and give Him your whole heart. 

But during this season of my life when I really didn’t, really felt isolated, I had been in a relationship with somebody and it was a very abusive relationship. It was a very emotionally abusive relationship and of course, this was before I married my incredible husband. And I found myself pregnant. 

And I, here I am a teacher. I’m teaching in inner-city Philadelphia. My friends that are all teachers were just like, “Please. Just go get an abortion. Why wouldn’t you just do that? Nobody would even have to know. You can’t be with this guy long term. You just can’t.” The biological father said, “You know what, you really need to abort,” and offered the funds to do it.  

And I knew that was not going to be my choice. I knew that I was not going to abort this child, and I didn’t know much more than that because as many women who have been in my situation know, there’s this embrace of fear that clutches your heart when you’re in a predicament like, This is why our hearts are so soft toward women who are, could potentially be abortion-minded because we know the fear that comes along with these types of situations, and at this point and even at that point I knew that perfect love would cast out fear. And I just kept saying, “God, I feel like I know You’re somewhere; I don’t know where you are but help me to make my way through this season.”  

And I always think for me, this is very special. There was a date. It was Valentine’s Day. It was a Saturday morning in 2004, February 14th. I was by myself and I went to get an ultrasound and I had showed up at the, this medical facility and there was nobody there, and I see this nurse running in. 

So I was like, “Hey, I think I, maybe I have the wrong date, but I had, I have an ultrasound.” “Oh, I’m the tech.” So, she’s getting settled.  

And I, I’m laying there thinking every thought- good, bad, ugly. “Oh, what in the world? What’s going on? Is this really happening to me? This wasn’t supposed to happen to me.” And she starts the ultrasound and I look up and she turns the TV. She says, “Well, this is your baby’s heart.” 

It was a little, looked like a grain of rice just blinking on the screen. And I promise you in that moment, I had a defining moment where I just felt the embrace of God. And it’s almost like He took that little beating heart and He took my heart and He just took His heart and just enveloped all of us. 

And that night I went home to my apartment and I pulled out this old journal because now it’s hitting me. I’m living this selfish life. I realize I’m numb. I have every reason under the sun to continue to walk this life out and just not care about things and being in an abusive relationship. But wait a minute. 

Now I have another kiddo. I have somebody else to think about. I have a kid to think about. I open up this journal and in the margin of the journal, it says Psalm 34:5, which says, “I sought the Lord. He delivered me from all my fears and those that look to Him will be radiant and their faces will never be covered with shame.” 

Everybody thought I was crazy, but I named my daughter baby Radiance that day. Because I decided that I was going to be her greatest influence in life. And she was not going to see a mom who was emotionally numb. She’s going to see a mom who’s understanding who God is and leaning into God. And walking away from the people who were saying, you’re not strong enough to do this, get an abortion. 

No, I’m going to parent. If it means I’m going to be a single parent, that’s what I’m going to do. So on the screen, you’ll see an ultrasound of a few months later of my sweet baby Radiance. And even though people thought I was crazy to name her that, there was something about the revelation of the radiance of God covering shame that I never wanted her testimony to be a testimony of shame.  

It’s funny, all these years later, that now we’re running The Radiance Foundation, my husband, one day, we had all these other names for it, and he said, “I think we should call it The Radiance Foundation because no matter what we’re tackling, no matter what’s going on in the culture, there’s a radiant glory of God that is willing to exchange the shame and the guilt and everything else that a culture of death will give us for His radiant glory.” 

Being her mom changed me. Being her mom and wanting to be her greatest cheerleader changed me. In this next picture, you see a picture of Ryan and I because we said three became one because Ryan married me and adopted my little munchkin and I think back to God’s redemption and how since then we’ve had two biological kiddos and moved on to a private adoption. 

And I realized that, oh my goodness, we were created to influence. those around us. God… I think it’s so funny actually that the world, you know now calls influencers, it’s a job description, but we were created. Now we’re created, we were created for the sole purpose of giving glory to God, of course and when we give glory to God, what happens He lives in us and He dwells in us and then what happens- the joy the love, the peace- it bubbles over and it affects those around us. 

And in the same way, when we aren’t serving the Lord and doing what we’ve been called to do, there’s the type of, there’s anger and resentment and bitterness that then takes up residence in our souls, and it bubbles up. And we know what it’s like to be around those people. But I’ll tell you what, we were created, we were designed to influence those that are around us. 

Think about it. We serve a God who is the ultimate in relationships. The Trinity is a Father, Son, Holy Spirit. It’s a relationship there. He’s created us to influence those that are around us, ultimately to influence them with divine thoughts and heaven, bringing heaven to earth. That’s what He’s, that’s what He wants for us to do. 

And I think that when we think about the fact that you were designed to influence and you were designed to touch others, the lives of those around you, it can be somewhat daunting, but it shouldn’t be daunting. It should, when you understand that God has given you purpose and that this is part of the DNA of humanity, you can move through life and understand that, guess what? You’re going to meet, sociologists say you’re going to meet 80,000 people in your lifetime.  

A few years ago, Ryan was speaking at Verizon Center before the March for Life, and we got there early for a sound check, and the place began to fill up because I think it was about 30,000 youth that met there. 

And as we stood down at the base of all of this and we just watched the folks come, I thought, “Oh my gosh, this is so many people.” And because I’m a little bit extroverted when I think about what sociologists say about 80,000, I’ll take that 30,000, multiply it by three. I’m going to meet 90,000 people in my lifetime. 

That’s not just, you’re going to see them. It means that you’re going to meet them. You’re not just going to pass them on the side of the road. That number is way bigger. And if you’re introverted and you want to knock it down to 70,000, it’s still a lot. And when I think about the fact that, you’re going to touch people’s lives that I’m never, my 80,000 is not necessarily your 80,000.  

In fact, if I tried to be your best friend’s best friend and we had a friendship, guess what? My relationship with them would still touch their heart and lives in a different way than yours. We’ve been created to influence. 

When we think about the influencer jobs and social media influencers, right? The macros and the micros and who’s got how many likes and who’s this, that, and the other thing. I think it’s actually funny to think about the fact that the world is recognizing what is put in all of humanity and trying to define it the best way that they can. 

But we know that God tells us in Matthew, you’re the salt of the earth. You’re the light of the world. You’re a city on a hill that cannot be hidden. It says in Matthew 5, it says, “Let your light shine before others so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven.” Let them see what you’re doing so that you can influence them to be pointed to the Father, to the Savior. 

And so when we think about being influencers, you really just don’t have a choice about whether or not you’re going to influence other people, just by very nature, the fact that you’re human, you will, but you can choose how you’re going to use your influence, how you’re going to shine your light in a dark world. 

When I became Ra’s parent and was faced with myself, I had to really evaluate how am I going to model healthy behaviors? How am I not going to remain in toxic situations because I am going to influence her life and my decisions will really affect her as pro-life parents. 

We have to understand that what we do and how we look at life and how we express it to our children matters. So, I want you to remember that you were born to influence and remember that intentionality is so important. You have to, we have to be intentional about the position of our heart, about how we choose to influence our sphere. 

The world is looking to influence our kids at younger and younger ages. There’s an agenda. There’s a very intentional agenda that will take our children from understanding and doing what is right and good to doing what they want them to do. And in the same way, we can’t shrink back. We have to be intentional as a pro-life mama. 

I choose to be intentional about creating a culture of life and encouraging my kids to develop a biblical worldview. And this means that we have a lot of intentional conversations. We have a lot of discussions about what it looks like to value other people cause to me, that’s foundational. When one group of humans, I talk about this in my pro-life kids’ book, when one group of humans decides that another group of humans is not valuable, it never turns out well. 

We’ve seen this all through history. Value other human beings. And we like to say value other human beings, but valuing every human being doesn’t always mean valuing every human doing. Those are two different things. So, we talk a lot about that, but being intentional means that we’re deliberate and we’re calculated. This slide that you see on the screen says 2-9-13, and it looks like a date, but it’s not a date. 

This is actually some numbers that I want you to remember because they’re really important research conducted by George Barna. And if you don’t know George Barna studies, they’re awesome. Oh my goodness. He really gives us a picture into what’s going on in the culture, and he noted that most children begin developing their worldview by the mere age of two. 

It’s pretty amazing to think by two, children are already developing their outlook for the world and their filter. A child’s moral compass is fairly determined by the age of nine. And by the time a child turns thirteen, their worldview is usually fully formed and set.  

Barna says all new experiences will be filtered through this worldview for interpretation and understanding. And just as physical and mental development is crucial in childhood, the formation of a worldview from birth until thirteen will set the trajectory for a child’s future. 

As a parent, that’s pretty heavy. I just want to add this though. God doesn’t stop redeeming when we look back and we realize that maybe our childhoods weren’t what we thought that they should be. You’re not stuck. God is still there to redeem and He’s there. He doesn’t ever stop making things new. We’re all still being transformed from glory to glory till we’re with Him in glory. 

But I do think it’s really interesting because I think we underestimate how much a child is forming a worldview from a very young age. So, when I think about, Oh, I’m not going to talk about what it means to my kid, what it means to be pro-life, till my child is sixteen. I’ve missed a huge window and I don’t want to be that mama. 

Ryan and I are, like I mentioned, we’re parents of both adopted and biological kiddos. And when I talk about this intentionality, we are very intentional to talk about what it means to be adopted. My husband, for those of you that don’t know, my husband, Ryan was adopted. He was in foster care for six weeks and adopted by phenomenal parents, Henry and Andrea Bomberger who I adore. 

Henry’s now with Jesus, but I look at their lives and I go, wow, they adopt, they had three biological kiddos. They adopted Ryan. He would say it went very well. So, they kept going, but they did go on to adopt 10 more children. And Ryan’s personal story as he has worked through his personal testimony, he came to the understanding that he was conceived in rape. 

And so as he goes and shares this story and this testimony, this allows us to have conversations in our house that are very intentional. About adoption, about what that looks like, about what does it mean to triumph over tragedy. About what does it look like to hear somebody say to you that your dad should have been aborted. 

Because that’s what the world says to him. That’s what he’s heard from many people. And a lot of people would say his life is worthless just because of the circumstances that surrounded his conception. But we have these hard conversations and we talk about, “Hey guys, we serve a God of love and of hope, one who redeems and empowers His children. And that’s why your dad isn’t worthless because that’s where his worth comes from. “ 

So if I can frame this conversation with intentionality, then I can pour that gift onto my child, my other children. When I think about my son, Justice, who was adopted and here’s a little, I’m just gonna put this plug in there. 

I really have, guys, we have to change the way we describe adoption. So many people say she gave up the kid. No, adoption is such a courageous parenting decision. And so as we’ve talked about Ryan and his situation, I can talk about Justice and his situation, and say, “You’re not worthless either. In fact, your mom was so brave and so courageous. She loved you enough to place you in our family.”  

When I’m talking about intentionality, I’m not talking about, you have to read every book and know everything and dot every i and cross every t. No, just be ready to frame conversations intentionally with a biblical worldview. And this will become muscle memory for our kiddos. 

When I think about my sweet Justice and all of the conversations that we have, when I talk to him, people have said, “Have you told him yet that he’s adopted?” Yeah, we do. We talk about it. And you know what? There’ll be a day that we’re going to talk more about it. And he’ll have questions that he’s not yet asked. 

He is so proud to say that he’s adopted. And there’s just such a foundation of love. Because Ryan and I said, being pro-life means that we’re intentional about creating a culture of life, which means that we’re going to talk about hard things, we’re not going to run from them, but we’re going to frame them with a biblical perspective. 

We have to commit to being intentional about filtering through a biblical lens. We have to, plug, we have to know the Bible in order to do that. So, there’s the plug for that. Let’s read our Bibles because no matter how much we know, there’s still much more to learn. And as a teacher, I taught for years, 12 years in the public and private schools. 

And now I’ve been a homeschool mom for 17, well now 18 years. So, please don’t do the math cause I’m really only 22. But I’m just saying that as much as I know, there’s so much more to learn. And the Bible is an endless source of knowledge, of learning. And as the culture presents us with situations that we didn’t know before, I promise you, if you are intentional to put God first and make your Bible reading time and you’re and going after God and understanding His heart, that even as the world gets darker, His light will be brighter. 

Even as the world says horrible things and tried to convince us of lies, the truth will grow in your soul. And when we catch the revelation that we’re parents who are influencers, who are Christ ambassadors, and we’re intentional about our ability to speak into lives, guess what? I want to leave you with this. 

You will ultimately cause a mighty impact. An impact means just to cause change. You know what that means? It means that you’re going to be able to shift culture and when you shift culture and you move the ugly of the enemy out of the way and make a place for hope and life and patience and kindness and goodness and value and purpose, guess what? 

You’re not just going to impact those that are in your immediate sphere. You are going to have an impact for generations to come. Deuteronomy 7:9 says, “Understand therefore that the Lord your God is indeed God. He is faithful. He is the faithful God who keeps His covenant for a thousand generations and lavishes His unfailing love on those who love Him and obey His commandments.” 

That means your impact will be for thousands of generations if you love and obey Him. And pro-life adults, parents, moms, and dad, what you do matters, not just for this generation, but for generations to come.  

And before I leave you today, I want to read you a little bit from the book, Pro-Life Kids that I wrote because I really want pro-life parents and I want adults, I really want them to understand that they can impact their kids. 

And my motivation was, let’s remove the fear that comes from talking about hard things and replace it with the confidence that comes when you have the tools to talk about hard things. I was recently actually looking through some videos and we’ve all heard about the Shout Your Abortion. 

Yep. On the screen, you’ll see some snapshots from some YouTubes right there in the middle as Amelia, I believe the pronunciation is Bonow. She’s the one who birthed the whole Shout Your Abortion campaign. And she decides that she’s going to have this time to talk to kids about what it means to have abortions. 

And it’s just, it’s crazy that even the kiddos that are saying, “Okay, maybe if you’re in a hard, having a hard time an abortion is okay.” And she says, looks at him, says, “No, it’s always okay. In fact, you just go into the doctors and they just suck the baby out. It’s just like a crappy dentist visit. And God loves abortion.”  

This is what’s being fed to our kiddos. So, I understand why, when we think about what’s out there, we could feel fearful about actually speaking up and articulating a biblical worldview. But I’m telling you that it is, now that you’ve been within the sound of my voice, you were created to impact the generations. 

You’re created to combat the lies that are coming at them, that are being thrown at them. The books, I could take you into books that are in the schools, that are in Target that are talking about, what’s abortion anyway. There’s another book that’s called it’s called, small apple. I think I’m going to get the name for you, but it’s this, it’s the story of a dad who’s sharing with the son. 

It was called Sister Apple, Sister Pig. This, the small boy who’s having a conversation with his dad about his ghost sister. And it’s the sister that had been aborted. And the father says, “How does this make you feel?” And he says, the little kid says, “No, I’m not mad. If you kept my sister, you’d be tired and sad and mad.” 

Okay. And so it’s actually a good thing that she’s a ghost sister. This is a book that’s in schools today. And I just share that to say, listen, I promise you, if you understand that you’re in it, that you were created to influence your kiddos. And if you’re intentional about influencing them with a biblical worldview, then you’re going to impact the generations to come with truth and freedom and life. When I think about the courageous decision that my husband’s birth mom made, and when I think about the courageous decision that my Justice’s mom made, and when I think about the decision, I didn’t think it was very courageous. I just knew that it was the right thing to do. 

When I think about that, those singular decisions have meant that I have a family. That my husband, my best friend is alive to be a voice for those that have none. And I know that being a pro-life parent, and I’m going to say being a pro-life adult, you have to understand and carry within your heart the fact that your impact is great. 

I’m going to leave you with this. It’s words to, to Pro-Life Kids, the book. “Pro-life means for life. We’re cheering for you. Your life is important. And there’s only one you. You’re special. Just right. You’re one of a kind. The world needs your talents, your heart, and your mind. God made you unique. You have no clone. Your fingerprints are yours. Yours alone. He knit you together one cell at a time with love and attention, a plan so divine. Doesn’t matter your size or your age, you have equal value, whatever the stage and where you live won’t determine your worth. You’re a person. It’s true. Even before your birth. 

Sadly, there are those who don’t understand that life has purpose, whether planned or unplanned. Throughout history, many believed a lie. You’re not a person. No way! They cried. Today, many think that lie is still true. That babies and wombs aren’t people, too. Abortion is when some say it’s okay to take that baby’s precious life away. 

But your color, your gender and nationality, your abilities, your looks, your great personality. They make you fully human. Indeed. No exceptions, no exclusions. That’s the pro-life creed. And like many before us who stood for what’s right, we’ll never give up as we fight for life. So, let it be known we’re glad you’re alive. Our world is better because you’ve arrived.  

So, speak up for life and raise your voice. Speak for those silenced who have no choice. Speak to anyone who needs to know truth. Speak about life to every adult, child, and youth. So, abortion lies will all be shattered as more hearts believe humanity matters. And one day you will see that all you have done was worth every moment to save even one. 

Because when you reach one, and I do too, before we know it, we’ll see breakthrough. And the culture of life will continue to grow. It’ll spread across nations the more love we show. Moms and dads will choose loving options. They’ll parent their child or place for adoption. Someone somewhere is depending on you to fight for their worth. 

And share it with them to join millions of us in cities and towns who are pro-life and will never back down. We’re pro-life kids so dreams come alive. We’re pro-life kids, so our future survives. We’re pro-life kids till injustice ends. We’re pro-life kids, it’s life we defend. We’re pro-life kids. That’s you, and that’s me. We impact our world and change destinies.”  

Folks, we can impact our world and change destinies. There are people that need you. There are people that are waiting for you to step into your role and become pro-life parents and influence the world and impact the generations. Thank you. God bless you.