Oct 15, 2008

about a baby

About 7 months ago, while I was working at Cornerstone, I got a call from a very concerned woman. She didn't go to Cornerstone but she needed to talk to a pastor. She connected with me because she was concerned for her granddaughter who was a high school student, and I was the high school pastor.

Her granddaughter Chelsea was 15-years-old and had just become pregnant. To make things worse, she was about to get an abortion. Here's a portion of the email I sent out to our church staff after my first conversation with Chelsea:

"I got a call today from the grandmother of a 15-year-old girl who is pregnant. She is heavily considering getting an abortion, and to make things worse, her mom thinks it is a great idea. Apparently her mom and even her grandmother have both had abortions in the past. The grandmother and mom are pulling her in two different directions on this one. At first, her grandmother asked the pregnant girl (Chelsea) to meet with a pastor. Chelsea said absolutely not, but a few days later she called her grandmother in tears and agreed to meet with one. So I got a call just now from grandma, who put me in touch with Chelsea. Chelsea agreed to meet with me on Thursday to talk about everything. Apparently her mom is pressuring her to make a quick decision, even recommending that Chelsea end the pregnancy tomorrow. Chelsea told me on the phone that she won’t make any decisions until after we talk on Thursday. She seems very much in favor of getting the abortion."

So I asked for prayer, and did my best to prepare for our conversation a few days later.

I can imagine what their thoughts and conversations must have been like on the way there.

"Maybe this is the best thing for the baby."
"I'm just not ready to be a mother."
"Maybe we'll just go ahead and do this today before it gets any harder."

Here's the second email I sent my team:

"I got a call from Chelsea's grandma (who has been opposed to the abortion the whole time). Chelsea's mom, who has been pressuring Chelsea to get an abortion quickly, set up an appointment for her today at an abortion clinic she found online. Chelsea agreed to go with her mom, saying that she would at least listen to them... but saying she didn't want to get an abortion today.


So they get in their car, on their way to the abortion clinic. They arrive, and the first person they see is a woman who is from Cornerstone. Why would they see a woman from Cornerstone at an abortion clinic? Good question... The mom had made a mistake. She searched online for an abortion clinic, but to her dismay she accidentally located the CHANDLER PREGNANCY CENTER which is a CHRISTIAN Pregnancy Center that exists to help young women handle unplanned pregnancies.


It gets better. After realizing their mistake, they still agree to hang out and listen to what the Chandler Pregnancy Center has to say about abortions (they are very gentle by the way). After watching some videos and listening to the details about abortions, Chelsea left feeling absolutely opposed to the abortion plan. Not only that, her mom apologized to her for ever having pressured her to get one. She told her daughter that it is completely up to her what she does with the baby!!!


I was upset before I learned this because I was planning on asking Chelsea to go and visit that very same clinic... but we weren't meeting until Thursday night at 6:00, and the clinic is closed on Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays. I knew that waiting the entire weekend was way too long. So God went ahead and did what only he can do.


Chelsea said she still wants to meet with Lindsay and I on Thursday. She said she wants to talk more about some of the options that the clinic told her about. As best as I can tell, it sure does look like this baby is on its way!!!"

Chelsea and I actually got to share this story at a banquet for the pregnancy center a month later, and this past Sunday she had her baby dedicated at Cornerstone.

6 comments:

Anonymous said...

that is an amazing story. God is always in control and I can only wonder what God plans has for that baby... I imagine it is going to be great things!

Lindsay said...

I was there for this whole story but still have tears running down my face. Love this! I want to know what that little boy's life is going to hold :)

Anonymous said...

Easily one of my favorite stories ever.

What a picture of God reaching His rescuing hand down into the muck...

Anonymous said...

it takes my breath away how God chooses to show Himself in such obvious ways. Praise the Lord for how He orchestrated every detail of this story.

Ryan Guard said...

I love this story too! I know it by heart but its even fun to read again and again.

Christopher. said...

I love HEARING this story :) it's oe of the best.

And, painting that place

So good.

Miss ya, Love Ya, Etc, Etc