Rebekah Dyer
How Feet Work Changed Four Volunteers
How Feet Work Changed Four Volunteers
Andrea Thenhaus
"This Conversation Has Opened My Eyes."
"This Conversation Has Opened My Eyes."
Justice For All
Spring Update
Spring Update
Justice For All
A Conversation, a Seed Planted, and a Life Saved
A Conversation, a Seed Planted, and a Life Saved
Kaitlyn Donihue
Bridge to Healing
Bridge to Healing

Ready and Eager for the Next Conversation

Impact Report April 2015

At Justice For All, we’re mindful that every pro-life student with whom we interact will meet scores of people throughout their lives—people we ourselves will never have the opportunity to engage. This is why our mentors energetically impart to these pro-life students the tools that will prepare them to change hearts and minds on their own.

In this Impact Report, you’ll meet a few of these students who have become ready and eager to create conversations about abortion. I hope their words will give you a glimpse of the impact of your investment in JFA, and I hope they’ll help you see that, with the help of JFA mentors, you also can become ready and eager for your “next conversation.”

Steve Wagner, Executive Director


The next conversation. That’s one of our passions at JFA. After three recent JFA projects, students reflected this same passion back to us, expressing that they are now ready and eager to create conversations in order to change hearts and minds about abortion.

JFA trainers Rebecca Haschke and Catherine Wurts led a workshop in January for Nebraskans in Washington D.C. after the annual March for Life. About one month later, one student wrote to Rebecca:

Catherine Wurts (left) leads a portion of a two-hour JFA workshop for 220 students and 43 chaperones from the Catholic Diocese of Lincoln after the March for Life.

“Today…three of my friends [and I] were waiting in a lobby to do interviews for Girls State. There was also a girl from [another high school] that was waiting along with us, and somehow we got on the topic of abortion and she was pro-choice. It was the perfect first encounter and chance to use the skills you taught us. She was very good about hearing our side, and we were good about hearing hers. She [gave] the exact reason most [give]: ‘Just a clump of cells.’ We were able to ask questions and stay on the same page with her without overwhelming her, thanks to you and your presentation!” - Elizabeth

Students from St. Mary’s Catholic High School survey a student at Arizona State University.

Elizabeth left the January workshop feeling both that it was important to put the workshop material into practice in a conversation about abortion and that she was ready when an opportunity presented itself. In February, students from two Catholic high schools in Phoenix (St. Mary’s and Bourgade) showed the same eagerness for conversation after participating in JFA’s full training program:

Through practice, students are ready to share images respectfully in future conversations.

“I would not have even known how to begin a conversation with someone about abortion… The training gave me conversational tools and gave me confidence to use them whenever possible.” - Miranda

“After the outreach I really thought more about the influence I have on people and how… just bringing up the subject could influence a lot in their lives. JFA really made me realize that I need to be more confident in being able to speak my opinion on the subject because it could have a bigger impact than I know.” - Mikhaila

“I have labeled myself ‘pro-life’ probably since I first heard the term being used. I didn't fully understand, however, how extremely meaningful and valuable that term really is. I realize now…my role as a spokesperson for those who cannot speak. I am here to defend human life, whether it be inside or outside of the womb. I had a sense of this notion before attending JFA, but my experiences in the seminar and out in the real world…solidified my views and my beliefs; [they made] them real.” - Emilio

Of the 44 students (and one faculty member) from these Phoenix schools who participated in a day-long seminar (Seat Work) and a day of outreach at Arizona State University (Feet Work), all but a few made a commitment to create a conversation about abortion in their everyday lives within two weeks (what JFA calls “Repeat Work”). JFA’s carefully sequenced training program had helped them become ready and eager for the next conversation.

In March, another high school student in Oklahoma had a similar experience during a camp that JFA trainers led for Christian Heritage Academy’s Salt and Light program. After one day in a JFA seminar and one day of outreach, he wrote the following:

“It was one of the best experiences I’ve had, ever. From this trip, I hope to encounter people and have tough conversations with them. I plan to use the exhibit brochures in the future and hopefully be able to pass out the ones I have currently before next year… I would do [the trip] again because of the value of knowing how to lead a conversation about hard topics with people… I feel like God gave me a tool to build bridges across to people and show them the straight and narrow path… My takeaway is that no conversation is too tough and everyone matters no matter if they are ninety years old or one month in the womb.” - Jack

These students are now ready and eager to change hearts and minds about abortion on their own. Let’s pray that God will provide opportunities for many “next conversations” and that he will cause their efforts to result in many changed hearts and saved lives.

7 Days of Outreach in 3 Weeks in KS and GA (Late February / Early March JFA Update)

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JFA trainers led three Abortion: From Debate to Dialogue seminars (Seat Work) in Georgia in early March.  A total of 46 attended.  The team led 5 days of outreach to Kennesaw State University and the University of Georgia in Athens.  Seven attended outreach for the first time, and volunteers from previous events also joined the team to change hearts at these two universities (15 "days" logged). JFA's Kansas Regional Team led 11 people through one seminar in Wichita and led two days of outreach at Wichita State University, with four seminar participants attending outreach for the first time.  Three others from past outreach events joined the team to create conversations.  The Kansas Team also gave five presentations to a total of 120 students at Bishop Carroll Catholic High School in Wichita.

See pictures from events in both of these regions by clicking the galleries below.

JFA on the Radio, on the March, on the Ground, and on the Metro (Jan/Feb 2015 Update Links)

On the March for Life

JFA training specialists Catherine Wurts and Rebecca Haschke participated in the March for Life JFA-style: they turned it into an opportunity to teach pro-life advocates to dialogue!  See "JFA Equips 263 at the March for Life" for more, including what happened to one student when she returned home.

On the Ground in Arizona

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JFA's training team mentored 44 students and one teacher from St. Mary's Catholic High School and Bourgade Catholic High School in the Phoenix area.  All but a few of these students committed to create a conversation about abortion in their everyday lives after volunteering with us during the ASU campus outreach.  See "Almost 100% Commit to Repeat Work after Arizona Outreach" for quotes and pics.

On the Metro

JFA's January Impact Report, Charity on the Metro, tells the classic story of how a new JFA volunteer used her new skills immediately in an everyday-life situation on the MARTA in Atlanta.

On our Knees

In my February letter, I challenged myself, our staff, and our supporters to set aside time to pray each day for JFA.  You can take the challenge, too!  The letter includes seven specific prayer requests for JFA, including one of JFA's 2015 goals that I feel is well beyond our abilities.  Projects like these help us remember that we are especially in need of God's help.

On the Radio

JFA's Jordan Newhouse and I recently appeared on Chris Fabry Live on the Moody Radio Network.  You can listen to a recording of the show here.

On the Platform

I was privileged to deliver the sermon to Christ Community Church in Tucson, Arizona earlier this month.  See this previous post to listen to the entire sermon or brief segments from the sermon (including the story of one big failure that helped me to learn to listen and the one-minute challenge from a pro-choice advocate).

Links to other recent JFA letters, blog posts, and pics:

"Better than Saying Nothing"

Volunteer Charity Boaz had planned “to let others do the talking.”  Seeing a young man looking at the Justice For All Exhibit alone, though, caused her to gather up her courage.  Afterwards, she wrote,

I decided someone had to talk to him, and it looked like it was going to be me.  I was so nervous.  We talked for a good 15 minutes and the guy seemed like he was really listening.

 

I think at that point I realized I didn't need all the answers; and if I helped someone just get one step closer to being pro-life that was better than saying nothing.

The next morning on her way to a second day of outreach at Georgia Tech, Charity had another unforgettable conversation, this time on a MARTA train.  To find out what happened, read JFA’s Janaury Impact Report, entitled “Charity on the Metro” (www.jfaweb.org/Impact/Metro).

2014: A Snapshot in Recent Letters, Posts, and Pics

JFA Fall 2014 Events - Update #2 (Pictures)

See some of JFA's recent events in pictures: 

Georgia State University: Nov. 2014 (gallery)

Related Recent Posts:

(updated with Georgia pictures on 11/25/2014)

Labor Days

August 2014 Impact Report

Labor Day traditionally marks the end of summer activities and the beginning of many new sports and academic seasons. In keeping with that tradition, training thousands to make abortion unthinkable in the 2014 to 2015 school year starts now!

In addition to our internship program and other regular training events this summer, we have been laboring to prepare a fall semester full of opportunities for homeschool and high school students, college clubs, and churches. Below you will hear from some of our spring and summer training participants. We hope that their testimony will move you to review our fall training schedule on the back and to come labor with us to bring about more “labor days” across this great land.

- John Michener, for the JFA team




“My JFA internship was simply the first step of my preparation, and a big step it was at that. It taught me not only how to dialogue with others about abortion, but also some of the best people skills ever.” -Anne Marie

Anne Marie Laville (right) is one of several stellar young people who participated in our summer internship program.

“I took a huge step closer to becoming the kind of woman, Christian, and activist that I have always dreamed of becoming. JFA…gave me a compassionate awareness of my audience… It was my joy and pleasure to step so far from my comfort zone that the Lord had to take control. Had the environment at JFA not been so safe and respectful, I would have never achieved such ambitious goals.” -Sarah Mary

Sarah Mary Toce, Regional Coordinator and Legislative Liaison for Louisiana Right to Life, participated in our summer internship program. Our summer internships were designed to train current and future leaders in the pro-life movement.

“It was great! I feel prepared to talk to almost anyone with different views than me… I got to share my faith with a stranger for the first time.” -Jacqueline

“I now feel fully equipped to explain and justify my stance on abortion. It would be great if [JFA] could come to my church.” -Olivia

Jacqueline and Olivia are high school students in Atlanta, Georgia.

“I would not be leading ASU Students For Life (or likely be involved at all) without your mentorship at Xavier [High School] in 2012. It made all the difference. I distinctly remember leaving training that day saying, ‘I want to be as knowledgeable, gentle, loving and active as she is!’ You also gave me the confidence to start those initial conversations at ASU that year and realize that I could actually make a difference. I have you to thank for all of that.” -Maggie

Maggie Otlewski, a student leader at Arizona State University, sent this message to JFA staff member Rebecca Haschke (right).

“A young woman was brought to me (I am post-abortive) because she tearfully shared with one of our youths that she had chosen abortion just eight short weeks ago. [She] was suffering from depression… We talked for quite some time and shared contact info. She is willing to join an abortion recovery group. I am confident that she will experience the healing power of the resurrection. I was reminded of the many who suffer from this violent abortion industry.” -Judy

Judy Caracheo is a regular JFA volunteer who helps us minister at outreach events to those who are hurting from abortion.

“It was exciting to see…the expression on their faces as they began to realize that maybe, just maybe, their ideas might be false. The ‘aha’ moments… I was encouraged as well by those who would themselves open up the conversation for sharing the Gospel. Nothing was forced, just natural. The idea of putting a proverbial pebble in their shoe became a reality. It is possible. It is doable.” -Kristi

Kristi Moore is a homeschool mom who went on a JFA mission trip to Denton, Texas with her two teenage daughters.

From Mum to Mom

Impact Report: July 2012

Mum was the word. She was too scared to tell even her mom.

Gloria & Josh at Metro State, Denver, CO (April 2011)

 

It was a sunny afternoon in April on the first day of our outreach at Metro State in Denver, Colorado. A petite, dark-eyes, raven-haired, Hispanic girl stood staring at the Justice For All Exhibit. "Gloria" had recently learned that she was eight weeks pregnant. She shared that she was trying to decide what to do and felt that God had been sending her signs not to abort. She said that she never walked through the area where the exhibit was stationed. Gloria thought our 18-foot-tall exhibit was definitely the biggest sign that God would send her way.

She had not yet told her parents and was afraid to do so. My good friend and fellow missionary, Bubba, put one hand on her shoulder and one hand on mine. In a holy triangle, he prayed one of the most touching prayers I have ever heard, asking for God's grace and courage to be upon Gloria. The next day Gloria sought me out and introduced her boyfriend "Josh." They had stayed up all night excitedly talking about their future. After encouraging them further and exchanging contact information, they left to go visit Alternatives Pregnancy Center to get free help and support.

On Cinco de Mayo I sent Gloria an email to see how she was doing, and I asked if she had talked to her Mom. She wrote back:

Some days I'm more worried than others, and this stresses me out almost daily... I can't stop thinking about the pregnancy and how it is going to change my life... I haven't told my mom yet. I really don't know when or how I'm going to tell her. I'm very worried she'll be disappointed and upset...but frankly this is something that I can't keep postponing... Josh and I are doing great. He is very supportive (just as he always has been), and I am very thankful for him...

Anyways, thank you for writing to me; it's nice to...know that there is somebody there willing to listen, or in this case read my thoughts, so thank you.

God did not mean for people to handle the pressure of major life events, like having a baby, alone. They need support. At this point, Josh was Gloria's only support. I advised her to talk to her mom soon.

How did we know Gloria was in need? How did we know she was struggling with hear and indecision? As Christians we cannot wait in our church buildings and homes for people in need to stumble across our paths or announce to the world that they are trying to make a life-and-death decision. At a minimum, we must be willing to ask questions and start a conversation. At Justice For All, that is our mission. We will teach you the questions to ask. We will model for you how to start a conversation. Then, we will model for you how to start a conversation. Then, we will go with you to find the next Gloria who needs you to be an ambassador for Christ (II Cor. 5:20).

Just after Independence Day I was sorting some pictures from the spring when I came across one of Gloria and Josh. I sent it to them immediately and asked Gloria if she had talked to her mom. She responded:

Gloria & Josh’s son, William, at five weeks

 

Oh wow...thank you so much for that picture! It's great! I can't wait to show Josh...it just showcases one of the many steps we have taken throughout my pregnancy...

Concerning my mom, you're not going to believe me, but I actually still haven't told her. My absolute deadline is next week because I'm having 21-week ultrasound... I would like for my mom to be there for that....

She finally talked to her mom. Just after Thanksgiving I sat by the fireplace basking in the radiance of our freshly adorned Christmas tree when I heard the familiar ping! from my computer. I only thought I was feeling in the Christmas spirit before, but then I read Gloria's email:

I am happy to announce that...our son was born on Monday...weighing in at almost nine pounds! ... He is beautiful and healthy and vivacious. Josh and I are very proud and very much in love with our son... My mom has also been an incredible support and was by my side every step of the way...

I wanted to let you know that...you and your team made a huge contribution to the quality of my life: You indirectly helped birth my son, and...this one life you did touch is breathing today because of the selflessness, love, and devotion your team has for the beauty of LIFE.

Your efforts are never in vain.

The people surrounding Gloria with encouragement may have made her choice easier. Beginning with Josh and the immediate pro-life community, then expanding to her mom and whole family, they were all there for her, encouraging her, throwing baby showers, and loving her baby. Still, she had struggled with what to do, and she had even waited through over half the pregnancy to tell her mom. Imagine how hard it must be to have no support, and on top of that, to have you peers and culture tell you that you have a fundamental "right" to kill your child.

Once we as Christians have been brave enough to ask a question and have a conversation, we can't stop there. After all, who is my neighbor? It is not enough to simply speak up for the unborn. We must surround women with strong support, emotionally and in practical ways. Fathers, families, churches, and resources centers must be more than passively poised for action--they must proactively find, encourage, and equip women to recognize the lies of our culture and to embrace the truth, knowing that they will be doing the right thing and knowing that they will be supported.

Gloria now looks back with clarity and confidence that she did the right thing. She wants other moms to know that they can get to the other side, too. They don't have to remain mum; they can go to mom, or to other sources of support to help them do the right thing. Here is Gloria's note from New Year's:

Happy New year! I hope 2012 brings you infinite joy, success, love, and many good, deep belly laughs.

My son is five weeks old today and beautiful and healthy as ever. I wanted to thank you for sharing our story. If William's life could save others, and provide hope and inspiration to other young moms who are confused and scared just like I was, then by all means, share our story with whomever you think may benefit from hearing about William...

--John Michener, for the JFA team

Jordan Crosses the Jordan

Impact Report May 2014

Jordan Newhouse has been participating in JFA Seat Work and Feet Work events for years in Arizona.  Recently, she was inspired to start a conversation with a total stranger without the aid of JFA events or JFA mentors.  In this Impact Report, you’ll hear about what motivated Jordan to take this next step of ministry that we call “Repeat Work.”

Jordan has also decided to take an additional next step of serving as a one-year intern with JFA in Kansas.  We’re elated.  Please pray with us for her safe journey next month.   Pray that God will use the year ahead to help her grow in her ability to pass on to others the skills of dialogue and the heart for people that she expresses in the story below.  - Stephen Wagner, Director of Training



Jordan Newhouse, a JFA volunteer in Tucson, Arizona recently sent me this email message:

Jordan helps a student at Arizona State University (ASU) learn to use the JFA Exhibit Brochure to change hearts.

 

Tonight I saw [a] movie...that made me ask myself the question, “If I believe God’s not dead, but the people around me will be sooner or later, what am I doing about it?”  This question made me think of the one you posed to your colleagues at Beefy’s.  I had read all three newsletters some time ago, but went back and reread them tonight.  [See www.jfaweb.org/Beefy to read the story.] 

I believe I need to talk to someone tomorrow—start a conversation with a stranger and see where God leads it.  Tim, in his newsletter...suggested Starbucks.  You suggested not going alone.  My friend and I are going out tomorrow, and she suggested Starbucks.

So all that to say, would you please pray for me and my friend, that we would be bold to follow God’s leading?  I’m asking you in writing because if I do, then I’ll have to update you—so  it’s for accountability.

I read Jordan’s email with interest.  The story about our impromptu evangelism at Beefy’s on the Green was special to me.  I was glad to hear that the story inspired Jordan to think that she, too, could reach out to a stranger in her own neighborhood.  But here’s something that’s even more exciting: Jordan followed through!  She reported:

My friend and I did go to Starbucks, and I talked with two people.  The first conversation lasted only a couple of minutes, but the second was longer—about a half hour!

While another JFA volunteer listens, Jordan visits with a student at ASU in February.  Jordan is coming to JFA’s Kansas office next month to begin a one-year internship!

 

I asked Kristen...if I could sit with her, and she said I could. To dive into the conversation, I said, “Last night I went to see a movie with a couple of friends, and it got me thinking. I wanted to ask a complete stranger a question, just to get a different perspective. The movie was called God’s Not Dead.  What do you think of that idea—is God dead?”

Basically, her answer was that it depends on what you believe.  You can choose what to believe, and it will affect your life, but it can be different from what someone else believes, and “it’s all good.”  That’s the sort of thing she kept coming back to as we talked about everything from how things were created to what happens after you die.  It was a very interesting conversation with good give and take.  I left her my email, so maybe it will continue.  She did say she thought it was cool that I was crazy enough to start the conversation!

Engaging friends, family members, and total strangers in conversation about the things that matter most is a challenge.  It’s the sort of boundary that the Jordan River was to the Israelites.  It feels impassable, for emotional and spiritual reasons.  Whether we’re discussing abortion or what happens after death, we don’t want to mess things up, so we often don’t start the conversation at all.  We also don’t want to bother people, and as a result, our politeness helps them only to languish in a life without God, in a life without truth. 

How was Jordan able to cross this Jordan River into a Promised Land of seeking to save the lost?  While it’s not apparent on the surface of her two emails, Jordan and her community worked hard to prepare the way for this seemingly simple moment.  Jordan took part in many Seat Work and Feet Work events with JFA in Tucson and Phoenix.  Faithful JFA supporters Paul and Cheryl Wilson encouraged her and created frequent opportunities for additional local outreach where she could continue to practice.  Because Jordan invested her time wisely in the right kinds of training activities, Repeat Work became more than possible—it became her next natural step as an ambassador for Christ.

Note: Jordan’s poem “I can agree...with him?” illustrates the heart of JFA’s approach to dialogue, and the poem synthesizes two influences especially important to Jordan in her formation as an ambassador for Christ: the Bible and outreach.  Find it here: www.jfaweb.org/Jordan-Poem. 

 

JFA Mentors: Indispensable

JFA accomplishes its mission of making abortion unthinkable for millions through volunteers who develop confidence to start their own conversations.  How did one JFA volunteer named Rebecca come to believe she could do this?  JFA’s intentional mentoring process.

In this Impact Report, JFA mentor Jacob Burow shows the steps he and JFA’s other mentors take to help volunteers like Rebecca learn to start life-changing and life-saving conversations. -Stephen Wagner, Director of Training

 

Rebecca (red hair on left) meets Jacob Burow, the JFA trainer who will mentor her through the training program.

 

I noticed right away that Rebecca was very inquisitive. During a break in the seminar, she stayed to ask question after question. With a background in debate, she was intrigued by the arguments we taught, but she was especially fascinated by the way we teach people to dialogue.

On the first day of outreach she listened intently to my conversations, noting how I started them, as well as how I navigated them using the various techniques we teach in the seminar.

Rebecca and Jacob discuss her questions before she starts her own conversations.

 

After listening to several of my conversations, Rebecca had questions. We sat and talked about pro-choice arguments and the best pro-life responses to those arguments. I could tell that Rebecca was ready for her own conversations, so I challenged her to start one.

“I was thinking I would just listen today, and maybe talk to someone tomorrow. Is that alright?” she asked.

“You can,” I replied, “but you might regret it.”

“What do you mean?”

I explained how other volunteers had reported after the outreach that they were sad not to have overcome their fears sooner. They realized how many opportunities for life-changing conversations they had missed.

“I would be happy to go with you to listen and help if you get stuck,” I encouraged her.

Rebecca listens to Jacob in conversation on her first day of JFA outreach at the University of Central Oklahoma.

 

“No, I am going to do this alone. I’ll come back if I have questions.”

I was proud of her as she headed off to the Justice For All Exhibit. Later I went to check on her and found that she had already had eight conversations. I answered a few questions, and then she was ready to get back to it. By the end of the day she had had five more in-depth conversations. Here is what she said about the experience:

“It was not difficult to decide to attend a Justice For All (JFA) seminar. I competed in a debate league during high school, and I thought debate and dialogue sounded right up my alley; however, I hadn't been at the seminar long before I realized they were teaching us something more than a mere debate strategy.

By participating in JFA's seminar, we were trained in the art of graceful engagement… I came to understand how to effectively discuss the daunting subject of abortion which, in the past, was a subject I had tried to avoid…

Justice For All was unlike anything else I had experienced… [The mentors] showed me how to reach out to those who don't know truth, and they challenged me to step up my game… I understand now that I don't need to militantly attack those who do not agree with my stance on abortion.”

Thanks to being personally mentored through the JFA training program, Rebecca has the tools and confidence to start this conversation and many others beyond the outreach.

 

Rebecca learned to show humility and respect in the process of starting tough conversations. I challenged her to continue starting conversations about abortion after the JFA outreach.

That’s actually a challenge for all of us. Too often we desire to stay in our own comfort zones, but that is not where we will find the conversations that we need to have. That is not how we are going to grow as good ambassadors. Rebecca continued,

“God was very good to have me stumble across Justice For All; I am grateful to Him, and to you all. I would like to express a special thanks to my mentor, Jacob, for taking the time to answer my questions and to teach me so much.”

My colleagues and I at JFA are ready to help you step out of your comfort zone and step up to the challenge that is before us. Let us help you learn, like Rebecca, how to share the truth about abortion, one person at a time.

    - Jacob Burow




JFA's Three Essential Skills Are the Life of the Party

Impact Report: October 2013

PREFACE

JFA’s alumni want to do one thing with their JFA training: practice.  They attend multiple Seat Work and Feet Work events, and they want to teach others.  They are a treasure because they come back time and again to JFA outreach events to help us reach thousands of students on campuses each year.  They’re also a treasure because of what their JFA training has enabled them to do when JFA trainers can’t be present.

“It’s become something that I do almost instinctively now — asking the right kinds of questions.”     - Anthony Trent

In this Impact Report from October 2013, Kansas volunteer Anthony Trent shares in his own words the story of how he went from the fire of his second JFA training experience to the frying pan of a party of naysayers.  He was ready to turn the debate into a dialogue.

Thank you for helping us give Anthony and hundreds of others like him the tools they need to be confident when the pressure is on. 

THE STORY

Last weekend I had a pretty incredible experience.   It was Labor Day weekend, a Sunday night, and I happened to be in Wichita visiting a friend who was hosting a party.  Nothing seemed to be abnormal or different than most group functions I’ve attended.   Of course, there was an understanding that many of this friend’s friends didn’t really share the same beliefs I held. 

The timing was interesting because a week beforehand I had participated in my second JFA seminar and outreach at Wichita State University.   Many of the people at the party were WSU students. 

Later in the evening, the subject of the JFA outreach was brought up.  After saying I participated in that event, one of the guys there said, “Yeah, well, we were making fun of that all day it was there.  It was stupid.”  I replied, “Why was it stupid?  We were asking questions and promoting dialogue with pro-choice students.”  After asking more questions, it was clear he didn’t have a reason for belittling the outreach, and he admitted it.

This conversation, not surprisingly, sparked a debate about abortion.   While the room seemed to erupt in aggressive talking points and pseudo-listening, a person named Cole and I had a one-on-one conversation about abortion.   Cole believed abortion was a woman’s right during the first two trimesters of pregnancy.  We found common ground that third-trimester abortions were immoral and that it makes sense to consider the unborn to be human persons when the pregnancy is far enough along that premature babies can survive.

I later found out that Cole considered personhood to be based on a sort of self-awareness—“the ability to know I exist independently.”  As I proposed to him the Equal Rights Argument and how his explanation of rights based on self-awareness excluded newborns and third-trimester children, though, he knew it couldn’t work.  The conversation went on for three hours as he tried to propose new functional abilities that might bestow human rights.  I then asked him, “What is the one trait that every person in this room has in common?”  We came to the conclusion that it was our human nature.  As we talked even more, Cole came to the conclusion that abortion should be made illegal, even in cases of rape.

Not only was my conversation with Cole refreshing, but the other people at the party also gave me some hope.  As one girl came back from a late-night McDonalds run, she sighed, “Oh, another judgmental pro-lifer.”  Another person spoke up: “Oh no, this guy is different.  He’s listening and is making an intelligent, logical case.”

Now back to the friend I was visiting in Wichita.  She attended the Abortion: From Debate to Dialogue seminar a week beforehand, and she was silently overhearing the conversation the whole time.  The next day we talked about the conversation, and she said, “I finally understood how that training can be put into a real conversation and that it really does work.”

This is why I support Justice For All.  It’s small moments like these that give me assurance we can win the culture for Life.  Just one year ago, I would not have been able to have productive conversations like these.  This is the purpose of the training.  Rather than just holding a brochure or pointing students toward an exhibit, the purpose is to use the skills we’ve learned as an ambassador for our Lord, and to do that on a daily basis.  I can’t thank this staff enough for equipping me to love those with whom I speak.  Thank you, and God bless.

                                     - Anthony Trent

COMMENT

After reading this story, I asked Anthony whether he would have spoken up at the party before his JFA training.  “I definitely would have entered into the conversation,” he said, “but it would have been much more like a debate.  I would have been a really bad ambassador…  I would have just taken his comments, blown them up, and intellectually humiliated him.”  Fresh from two rounds of Seat Work and Feet Work with JFA, though, Anthony went into the party living out JFA’s Three Essential Skills: asking questions with an open heart, listening to understand, and finding common ground when possible.

When the outreach event was mocked, Anthony didn’t respond in kind.  He asked a clarifying question.  Instead of reveling in a one-against-many showdown featuring him at the center, Anthony opted for a one-on-one format in which he could listen.

When Anthony learned that Cole was pro-choice, he could have simply listed off his best pro-life arguments, whether Cole was interested or not.  Instead, Anthony started with common ground: adults deserve an equal right to life.  Then he labored with Cole for three hours over Cole’s explanations of those equal rights.  When it became clear to Cole that his explanations were flawed, Anthony was ready—ready to give him a hand up with the more satisfying explanation that we deserve equal rights because we have the same human nature.  It was then a very small step for Cole to embrace the unborn as humans who share that nature.  If you want to learn how to approach a conversation from the Equal Rights perspective like Anthony did, join us for an upcoming JFA training event.  Until then, enjoy stories from JFA missionaries in a newsletter collection entitled “The Equal Rights Argument."

Since the party Anthony has continued to put his JFA training into practice.  He’s created other Repeat Work conversations in his everyday life, and he’s joined the JFA team for six additional days of outreach, including one he arranged on his own campus (see photo above).  For more discussion with Anthony about the value of practicing the Three Essential Skills, see my interview with him at www.jfaweb.org/Impact/Anthony-Interview.

What could have been a disaster became a delight for Anthony, for Cole, and for the others at the party.  Thank you for helping us train pro-life advocates like Anthony to change hearts and minds in their everyday lives.

- Stephen Wagner, Director of Training

Taking Paul to Heart

2013 summer interns from top left:  Hannah Williamson, Gabi Vehrs, Katie Worley,   CK Wisner, Sarah Dufresne, Holly Meath

 

We can't end abortion by sending just a few JFA staff members to dialogue lovingly and persuasively with pro-choice people. Even taking trained volunteers with us will not be enough. In order to see a major change in our culture, we must entrust what we have learned to extraordinary volunteers who will go on to train others as well.

The words of the Apostle Paul to Timothy, his young disciple, have shaped how we have trained pro-life ambassadors at JFA over the years: “What you have heard from me before many witnesses entrust to faithful men who will be able to teach others also” (2 Tim. 2:2).

This summer’s internship program brought six of these faithful people together so we could put Paul’s principle into practice. Here is what some of our interns and training staff had to say about the experience.

The summer internship was literally life- changing.  I think differently, I talk differently, and, by the grace of God, I believe I'm more effective in training people and more effective in conversations at outreaches.        -CK Wisner

We spent the summer teaching, training, doing outreach, actively seeking to serve the Lord, to serve women, and to serve unborn babies inside the womb...  I remember how those in our groups were responding to the information.  I will never forget the way that certain individuals looked at me with curious and inviting eyes that reflected hearts willing to learn, to grow, and ultimately to love.  I realized in a very tangible way what a great gift and great responsibility it is to teach and equip hearts and minds with the truth about abortion.     -Sarah Dufresne

The interns exceeded my expectations all summer...  They were so good when they got up to teach during our seminars that I almost fell off my chair a couple of times.  I’m looking forward to seeing what God will do through them in the future.     -Tim Brahm, Staff Trainer

 In another letter Paul exhorts Timothy to teach the truth, and then says, “Let no one despise your youth, but set the believers an example...” (1 Tim. 4:12).  Intern Katie Worley expressed how she is taking this advice to heart:

The...workshops were one of the greatest learning and growing experiences I’ve had so far at JFA.  With my new improved skills, I’m excited to return to school and better train the members of my club...  My favorite part [is] showing young people that just because they’re young doesn’t mean they can’t make a difference in the fight to end abortion. -Katie Worley

Thank you for supporting our mission and for enabling our team to take Paul’s advice to heart.  With your help we can continue to invest in these young disciples who are training others to be gracious, persuasive ambassadors for life.

- Catherine Wurts



The Power of One

Impact Report April 2013

Our team is comprised of more than just our full-time staff.  We are frequently joined in the field by dedicated volunteers, some of whom have experiences and special gifts that help us in our work.  Angela Weatherly is one of these volunteers, and in this report she shares her story. 

Thank you for helping us provide opportunities for hope and healing while we attempt to make abortion unthinkable. - David Lee, Execuive Director

 

I was in the restroom at a Justice For All outreach when staff member John Michener texted me saying, “Where are you? I need you.” I texted him back, “Give me a minute. I’ll be right there.” I came out to meet a young lady who was obviously tortured by guilt. She had been only fifteen years old when her mother forced her to have an abortion against her will. During our intimate conversation, I encouraged her to consider Christ’s forgiveness and seek counseling. We ended our time together in a warm embrace. I still pray for her healing.

Why did JFA turn to me to minister to this girl? I began volunteering with JFA more than two years ago, but the story begins many years before that.

Angela at a Justice For All outreach event

I was the first child that my biological mother decided not to raise. So I was adopted at birth by two wonderful people. I was their one and only child, and I was given everything a child could want by my doting parents. For six years everything was perfect. Then, just before my seventh birthday, I lost my father, my grandfather, and my great-grandmother, leaving me the only child of a single mother in a time before single parents were common.

I was a good girl all the way through high school. I didn’t miss school or cause trouble. I didn’t smoke or drink. I didn’t even dance, much less party. I was on the honor roll and graduated among the top of my class. I was the good one.

My mom and I were in church every time the doors were open. I became a Christian as a young girl during Vacation Bible School. I was in the choir, and I served as a youth leader, teaching other young ladies the importance of abstinence. Later, I became a Sunday school teacher, the church secretary, and the church treasurer.

During high school my body started doing weird things, and doctors put me on birth control pills to help regulate my cycles. But they also said, “By the way, when you’re on this stuff, the likelihood of you getting pregnant is less than one percent.” Hmmm…the power of one suggestion.

Before I turned twenty-five, I decided to rebel. I had done the church thing and been the good girl. I wanted to have some fun, so I did. The power of one decision.

One day I was not feeling well, so I went to the doctor. Imagine my shock and horror when the nurse told me that I was pregnant. My worst nightmare had begun…and so did the voice. The voice in my head said, “But you’re the good one! How can you be pregnant? Are you going to disappoint everyone?” Then the nurse asked a question. “Would you like to be referred to an abortion clinic…or an OB/GYN? Which number do you want?” Again, the power of one suggestion.

In that moment, my life changed forever as I made the decision to end my pregnancy. What they told me was that it was only a clump of cells, that it could not survive outside my body. It was up to me to choose when to become a mother. The procedure was quick and easy, and it would take care of my problem.

What I told myself was that I was the only one. No one at church would ever do so heinous a thing, so they would never know that I had—this abortion would be my one secret. I could not disappoint my mother, my mother’s friends, or our church. They just couldn't know. I was the good one.

What no one told me was that the guilt would be immediate, the emptiness overwhelming, and that the sound of the vacuum would haunt me forever. I can still feel the cold table and the ice-cold clamps. I can still feel the pressure inside as my one and only child was being removed. I still remember the sparse recovery room where there was no sound—none. Three other women were disbursed about the room. We did not make eye contact or speak. The silence was deafening. Our bodies, our minds, and our spirits knew that we had ended our babies’ lives.

Pain, confusion, isolation, and even thoughts of suicide became my constant companions for years. Why, you may be asking, would I bear my soul to you? Why share something so embarrassing, something that I will regret for the rest of my life? Because I want you to know the power that just one individual, one suggestion, and one choice can have to change the future.

All I needed was one person to tell me no, one person to tell me the truth about how I would feel for the next twenty-five years. That’s why I bear my soul to you; because I want to be that one person to you. Hear me. I understand the power of the secret. I have dedicated my life to spreading the truth about abortion, to spreading the truth that there is grace and mercy beyond the secret.

So that is how I came to be in the bathroom that day. That is why I travel on mission trips with JFA. On another trip in Boulder, Colorado I met several young ladies who had experienced abortion when they were teenagers. I wish I could explain the pain I saw buried inside each of them. That pain in their lives, and in mine, motivates me to be the voice that tells them, “I know how it feels. Let me talk to you. Let me show you healing.”

Last year we were at the University of North Texas, and once again I was in the restroom. The Holy Spirit thinks it’s funny to schedule my divine appointments while I’m indisposed. Again, John texted me: “Are you ready?” I introduced myself to a young lady who had just had an abortion two months before I met her. I sat and held her, and we cried. Her experience was so similar to mine. She had thought she was the only one. We got her connected with local counseling so she could begin the healing process. I was also part of a team that visited a woman who was contemplating abortion. I’m happy to report that that little baby is out and about these days.

The power of one. On one side Satan offers you one little suggestion, one little choice, one little secret you can choose that will solve your one little problem. Of course the problem isn’t so little, and neither is the choice or the secret.

On the other side, God offers hope and healing. He offers mercy and grace. Will you help me share the message of reconciliation? You can cover for me while I’m in the bathroom.

by Angela Weatherly

ed. John Michener

In addition, pray for these JFA volunteers who have received forgiveness for abortion and who help us share the message of reconciliation. Some of their stories are linked below:

Angela: "The Power of One" (Regular JFA Volunteer, writing in 2013)

Anne (Regular JFA Volunteer, writing in 2013)

Judy (Regular JFA Volunteer since 2011)

Lori (Regular JFA Volunteer since 2011; JFA Mentor since 2012)

Brenda (Regular JFA Volunteer since 2011)

Yvonne Morris