Yesterday was Sanctity of Human Life Sunday in the Southern Baptist Convention. Every year Southern Baptist churches take the third Sunday of January to encourage believers to continue to care about the lives of the unborn. Our pastor preached a message yesterday out of Psalm 139. He showed us again that God is the author of life, human beings are created in God's image, and human beings are created for the glory of God. Recognizing the sanctity of human life is not just for babies in utero, although it is massively important that we fight for them. Valuing life is about caring for the elderly, adopting the orphans, volunteering at the crisis pregnancy center, helping a single mother, mentoring a foster child, and going on the mission field. We value life in all stages because God wants people to worship him; and we should want this too. People are precious. They are image-bearers of our King. Not waste to be discarded.
Daniel and I have talked a lot about what this would look like for us; long-term and short-term. We don't know yet. But we do know one thing. Valuing life will mean giving up our own life. It is not enough just to say that we are pro-choice when we don't care about the life that is wasting away all around us. Valuing life will mean we are a little (or a lot) less comfortable than we would maybe like. But it only matters if this is all we have to live for.
My prayer for myself this year is that I would be comfortable with the uncomfortable in whatever avenue that means for my life right now. I want to be willing to sleep a little less on a Saturday morning so I can volunteer at the crisis pregnancy center. I want to spend less time browsing Facebook and more time browsing sites that make me love the world more. I want to value life in all stages in a way that helps people see Jesus as the one who makes us really live.
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