40 Days for Life: Highlights of International Campaign
From website: www.40daysforlife.com
There’s no question that we’ve just witnessed God bring about profound miracles over a 40-day period: 212 cities in 45 states, 5 Canadian provinces, and Denmark participated in the largest and longest coordinated pro-life mobilization in history
• Tens of thousands of faithful participants were mobilized into peaceful and effective action
Planned Parenthood director quits job in Bryan, Texas
During the fall 40 Days for Life campaign, the director of the Planned Parenthood abortion center in Bryan/College Station, Texas resigned her job. Abby Johnson had worked at the clinic for eight years, but departed from the facility following a profound change of heart about abortion.
Abby has now shared her converstion story on Mike Huckabee's Fox News Channel program and other media outlets.
Answered prayers: Pensacola, Florida abortion clinic closes
With a very brief legal notice in the local newspaper, a Pensacola, Florida abortion facility quietly announced its closing. The clinic has been the site of three 40 Days for Life prayer vigils, including one that just concluded on November 1. The notice read, "As of October 30, 2009, The Community Health Center of Pensacola will be terminating its practice." This is the fifth closure of an abortion facility that has been the site of a 40 Days for Life vigil.
Kalispell, Montana Planned Parenthood abortion center closing!
Last spring, a 40 Days for Life prayer vigil was held in front of a Planned Parenthood abortion clinic in Kalispell, Montana. Planned Parenthood has just announced that this facility will close on November 20. The 40 Days for Life team in Kalispell is convinced - prayer is powerful, and it works!
Planned Parenthood told the local media it is closing the center for economic reasons —— or as Stacy James, a Montana Planned Parenthood executive, admitted to the daily newspaper, "We’ve not had the patient numbers to keep the doors open."
SCRIPTURAL REFLECTION AND PRAYER - Fr. Frank Pavone
"On this rock I will build my church, and the gates of hell will not prevail against it." Matthew 16:18
When we read this verse, we usually think that the Lord is promising that the church, which is His Body, will withstand all the attacks launched against it. Of course, that is true.
But when we think about it more carefully, we realize that in a battle, the gates do not run out into the battlefield to attack the enemy. Rather, they stand still to defend the city from the enemy attacking it. So when the Lord says that the gates of hell will not prevail against the church, who is doing the attacking? It is the church storming the gates!
The church, all of God's people in Christ, is called to take the offensive, to run into enemy territory, and to gain ground for Jesus Christ. We do not wait for an invitation; we already have a command. We prepare, but we do not wait for circumstances to be perfect; we already have one who has gone before us.
During these 40 days, we have stormed the gates. We have taken the offensive. We have pushed forward the
boundaries of the kingdom. And we must keep doing so, in numerous ways.
Indeed, the gates of hell will not prevail. The gates of falsehood will flee in the presence of truth. The gates of sin will melt in the presence of grace. The gates of death will fall in the presence of the church, the People of Life!
PRAYER
Father, we praise you. We have heard the voice of your Son, and therefore we can make our voices heard.
We have done battle with the power of evil, and therefore we can have compassion on those still
within its grip. We have been freed from the kingdom of darkness, and therefore we can bear witness to
your Kingdom of Light.
May the witness of all your people through these 40 Days for Life bear abundant fruit, and may we begin
again each day to storm the gates of hell until You welcome us into the gates of heaven. We pray in the
victorious name of Jesus Christ our Lord, Amen.
