A Guardian Angel

South Dallas Planned Parenthood is in a quiet location, surrounded mostly by medical offices.  Yesterday afternoon, we had three people who drove past, giving us thumbs up and calling out, “Good job.”  A worker from one of the medical labs walked over to talk for a while, saying they were glad we were there. 

And an older lady pulled up to tell us that she could hardly stand to go to her doctor because having Planned Parenthood next door was so distressing.  She said, “I miscarried two babies, and I can’t believe that someone would intentionally…”.  She couldn’t finish her sentence.  We asked her to pray and she said she would.

The Feast of the Guardian Angels was this week.  How wonderful it is that we each have a Guardian Angel watching over us, aiding our prayer, and presenting our souls to God at death.  Angel means messenger, and the angels not only take our messages to God, but they also bring His messages to us.  Padre Pio spiritually adopted lots of sons and daughters, and he would ask them to send their Guardian Angels if they were in need.  He would send his Guardian Angel to pray for them too.

In Send Me Your Guardian Angel, a book about Padre Pio’s relationship with angels, the author relates a story about one of Padre Pio’s spiritual children, Cecil Humphrey-Smith.  Involved in a terrible car wreck, Cecil was seriously injured.  A friend went to the post office to send a telegram to Padre Pio, letting him know and asking for prayers.  When he turned the telegram in at the window, the clerk handed the friend a telegram from Padre Pio which said he would be praying for Cecil’s healing!

Months later Cecil was able to make the trip to see his spiritual father and asked how Padre Pio had known so quickly about the wreck and how the telegram had gotten there so quickly.  Padre Pio asked him, “Do you think the Angels go as slowly as the planes?”

Sometimes our Guardian Angels are sent to ask us for prayers.  Yesterday, this young man came to the prayer vigil because he said he felt called to pray the Rosary. He came just when we needed him.  Thank you, Guardian Angels.

Guardian Angel Prayer for Friends

Guardian Angel,

watch over those whose names you can read in my heart.

Guard over them with every care

and make their way easy and their labors fruitful.

Dry their tears if they weep;

sanctify their joys;

raise their courage if they weaken;

restore their hope if they lose heart,

their health if they be ill,

truth if they err, repentance if they fail.  Amen

By: Susan Platt, Dallas Campaign Director

Vigil being baptized!

40 Days for Life- Dallas was off to a soggy start at 6am in front of the South Dallas Planned Parenthood.  We had all traveled through rain just to get a light sprinkle at the vigil site, but the more we prayed, the harder it stormed.  One of the Knights quipped that it was like our 40 Days vigil was being baptized!

Some of us had been to the Kickoff the night before; others had been to a Hike for Life meeting to finalize details for this weekend.  And at least one Knight plans to be at the vigil for all twelve hours today.

The Kickoff Rally was one of the best we’ve ever had.  Shawn Carney, a founder of 40 Days for Life, was the speaker, sharing amazing stories of God’s grace.  He told of one vigil that, year after year for ten years, had not seen one baby saved.  How trusting these people have been, that God wants them to persevere and that He can use for good whatever they give Him. 

This last campaign, a woman showed up with her six-year old daughter.  She wanted the volunteers to know that when she was pregnant, she had come to abort this child, but she had left because she saw them praying for her.  For six years, a little girl has been alive because of their sacrifice and Christ’s mercy.

Our host was Chris Wheel from The TurnAround Agenda, who welcomed us and prayed with us for life.  He prayed about the need for all of us to stand together  -- for everyone to be a part of the “us-ness,” a Texas word!, as we work and pray for life.

May God greatly bless this 40 Days for Life vigil and bless all His people who have answered His call!

By: Susan Platt, Dallas Campaign Director

A Couple Different Then Before

On the day their parish had adopted for 40 Days for Life, the ladies gathered at the corner to pray the Divine Mercy Chaplet in Spanish.  They watched and prayed while sidewalk counselor called to a client.  Prayer support makes such a difference!  The clients see people making the effort to leave their jobs or homes to come stand on the sidewalk, praying for them and their babies.

Cate* is forty years old, and she and her husband, George*, have four other children.  George had brought her to the abortion facility, but he wouldn’t come over to the counselors.  As sidewalk counselors, we aren’t supposed to interrupt each other, but when the Holy Spirit takes over, you do what He says.  And when you’ve worked together for a while, you sense when your partner needs to share information and when you should speak. 

The two counselors began talking with Cate.  In a few minutes, she fell sobbing into the arms of the counselors and agreed to go to the pregnancy resource center.  When they passed by the women praying on the corner, Cate hugged all of them, too.  And most of them went with her, praying all the way!  George followed behind, and one of the prayer volunteers walked with him.

George wasn’t very happy with his wife.  He said she was the one who wanted to come to the abortion facility – all he wanted to do was support her decision.  At the pregnancy resource center, tensions continued to rise between the two of them.  Couples arguing in such a stressful situation can be dangerous for the baby, so the sonographer stepped in to say it was time they saw their child, and took them back to the exam room.  After the sonogram, one of the counselors took the couple to the chapel to pray together.  That sealed the deal.

It’s a great gift to see a couple after they’ve decided to keep their baby.  This couple came back to see the counselors, bringing their sonogram pictures.  On one was written “Hola, Mami!”  Cate pointed out one picture where the baby looked like he was sucking his thumb. 

One of the counselors said later that it was as though they were completely different people.  This couple was happy, smiling and at peace.  They even showed off the new box of diapers and other gifts they’d gotten from the pregnancy center!  Their baby is 10 weeks and three days old.  Thank God there were people who cared enough to pray for him and his parents. 

Your prayer can make a difference.  We know because we have seen it.  Won’t you please prayfully consider what one hour out of your day could do for a family?

*Names changed to protect privacy

By: Susan Platt, Dallas Campaign Director

The Sidewalk Doesn't Get Any Softer

People ask me, “When is the best time to come pray?” I guess they are asking when is their prayer the most effective. Maybe during the cool of the morning, when the workers are going in. They’ve spent time away - at home with their families, trying to convince themselves what they’re doing is okay, or even good. They’ve done what they can to forget what they saw the day before. In their short walk from the parking lot to the office, we have the chance to witness that, no matter what they’ve done, we love them too.

Or perhaps the best time is a bit later in the day, when clients begin to arrive. The women who’ve asked God for a sign that they shouldn’t go through with their scheduled abortion drive past us, sometimes parking and joyfully coming over to tell us that their prayers have been answered - just by our being there. Others hide their faces from us, ashamed at what they are about to do. Having us see them makes their consciences burn - enough, we hope, to drive them away.

The weather can change, but the sidewalk doesn’t get any softer. Volunteers who kneel on the sidewalk to pray always astound me. How can the sight of their sacrifice not affect the workers and the clients, no matter the time of day?

Late afternoon is the saddest time for me. The rides come, grim-faced fathers who’ve failed at the most basic responsibility a man has – protecting their own children. They load up their wives or girlfriends into the car, often in the backseat so the women can have more room. One counselor used to describe them as looking “shredded.” And that’s pretty accurate. Dazed, in pain, stunned with regret and loss – the sight of their faces can bring me to tears. I hate being outside the abortion center then. Which must mean it’s the time when my prayers are most needed.

For others, the best time to pray is whenever God calls you to be there for His children.

By: Susan Platt, Dallas Campaign Director

Someone (else) Will Help

Kaye said she had missed her first scheduled hour at the vigil.  Her little baby girl was asleep in the backseat of the car, so Kaye had prayed from there.  We assured her that it still counted.  40 Days for Life even recommends praying from your car if you are the only one at the vigil.  Today she brought her 9-year-old son with her to pray.

As she signed in, a car drove up and the man driving called out to the counselor.  He wanted to know what we were doing.  She asked him to park his car and come back to talk to her.  And he did.  That always makes you feel anxious because you might lose the person, but you have to do it to make sure they are safely out of traffic.

The man, Case, had one of his children with him.  Case and his wife have three children, with the youngest only six months old.  His wife thought she was only a month pregnant.  She could have an abortion since it wasn’t really a baby yet, was it?  The counselor gave him information and explained the damage that abortion could do to both them and their family. 

Case looked thoughtful but didn’t say much before he left.  The counselors continued to minister as Kaye and her son prayed.  Their hour was almost up when Case came back to speak with the counselors.  His wife’s tests showed that the baby was two months along, not one.  And he had been able to share with her what he had learned from the counselor.  He wanted to tell the counselors that he and his wife were keeping their baby.

You always feel a thrill when you hear those words.  God’s most precious gift has been affirmed.  Kaye and her son had witnessed to life, making the effort to join in the vigil with fellow Christians and God blessed them by showing His love for this baby and his family.

God doesn’t always reveal lives saved to us.  But if we say yes to what He calls us to do, we show Him and others our love.  We can do all things through Christ, who gives us strength. 

We have hours that still need prayer.  Could you come pray during your lunch hour?  After you drop kids off at school?  Before you pick up grandkids?  On your way home from work?  Just an hour of your time could help prevent a life lost, a life filled with regret.  We are the ones being asked.  Let us not say, “Someone (else) will help.”

By: Susan Platt, Dallas Campaign Director

First Day, First Save ... Five Years Ago

On the first day of the vigil, a woman came over to talk to the prayer volunteers. She wanted to thank them for being there today ... and for being there five years ago. When she found out she was pregnant, she and her husband decided that they couldn't afford a child. So they made an appointment for an abortion. They noticed the people on the sidewalk as they drove in to the abortion facility parking lot. Walking to the front door, they'd even stopped to take literature from a sidewalk counselor, but they went inside to keep the appointment.

While she and her husband sat in the waiting room, God heard our prayers and worked on their hearts. They listened to Him and decided to leave. This woman shared that choosing life for their son was the best decision they ever made. He has become their little prayer warrior -- always praying for other people, especially for the sick, and God answers his prayers. We look forward to the blessings the Lord will bestow on the vigil through the petitions of this beautiful family.

It's only the beginning, and our vigil has already seen incredible blessings. Please join the vigil, and find out what God has in store for the next 37 days!

By: Susan Platt, Dallas Campaign Director