"Set them free??"

Today I read an article about an abortion clinic that will abort 2nd and 3rd trimester fetuses. The procedure costs about $5,000USD and involves injecting the infant with a drug that will stop his/her heart. After that, the mother goes through 2 or 3 days of labour pains, at which point she will give birth to the stillborn child. The article shared the stories of three women and their families who decided to terminate the lives of their unborn children "for their sake"

As I was reading through the stories of the internal conflict of these women, the depression and regret that followed in being an active participant in the death of a child, the older siblings who would share some of their Halloween candy with the ashes of their younger brother or sister, the clinic that has a poster that says "set them free" on the cieling...I can't help but cry. One of the mothers said "That's what I'm doing, setting her free into the hands of the angels."

Praying over this, I saw a picture of Jesus cradling all these aborted babies in his arms. They were considered unwanted because the doctors had detected some kind of flaw, or abnormality in their development, or they reminded the parent of some horrific event in their past. Jesus is weeping over all these children, because they were intended as a gift from God. I think of all the children I know who have overcome huge obstacles in their young lives, and all the lessons they taught me.
I think of the perserverance that comes from fighting to live.
I think of the purity of love that comes from one who is forever a child at heart.
I think of the patience that grows, and the joy that comes from little victories.
I think of the families that are brought together unexpectedly into eachother's lives.

I think of the opportunities I have aborted in my life because I was too afraid of the pain or sacrifice that might come with it.
I think of the areas in my life that God is trying to develop in me that I am shutting down because I am unsure what the full development of those things will look like.
I think of all the gifts He has been waiting to give me where I have killed the heartbeat by my lack of faith.

Matthew 18:3 that says "Unless you become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of Heaven"

Jesus showed me the little girl I met on Sunday who gave me a huge hug and a kiss right after I met her.
He showed me Jimmie and Julie, my adult cousins who still sing happy birthday to Jesus every year at Christmas time.
He showed me Shian, a little girl who was not supposed to make her first birthday, according to doctors. The last I heard of her, she was celebrating her ninth birthday with her foster family. She does not speak, or walk, but she knows what it is to love and be loved.