Deuteronomy 30:19 (NIV): “This day I call the heavens and the earth as witnesses against you that I have set before you life and death, blessings and curses. Now choose life, so that you and your children may live”
Debbie and I have experienced five pregnancies. One life ended in a miscarriage. One life ended 21 years after birth as a result of a car accident. The other three, now all in their thirties, have blessed us with six grandchildren.
My father-in-law died soon after he turned 80. My mother-in-law lives in my home and actually turns 80 this year. My dad is 90. My mom is 87. They continue to experience life.
The above verse doesn’t specifically refer to life in the womb. The importance of life in the womb is well established in other places in the Bible. I just find it very cool that this particular verse uses the phrase “choose life.” That is what I encourage. Life is sacred. Life was created by God.
Life is sacred from conception to natural death. There is a unique human being in the womb of a mother regardless of how it started. That life, that human being, is sacred and full of potential. It only needs time in the womb, that has been especially created by God to nurture that life, to be birthed and experience life in God’s creation. Choosing life even applies when there are instances that require difficult decisions. Fortunately, those instances are very rare.
Life is sacred until natural death. My parents have lived a long life. Every single day I get to spend with them is still an amazing blessing.
I don’t know when a life will end. We certainly did not know that we would have a miscarriage or lose our precious 21-year-old daughter or that my father-in-law would die. To think that I can get involved in determining when a life will end, either in the womb or afterwards, would imply that I place myself ahead of God. I don’t want that. I hope that you don’t either.
Prayer: Dear God, please forgive us as a nation, as a world, for ending any life that is not in line with Your control. Trusting You, as the Creator of life, is what I want. I choose life. May I always influence others to choose life too.
