When a woman goes to an abortion clinic, it is usually the end result of a whole string of circumstances in her life — in other words, it is not NORMALLY a “cold hearted decision to kill her baby” as some pro-lifers might be inclined to think.
Some of these circumstances can include broken and damaged relationships: with her mother, her father, her siblings, with the father of her child.
When a young woman discovers that she is pregnant, and she isn’t married, she would normally turn to her mother (or sister, or aunt) for emotional support. What if they are incapable or unwilling to give that support for her pregnancy? What if they, in fact, tell her to “get rid of it”? Whatever damage already exists in these relationships can then be further damaged if she does, in fact, have an abortion.
An unmarried and pregnant woman would normally look to her father and to the father of her child for masculine strength and support during her pregnancy. What if these men cut her off, or threaten to do so if she does not have an abortion? How many men walk out on their pregnant girlfriends? A man is supposed to protect the woman that he loves — so if he abandons her in her time of need, what kind of damage does that do to her ability to trust men?
So abortion can cause tremendous damage to our family relationships. Can these broken relationships be healed? ABSOLUTELY! With the Lord Jesus, anything is possible!
During a Rachel’s Vineyard retreat, the women (and men) making the retreat have opportunities to reflect on their broken relationships, to acknowledge the reality of the anger that they — justly — feel toward those who might have pushed them into an abortion, or who did not step up to help them to have their babies. This acknowledgement of the reality of one’s anger is a very healing experience, and then we can begin to turn these wounded and broken relationships over to the Lord Jesus, for His healing grace to enable us to forgive those who have hurt us, and this begins the process of healing the relationships themselves — especially those with our family members. In our Rachel’s Vineyard retreats, we have seen people experience what can only be called “miraculous” healing in this area.
If you, or someone you love, has had an abortion, we invite you to contact us — let us help you to begin (or progress further on) your journey of healing all the wounds of abortion. Let our Lord Jesus Christ be your Healer! Join us on one of our upcoming Rachel’s Vineyard retreats!