Hey Community Family,
I love you all and excited about what God has ahead of us as a church family celebrating our 20th year. Be watching for more opportunities. Also, thank you to all who helped make back2school a powerful outreach.
Here is something heavy on my heart. Like many of you, we have watched Virginia move closer to becoming a state where abortion is available on demand, even late in pregnancy.
This November, Virginians are expected to vote on a proposed constitutional amendment that would place abortion protections directly into the Virginia Constitution. The proposed language reads:
“The Commonwealth may regulate the provision of abortion care in the third trimester, provided that in no circumstance shall the Commonwealth prohibit an abortion that in the professional judgment of a physician is medically indicated to protect the life or physical or mental health of the pregnant individual.”
We believe this should deeply concern us as Christians.
The inclusion of the “mental health” of the mother creates an exception broad enough to undermine meaningful protections for unborn children, even in the third trimester. And because these protections would be written into the Virginia Constitution, a future legislature committed to greater protection for unborn life would have very limited ability to change them.
For us, this is not fundamentally a political issue. It is a biblical one. Political parties and candidates come and go. Our responsibility to protect human life—especially the lives of those who cannot protect themselves—does not.
It is our sincere hope that, regardless of political affiliation, everyone reading this would prayerfully consider doing each of the following three things:
1. Come to the town hall this Thursday.
If possible this Thursday, August 20, at 6:30 PM, at First Baptist Church in downtown Roanoke come to the town hall meeting to help Virginians understand the amendment and what is at stake. This is sponsored by the Church Ambassador Network.
2. Mark your calendar to vote NO on Tuesday November 3.
We recognize that Christians may disagree about all kinds of political questions. But we believe the protection of unborn human life is first a biblical and moral issue, not a partisan one. We encourage you to make plans now to vote NO on this amendment.
3. Tell your friends and family—and encourage them to vote NO as well.
Many Virginians simply do not know that this amendment is coming or understand what it would mean. Please take the time to talk about it with the people in your life. Share the language of the amendment with them, explain why you believe it matters, and encourage them to vote NO.
There are moments when loving our neighbor requires more than holding the right convictions privately. We believe this is one of those moments. This is a reason The Community Fellowship is around... to share the love of God and point people to Jesus!
Rescue those being led away to death; hold back those staggering toward slaughter
–Proverbs 24:11
Have a great rest of the week. Pray for one another!
With GOD as my guide,
Pastor Michael Harrison
-- James 1:5
Comments