You Have a Pro-Life Story to Tell

Dannah Gresh: Did you know you have a story about life that’s worth telling? Here’s Bethany Bomberger.

Bethany Bomberger: I can't help but be reminded that when we turn our hearts to God, and we choose to serve Him, He is life. And so, as we share our stories, some people think, I don't have this grand story. Every moment that you've turned to the Lord bears witness to His name, it's His story. And His supernatural has something on our natural every time. 

Dannah: This is the Revive Our Hearts podcast for January 20, 2023. I’m Dannah Gresh, along with our host, Nancy DeMoss Wolgemuth, author of Surrender: The Heart God Controls.

Nancy DeMoss Wolgemuth: Over the last couple of days, we’ve been talking about the value of life. This is always an important topic, but especially now as we’re approaching the national Sanctity of Human Life Day this Sunday, January 22. Plus, it’s an extremely timely discussion with this Sunday being the fiftieth anniversary of Roe v. Wade. 

Now as you are probably aware, that tragic court decision was overturned by the Supreme Court of the United States this past year. However, as I'm sure you are also aware, abortion is still very much an issue in our country. And in some ways, it has come to the surface more than ever as different states and legislatures and courts debate issues related to this subject. 

As believers in Christ, we have the opportunity to celebrate the gift of life, to demonstrate what it means to cherish life at every stage, young to old. We're called to reflect God’s heart for every human life. 

We’ll talk about that more today as we hear from Ryan and Bethany Bomberger. They have a unique story to tell, and they’re passionate about all human life. Ryan and Bethany spoke about this on a Grounded episode from Revive Our Hearts. Grounded is our weekly videocast and podcast. They joined Dannah Gresh, Portia Collins, and Erin Davis, the hosts of Grounded, for an inspiring conversation on how to share your own pro-life story. We’ll hear pieces of that discussion today. First, here's Dannah’s here to start us off with her own pro-life story. 

Dannah: I gotta tell you, I have always valued the beauty and gift of life, but my passion button got pushed on one specific day, and that day was May 22, 2019. You see, that's the day my twin granddaughters were born at thirty-two  weeks, eight very important weeks early. 

So, Addie and Zoey were just about three pounds when they were born. Unless you've seen a preemie, you cannot actually believe the size of one. I thought I was prepared for it, but I wasn't. In fact, I remember the night of their birth. My son put his hand over Zoey to comfort her as she lay in that bassinet attached to wires. He was so shocked at what he saw that he took a photo of his hand engulfing her. She was that small. But absolutely everything about my Zoey girl was perfect—her nose, her eyes, her toes, her fingers. She was a masterpiece created by God. 

Just several days later, I got to hold her for the very first time. I remember holding her and looking around. Addie was still hooked up to so many wires that she fought for her life. She could not be touched because it was too much for her little body to concentrate on both breathing and touch. I thought to myself, I have never understood what it means to be pro-life until this moment. And you know why I thought that? Because as I looked around at a room full of babies, I thought to myself, Those babies are fighting for their lives.

They were fighting; they were fighting. They were choosing life against all odds. They wanted to live. I mean, go ahead and Google it. If you've never been in the NICU world, you'll read about it. If you Google it, NICU babies do in fact fight for their lives. 

And here's more good news, 2,000 years ago, Christians were known for something, something that seemed odd to the rest of the culture. They watched the trash heaps. They quietly rescued babies, taking them in to be part of their families, or finding someone who could. And today, many Christians are still a part of that quiet rescue. That's nothing new, either. Day after day, hour after hour. Why? Because we believe God loves life. In fact, that's why He sent His Son to die for you and me, so we could truly live in spite of all our sin. It's why He sent His Son to die. 

Yes, we believe God is very pro-life. And that is the best good news I've ever known. So, sisters, let's live like we know it, and join together to continue to practice the quiet rescue. 

Erin: Portia, what's your pro-life story?

Portia: Praise God. Well, it's hard to do this succinctly. So, I'll be brief, but it's a tough story. There was a time in my life when I was not pro-life. During my college years I turned away from God, from the things that I had been taught. I chose to live a wayward and worldly lifestyle that resulted in unplanned pregnancy . . . and I chose abortion. Although I didn't realize it . . . I'm trying to do this without crying this morning.

Erin: You know what? Tear up, Portia, it's okay. 

Portia: I didn't realize that I had a God-sized void in my life. I was looking to everything and everyone except God to fill that void, whether it was friendships, relationships, my grades in college, and ultimately, just turning from God. It led me down a rough and hard path, but God in His profound and infinite mercy called me out of darkness. He gave me life. He radically turned my life around, like, radically. It was almost like a snap of a finger. 

He changed my heart, helped me to see that life is sacred, and every person from womb to tomb is made in His image. For many years I struggled with guilt and shame from making that decision. But today, I am so thankful that God has used my life and my story in a redemptive way. One of the things that He has allowed me to do is to counsel countless women and guide them into choosing life. 

Erin: Portia, I've known that side of your story for a while, and you always give God the glory in it. There are always those tears which is a right response to what happened there.

Dannah: Amen. I know you're gonna love our guests today. I only recently discovered them, but I've been binging online, and I have fallen in love. Ryan and Bethany Bomberger are the founders of the Radiance Foundation, welcome Bombergers.

Bethany: It’s so fun to be here. 

Dannah: I'm so glad to have you. Should I call you the Bombs? 

Ryan Bomberger: That works for us. 

Dannah: Because I saw family photos of you—you and your four kids—and you just said “The Bombs.” 

Bethany: It used to be our license plate. It's what our friends call us. So, you're our friend; you're welcome to call as the Bombs.

Dannah: Well, thank you. All right, Ryan, tell us, what's your pro-life story. 

Ryan: My pro-life story starts when I began. I am literally the 1% that is used 100% of the time to justify abortion. My birth mom experienced the horror and the violence of rape. Yet, she was courageous enough not only to give me life, she gave me the incredible gift of adoption. 

So, when we talk about the issue of life, oftentimes the conversation inevitably gets to that question. Well, what about rape? I'm the tangible example of that. The circumstances of our conception never changed the condition of our worth. We’re all created by God, whether we were humanly planned or not. We're all still part of His divine plan. 

And so, my story began there. I was adopted into this tiny, tiny, little family of fifteen. I have six brothers, six sisters. Ten of us were adopted and we look like, well, we're just mixed. We're white, and we're black, Vietnamese, Native American, just a mixture of lives that would have been easily discarded because we didn't fit the picture of perfection, whatever that is. We were unplanned. We were gonna then be unwanted and then unloved. My parents shattered that whole myth of the unwanted child. Fast forward to today where the love of my life, who's next to me, Bethany and I are married. We have four kiddos, and two of our kiddos were also adopted. 

And so, my pro-life story is that many say that I should have been aborted, but God saw otherwise. I'm just grateful to my courageous birth mom, because I wouldn't be here, and I wouldn't be married to this amazing woman. I wouldn't have the four incredible kiddos that I have. And I wouldn't be able to live out this God-given purpose.

Dannah: I love what you just said about your birth mom. You called her “courageous.” I think it is a brave thing for a woman to think beyond her own life, beyond her own wants, desires, needs, and plans and to think selflessly about that baby growing in her womb. That is just such a brave choice. Bethany, what's your pro-life story?

Bethany: So, I feel like I have many, but the most defining profound one is my own personal story of transformation. I grew up in church and had a career, had gotten my master's degree. And somewhere in my twenties, I found myself really struggling with life's disappointments, things I thought were going to come to fruition that hadn't. And during that season, I just really became very selfish and walked away from the Lord and embraced my misery and depression and found myself in a really abusive relationship and found myself pregnant. 

It was interesting, because I have many, many colleagues who said, “Just abort, nobody will even know.” The biological father encouraged me, offered funds and said, “Just quietly, go get an abortion, and we'll move on with our lives.” And in the deepest part of my soul, I knew that I couldn't do that in good conscience. I ended up going to get my very first ultrasound. 

I feel like it's really personal that it ended up being a Saturday morning, February 14, 2004. It was Valentine's Day. I was by myself; the place was empty. I was the only one there. It felt just cold. I laid there, and I had that ultrasound. I looked up at the screen, and I saw this little piece of rice blinking. It was very early. There weren't parts to see, other than this little thing that was blinking. That was a big thing, because it was my daughter's heart. 

And in that moment, it was defining for me, because I honestly felt this embrace of the Holy Spirit. It was like God was just picking me up, taking that baby's heart, my heart, and just enveloping them, both of those in His heart. I went home that night by myself, and I opened up an old journal that I had found. And in the margin of that journal was Psalm 34:5. It said, “I sought the Lord . . . He delivered me from all my fears. Those that look to him will be radiant, and their faces will never be covered with shame.” And that night, I decided that shame was not going to be my portion. 

Dannah: Amen.

Bethany: It was not my testimony. It was not going to be my daughter’s story. It was enough with selfish living. I needed it to be the mother I wanted her to look up to. At that time, I didn't even know her as a girl, but I named her “Baby Radiance,” so that she would live a life knowing that the shame that the world might put on her was just what the world puts on her. But the Lord takes His radiant glory and exchanges it for all of those things that the enemy whispers in our ears. 

As I've heard these pro-life stories, I can't help but be reminded that when we turn our hearts to God and we choose to serve Him, He is life. And so, as we share our stories of people and they go, "I don't have this grand story." Every moment that you've turned to the Lord bears witness to His name, it's His story. His supernatural has something on our natural every time. And so that's why we actually do what we do, because we've walked through it. We know the fear. It makes us make decisions we otherwise wouldn't. 

Dannah: You know, Bethany, you are radiant. That word describes you right now, today. Every video I've seen of you online, you are truly radiant. You have lived out that Scripture. I want to ask you both, what would your message be to a woman who's pregnant, listening right now, and feeling like she shouldn't be pregnant or she can't be pregnant right now? What would you encourage her to do? 

Ryan: Stop first, pray. Prayer is the first resort and the last resort. You're not alone. There are so many others who have been exactly where you may be right now. One of the things we do through the Radiance Foundation is, we've worked with thousands of pregnancy centers, these are led by women who've been there. Some were post-abortive, some were adoptive moms, some who chose life because of an unplanned pregnancy. They're there to walk you through that. They're not going to abandon you once you have your child. They stick with you for years after that. 

So, there is help out there. There are maternity homes out there. And quite honestly, there are churches who opened up their arms to those who are facing unplanned pregnancies. This journey is not one you need to walk alone and never one you need to walk in shame. 

Bethany: It's the lie of the enemy that says you're by yourself. 

Dannah: Yes, exactly. Don't do it alone. I beg you, call someone. Reach out to someone, no matter your circumstances. You do not have to walk through this alone. 

And also, Bethany, I love what you did. You opened your journal, but what you found there was Scripture. 

Bethany: Yeah. 

Dannah: And what if? What if? What if you just opened your Bible right now, if you're not sure of what's going on in your own body, you're not sure how to respond to the life growing in your body? Open the Scripture. Could you just quote that verse one more time that meant so much to you, Bethany? 

Bethany: Psalm 34:5 says, “I sought the Lord . . . and He delivered me from all my fears. And those that look to him will be radiant, and their faces will never be covered with shame.” 

It's okay to face fear. We just don't want to succumb to it. And so, it's also an encouragement to know that each of us, because we're human, will face fear. But with Christ, we can overcome that fear and flip the script. 

Dannah: Yeah. I love that, Bethany. You know who else has a really radiant face? My co-host, Portia Collins. 

Bethany: Yes.

Dannah: And she has an abortion in her past. But there is no shame on her life. There is radiance in her life. And so, I wonder if you'd pray that Scripture for us, Bethany, over any woman listening right now who has an abortion in their past, but the shame is still with her in her presence. Would you pray for that woman?

Bethany: Absolutely. Father God, we just come before You today. And we thank You, God, because You never get tired of redeeming. You never get tired of that great exchange. So right now, Father God, I pray that You will do what only You in Your supernatural way can do. I pray that You would reach down right now, and that you would minister healing to women across this nation and across the globe, that no longer would their identity be shame, that no longer would their identity be things that they have marked and called mistakes. But God, that they would step out in faith and exchange those things for Your glory. And in return, Father God, that You would minister peace that they have never experienced before, that You would before their very eyes, as those old grave clothes fall off, that they would experience life anew. 

Lord, I pray that You would send ambassadors from heaven to continue to speak life into their hearts, and that You would do what You do best, and You revive those things that are dead. So those areas of their hearts, Lord, that they feel that have been like coffins and sealed off right now, would You open those doors and call them up and out? God would You place in their hearts the beauty of knowing that there is a lot of life ahead of them, and there is purpose for their pain. In Jesus’ name we pray, amen.

Dannah: Amen. Oh, thank you, Bethany, that was so powerful. Thank you Ryan and Bethany for being with us today. 

Bethany: It was an honor.

Dannah: Ryan and Bethany Bomberger, they're with the Radiance Foundation. You’ll want to check that out online, you will be encouraged today. And Bethany is also the author of a book called Pro-Life Kids. If you have grandkids or children in your house, you’ll want to check that out. Erin. 

Erin: And man, that prayer alone, I feel like it will hit its mark and lots of hearts. Usually, this is where I say it's time to get grounded in God's Word. But today, I'm going to say it's time to stay grounded in God's Word. I'm so grateful Bethany took us to the Psalms. 

When I was trying to decide where I wanted to teach from for this segment, I had a little difficulty, because frankly, I could go to Genesis to get a pro-life ethos, I could go to the Psalms, I could go to the Gospels, I could go to Revelation. But where I want us to park for just a few minutes this morning is John chapter 10. 

If you're listening to this and you are not yet a follower of Jesus, and maybe you don't own a Bible, can I just say to you that we prayed for you here. We have asked the Lord to bring you here. And so, when I say turn to John chapter 10 and you have no idea where that is in your Bible, that's okay. I'm going to read it to us. 

But in John chapter 10, we find a verse that I feel is like the stake in the ground for why Jesus' followers are pro-life. Because truly to follow Jesus and to obey His Word is to believe that human life matters. We do see it all over our Bibles from Genesis all the way to the end. 

In Genesis, God spoke all of life into creation; God is a life-giving God. And in Revelation, we read about the realities of the eternal, beautiful, breathtaking, eternal life that God has in store for those of us who love Him. He is a life-giving God. But perhaps the most pro-life verse in the whole Bible is John 10:10. As promised, I'm going to read it to you. 

John 10:10 says this, “The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have life and have it abundantly.” (ESV)

This is a really important juxtaposition as we consider pro-life or pro-choice as it's framed in our culture. All of us who bear God's image, all of humanity, from the littlest to the biggest, from the most able bodied, to the least able bodied, all of humanity has a relentless enemy. His name is Satan, and his mission is singular. Satan is focused on death. Don't be mad at the people who don't think like you do. They are deceived. 

Don't be mad at the people who are screaming on the other side of this debate, because they're made in the image of God, just like you are. You want to be mad at somebody? Be mad at Satan, whose mission is to kill and destroy. He is focused on death all the time. I hate him. I'm mad at him for the ways he has destroyed people's lives with this idea that life is anything other than a gift. 

All of us bear God's image, which is all of us, all of humanity. The other side of that coin, if you flip it over, all of us have a Savior, Jesus. He has a name too. And you want to run to somebody, you run to Him, because He came to earth, and He was laser focused on one mission. As laser focused as Satan is on death, Jesus is laser focused on the mission to give us life. 

Why am I pro-life? I'm pro-life because I have life in my lungs today. I'm pro-life because my sweet Elisha is in basketball practice right now, fully healthy. But I'm really pro-life because of the humungous price that Jesus paid so that I could have life. I was dead. I was dead in my trespasses and sin. Death was my only option because of my rebellion. But Jesus went to the cross so that I could have life. 

And what John 10:10 tells us is He didn't just go to the cross so we could have any old life. Jesus went to the cross so that we could have abundant, full, joy-filled life. To be a follower of Jesus is to celebrate life. 

Every human being bears God's image, that's Genesis 1:27, and because Jesus died, so that each one of us could have eternal, abundant life.

Here's what I've been meditating on in preparation for this episode. Life is precious because life is costly. Life is precious because life is costly. Jesus laid down His own life so that I could have abundant, full, joy-filled life. How can I be anything other than pro-life, from conception to the grave and then beyond that, because that's when life really begins, because of what Jesus did for us. 

We've been singing a song a lot at my church. I don't know if you've been singing it at yours, but we sang it yesterday. The chorus goes like this:

Thank you, Jesus, for the blood applied.
Thank you, Jesus, it has washed me white.
Thank you, Jesus, you have saved my life;
Brought me from the darkness in a glorious light. 

And in my own church, the woman singing that song this week was a twenty-something woman who has a tumor in her brain, an agent of death in her brain. And she was singing with every cell in her body. Thank you, Jesus. You have saved my life. I don't know if her physical life can be saved or not. But He has saved her by going to the cross. 

So Grounded sisters around the world, have you thanked Jesus for your life today? Because of Jesus, the enemy will not win my life. He will not take my boy's life. He's not going to take that baby named Radiance’s life. He's not going to kill and destroy us. We have been given life, abundant life. Some translations say life to the full.

So, I know we already prayed. But it's fitting that we pause and tell Him thank You right now for our lives.

Jesus, thank You for life, the gift I most take for granted. I would have nothing without You, no life apart from You. I would be dead and buried and hell bound, but I am not. I have life on earth now and life eternity with You. Thank You for the gift of life. 

That's my pro-life story, and I'm going to keep telling it, girls.

Dannah: Friend, if you have breath in your lungs, you have a pro-life story to tell, tell someone today.

Nancy: What an encouraging reminder from a recent episode of Grounded. 

And, yes, we do hope today’s conversation has sparked a pro-life story in you. How can you share about God’s gift of life with others? 

The last few days, we’ve been talking about the importance of human life, so if you missed any of those episodes, I want to encourage you to go back and listen. You can find them all on our website, ReviveOurHearts.com, or on the Revive Our Hearts app. 

Dannah, throughout this week, we’ve taken a deeper look at what the Bible says about human life.

Dannah: That’s right, Nancy. The Bible is our ultimate source of truth, and the more we read it, the more we know who God is and His heart for life. In fact, Revive Our Hearts is so passionate about studying Scripture, that our latest resource we want to share with you is focused on dwelling in God’s Word.

The resource is our new Savor and Share Scripture Card Set, made up of fifty-two cards—each with a unique verse and a word or phrase to help you remember the truth of God’s Word. 

I wish I could show you a picture of these right now, but you’ll just have to go to our website to see—these cards have beautiful, bold designs, and they’re the perfect size for traveling, sending one with a card in the mail, or gifting the set to a friend.

More than simply a beautiful resource, these Scripture cards point you to the important, timeless truth of God’s Word. You can get your Scripture card set today as our way of saying “thank you” when you give a gift of any amount to Revive Our Hearts. Visit ReviveOurHearts.com to make your donation, or call us at 1-800-569-5959, and be sure to request your card set. 

Think of a time when you had to make a really tough decision. How did you know what to do? Did you get paralysis, not knowing what was the right choice? We face decisions on a daily basis, sometimes minute by minute. Next week, we’re going to hear from Melissa Kruger as she shares about how we can become women of discernment. We’ll learn how to seek the Lord and move forward with decisions in confidence and faith. Please be back for Revive Our Hearts.

Revive Our Hearts with Nancy DeMoss Wolgemuth is calling you to freedom, fullness, and fruitfulness in Christ.

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