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What is our Responsibility?
The other night, before getting ready for bed, I did what I usually do and made one final check of what was going on in the land of social networks. While I was quickly looking over my Twitter feed, I noticed that one of my favorite actresses had finally given in and gotten a Twitter account. Excited, I immediately "followed" her and clicked on her profile to see what she had tweeted. My excitement quickly turned to shock and sadness when I saw that her first official tweet was a strong statement in favor of abortion rights for women. What a disappointment!
After going to bed, I at first had a hard time falling asleep. I was still upset about what I had seen on twitter that evening. It frustrated me that someone as educated and talented as this actress could have such an opinion and make such a strong statement to the public. I let me emotions get the better of me and began contemplating my response. I considered never watching any film or television show associated with her again. "That'll show her," I thought. I also spent many minutes drafting in my mind several tweets that I could send her in response to her statement. If only she knew the truth, there would be no way that she could still feel the same way!
At some point in my mental rant to this actress, I realized I was being a bit ridiculous. I didn't even know this woman! Why was I so affected by her opinion? Why did it bother me so much? Why was I so convinced that I had to be the one to change her mind? I then began to think about all those in my life that I have been unable to convince that unborn human life is worth protecting. I thought about people I had debated with in school, conversations I had on Facebook, and even discussions with people close to my heart. I hadn't been able to change their minds, so what made me think I could convince this random actress through a 140 character tweet? I began to feel a heavy sense of personal responsibility for where I had seemingly failed in my defense of Life.
For those of us who are active in the For Life movement, these are probably common thoughts. This was definitely not the first time I had despaired over that fact that I couldn't save someone or convince someone of the value of human life. But before I could completely depress myself, I remembered some encouraging words that someone had shared with me before: God does not call us to be successful, but simply to be faithful. In fact, success is being faithful to what God has called us to do. It is not my responsibility to save everyone or convince the entire world that abortion is wrong, but it is my responsibility to speak the truth, in love, whenever the opportunity presents itself. It is my responsibility to continue to speak for Life, to educate those around me, and to encourage and equip others to do the same. The rest is up to God.
It is a sad fact that no, we will not be able to convince everyone. We will encounter persecution and hardened hearts. Sometimes, we will simply be too late. But as sad as that is, and as much as my heart breaks for the lives that will be lost, God has promised that He will complete the work that He has called us to do. In Philippians 1:6, Paul encouraged the Philippians with these words: "I am sure of this, that He who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ." All we need to do is to continue to answer God's call and to speak the Truth with our words and actions.
Original Post: http://www.lutheransforlife.org/y4life-blog/what-is-our-responsibility/
