One of God’s greatest gifts is not found in comfort, luxuries, or anything that can be bought. This gift is the product of love between a husband and wife: a child. Every child is a gift, no matter the challenges that couples must face together. If God blessed you with such treasures, He will surely provide you with all the tools necessary to take care of them.
I felt called by the Holy Spirit to write a piece on this topic because in a world that is very much “my body, my choice” and “you do you,” we need to remember what Christ teaches us. We were made in the image and likeness of God. And, found right in the Gospels, we hear the words of Jesus:
“And people were bringing children to him that he might touch them, but the disciples rebuked them. When Jesus saw this he became indignant and said to them, ‘Let the children come to me; do not prevent them, for the kingdom of God belongs to such as these. Amen, I say to you, whoever does not accept the kingdom of God like a child will not enter it.’ Then he embraced them and blessed them, placing his hands on them.” Mark 10: 13-16
Choosing to end a life because we find the baby more of a burden than a blessing is purely evil and an attack of the Devil. This is not the pro-life position every human being is called to embrace. As Mother Teresa said:
“I feel the greatest destroyer of peace today is ‘Abortion’, because it is a war against the child… A direct killing of the innocent child, ‘Murder’ by the mother herself… And if we can accept that a mother can kill even her own child, how can we tell other people not to kill one another? How do we persuade a woman not to have an abortion? As always, we must persuade her with love… And we remind ourselves that love means to be willing to give until it hurts…”
Mother Teresa kindly offers the solution to such hate as the call to answer with love. Even if a mother is not able to care for her child, adoption is always an option. So many women around the world want to have children and become a mother, but because of their health or other reasons cannot. Any woman making another woman’s dream come true by letting her become a mother, too, I would say, is noble and beautiful indeed.
I realize that an unexpected pregnancy can be a very scary situation, especially for a young girl, but choosing life is the only right choice. In doing so, you realize that God is always with you every step of the way. He gave you a gift and your duty is to appreciate that gift and celebrate life.
Any girl finding herself in this situation should look to the Virgin Mary who was pregnant with Jesus very young but surrendered to God wholeheartedly. Her “Yes” to God saved the whole world from their sins. Your “yes” can save a life, too.
From personal experience, I am so thankful my parents chose life with me as their tenth child and two more younger, beautiful siblings in Heaven. Even though many worldly minds attack the idea of big families, I honestly would not have it any other way. I am thankful for all my siblings and their different personalities, talents, and love for God. My parents were right to choose life. Even though having twelve children was no easy task, my parents trusted in the Lord that He would provide, and He did, marvelously.
As I held my nieces and nephews in my arms over the years, I felt strongly the vocation of motherhood burn within my heart. There is something special about having one of your toddler nephews ask you to color his favorite dump trucks with him and watching him clasps his hands in prayer and say, “Amen” after the blessing before meal prayer. Or even watching my own Goddaughter smile and laugh and teaching her how to take her first steps! These are precious memories. These are God’s gifts to me and if God did ever bless me with my own children, not a day would go by when my heart would not sing the Lord’s praises. For the Lord Jesus is always merciful and hears the longings of our hearts.
We should all take to heart one last piece of wisdom from Saint Mother Teresa. Every time you interact with a child, think of these words. “How can there be too many children? That is like saying there are too many flowers.”
