Servants of Excellence

“And grant that your bond servants may speak your word with all confidence.” Acts 4:29B

At many of our ministries we start the day with prayer. We may do so individually, or in a group as the early church in Acts 4. Few of us face the situation they confronted, but even today we would be wise to pray as they did.

Setting the context, the religious leadership arrested Peter and John for the “sin” of healing a lame beggar and following up the miracle by preaching the good news message. After a quick convocation amongst themselves, they ordered the two apostles to stop preaching—immediately.

Peter and John’s answer? “Whether it is right in the sight of God to give heed to you rather than to God, you be the judge, for we cannot but speak of what we have seen and heard.”

Once released, the two reported to their friends that heavy persecution could be on the way.

The early church’s response was to pray.

Let’s note first what they did not pray for. They did not pray for the Lord to halt their enemies, nor did they pray for safety. Or even for positive responses to their message.

Are any of these reasons to pray somehow “wrong?” Not at all. There may be times to pray for each of these outcomes.

Yet in this situation the early church, knowing they would face beatings, imprisonment or death, asked of God, “Lord, take note of their threats, and grant that your bond-servants may speak your word with all confidence, while you will extend your hand to heal, and signs and wonders take place through the name of your holy servant, Jesus.”

They did not ask for escape, but for boldness and confidence.

What a powerful example they set for us. When we pray before beginning our day, may the Lord give us the confidence to speak clearly, in love, to impart God’s truth to every situation. This is the boldness of the first followers, a boldness which literally changed the world.

When they finished praying together, “the place where they had gathered together was shaken, and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit, and began to speak the word of God with boldness.”

God answered their prayer. When we pray for confidence, we can expect God to answer us as well.

by Kirk Walden, Advancement Specialist 

Josh Boston, son of Heartbeat VP Cindi Boston writes about his compassionate and inspiring mother.

When I think about my mother, there are an endless amount of words, emotions and thoughts that come to mind.

I could easily talk about her courage or her kindness, how she has selflessly served our family throughout the years or sacrificially cared for her parents as they entered the realm of dementia and Alzheimer’s. I could recollect on how she graciously lead me through years of bad grades and adolescent rebellion or how she supported my brother in his soccer career - never missing a game despite being a CEO, caretaker and wife.

And whilst all of these things are accurate and worth the time it would take to reminisce them, nothing connects to the heart and ethos of my mom more than the picture that accompanies this tribute.

My mother has spent her entire life sacrificing for those less fortunate, those without a voice of their own - those incapable of fighting for their own rights.

She has given up dreams and accolades, a life of ease and one of plenty so that she could assuredly provide those in the target of humanity’s worst harm a chance of safety and a hope of life beyond the womb. She has spent countless days and long nights ministering to lonely, frightened teen mothers who have watched their worlds begin to crumble - seeking to provide each of them with hope, healing and arms to collapse within when all seemed lost.

And in the midst of this fight for the lives of those most vulnerable, she’s been placed on the front lines of a spiritual battle in which she’s incurred and faced insurmountable odds and a fierce opposition that would take the sanity of most, quite consistently.

Nevertheless, people most often describe my mother as having a glow about her, and a kindness within the depths of her. At times when circumstances have been most dark, I can recount walking into her bedroom seeing her on her mother’s couch reading her bible, listening to worship music and reminding me that no matter the circumstance, no matter the obstacle, we find all that we need at the feet of Jesus - her portion and supply, and her best friend.

No amount of words or writing will ever be able to fully explain or express her beauty, grace or kindness. No tribute will ever be able to fully contain the legacy she has left, and continues to leave. She is an enigma and a one-of-a-kind, a diamond among coal and a breath of fresh air, she is a best friend to many and a constant source of encouragement and love to all those with whom she comes in contact.

She is my mom, and I will never be able to fully express the love and admiration I have for her.

Love you mom,
Josh

by Kim Padan, Guest Writer

In 1994, I celebrated Mother’s Day for the first time as a mom myself. I was just two months into my pregnancy, but already wearing maternity clothes even though I really didn’t need them yet. I was simply so excited about my new identity as a MOM, and could not help but tell everyone about little Baby Padan.

In 1995, I celebrated Mother’s Day for the first time as a grieving mom who lost her child.

What a difference a single year can make.

The full story of that single year is filled with some joy, but many tears. My husband and I wanted our baby; my pregnancy was intentional. We simply had no idea how many challenges we would face.

At the time Bruce and I found out we were pregnant, I was working full-time as a music therapist. At 14 weeks gestation, we went for a routine ultrasound, watching the monitor with great joy. The next day, I brought my glossy 5x7 photo to work, showing off my baby’s cute profile, with him sucking his thumb. The “Ooohs” and “Aaahs” were all that I had dreamed about.
But later that day, my dream began to change into a nightmare. Looking back, that term may be too harsh, but it’s how I felt at the time. On the very day I was showing off my first baby picture, I received a phone call from the nurse.

“Mrs. Padan, the doctor has found some anomalies on the ultrasound. He wants you to see a specialist.”

I’m Still a Mom of a Baby Who Lived

The following Monday, I had a more detailed, intensive ultrasound at Indiana University Medical Center. Because it was an emergency referral, I got the doctor on-call. After scanning me, he said I was experiencing “amniotic band syndrome.” It is rare, and there is no known cause, but because it happened during my first trimester, it was a very serious case. So much so that the doctor said, “You need to consider your options.”

I never thought I would ever hear those words. While I was not as steeped in religious practice as I would become later in life, I knew and agreed with the biblical and Church teaching on the sanctity of human life. In other words, there were no “options.”

The rest of the day is a blur to me now. I remember stopping in Rockville, Ind. before going home to see my mother-in-law and Bruce’s youngest brother, Chris. I remember crying a lot while Chris tried to console me. I remember calling my mom on the phone later that day, but I can’t remember how I broke the news to her. I simply remember being shocked, saddened, confused, and worried. From that day forward, everything changed.

But one thing did not change: I was still a MOM.

After many doctor visits, tests, and prayers, Gabriel James Padan was stillborn on Oct. 6, 1994. Born just after midnight, he weighed only 2 pounds, 3.8 ounces. His frail body was unable to survive the process of birth. Despite his tiny size, he made a big impact on our family. Along with his mommy and daddy, Gabriel was welcomed by two grandmas, two uncles, one aunt, and even church friends all at the hospital.

We arranged for a hospital chaplain to baptize him, since we know not when the soul leaves the body... and because I really needed the beauty of baptism to commend my little one to God. Two days later (the day before our first wedding anniversary,) St. Paul Church in Danville was packed for the funeral mass of a boy who never took a breath.

When people say to me “I’m sorry that your baby did not live,” I quickly correct them. Yes he did. My son was alive for 33 weeks in my womb.

Hope on a Mother’s Day of Grieving

There are many details of this journey I won’t share in this article. The reason I’m sharing this story is to say that I know many women in our churches and communities struggle with Mother’s Day. Some studies indicate that as many as 25 percent of pregnancies end naturally in miscarriage. Many women carry to term, but experience a stillbirth as I did. Still others suffer the anguish of losing a child to SIDS.

There are many women who have experienced pregnancy, but their children are not around to make breakfast in bed, or pick dandelions from the front yard. To these women I say, “I get it.” This holiday can be tough.

But you are still a MOM. Whether God has granted you the blessing of additional children or not, you are a MOM. Human life begins at conception, not at birth. Every child ever conceived matters in the eyes of God. Every child conceived is gifted with a soul... and these innocent ones are in union with God eternally.

As mothers, we miss our kids. But as women, we can find peace in knowing that they are being taken care of by our Lord and the great family of saints in heaven. What joy there is in knowing that!

Years before I was married, a friend said something that has deeply impacted me to this day. She said she had nine children. I was confused; I only knew about the three kids I saw with her at Mass each week. “Oh Kim, there are just three here now, but I had six miscarriages. Those kids are just waiting for us in heaven.”

How beautiful is that? In the years since, I have spoken to many women who have lost babies, and I encourage them in this way... Count your children. All of them. Born alive, miscarried... whatever the outcome, count your children. If we are to proclaim the Gospel of Life, let us boldly tell the world about every baby we’ve ever had.

Now, I also realize there are women reading this who lost their babies by the choice of abortion. You are also mothers. You and your children are also precious in the eyes of God. As bad as abortion is, please hear me when I say, Jesus loves you and wants to heal you with His Divine Mercy. You are made in God’s image and there is a place for you in God’s family, in the Body of Christ.

As a young woman, I always wanted to be a wife and mother. I am both. Bruce is the wonderful man who made me his wife. Gabriel is the little boy who made me a Mommy. That is worth celebrating every Mother’s Day.

Kim is a self-professed charismatic-pentecostal-evangelical Catholic who uses far too many exclamation points! She loves travel, stamping greeting cards, reading, and the Chicago Cubs! Her pro-life upbringing was put to the test when she was encouraged to abort her son Gabriel. Kim rejected the idea of abortion, and after losing her son at birth, she felt compelled to get involved in the movement. Kim served on the board of the local pregnancy help ministry for seven years, then as Executive Director for eleven years. Since stepping down, she has begun writing and speaking wherever God permits. She has a periodic column, “Called to Witness,” in the Peoria Diocesan paper, The Catholic Post. Kim has been married to Bruce, a St. Louis Cardinals fan, since 1993. Together they fostered 41 children, ages 4-18, over eight years. They now enjoy the blessings of non-traditional grand-parenthood! Kim blogs at http://gabrielsmom.com

Servants of Excellence

“For his disciples had gone away into the city to buy food.” John 4:8

We all know the story of the woman at the well in Samaria; Jesus approached a woman, asking her for water. A conversation develops, Jesus reveals to her that he is the messiah and soon, she is telling all who will hear, “Come, see a man who told me all the things that I have done; this is not the Christ, is it?”

Later in the narrative we read (Jn. 4:39), “And from that city many of the Samaritans believed in him because of the word of the woman . . .”

But before this fascinating interaction with the woman at the well took place, something quite mundane is described. The disciples had to go buy food.

Interesting, isn’t it? Elsewhere in the gospels, Jesus solves the food issue with miracles. But not this time. The disciples were sent out . . . to the “grocery store” of the day.

When the disciples were gone (Jn. 4:8), Jesus was alone—and thirsty. Without a group around him, Jesus could connect directly and uniquely with just one person; the woman at the well. Could you imagine the many conversations which might have taken place had Jesus and twelve disciples asked this woman for water?

Seeing thirteen men, would this woman have been so willing to ask Jesus probing questions? Would she have been as honest and transparent?

I’m guessing here, but if the disciples had been on the scene, maybe this story would not be in our Bible today. It’s not that the disciples would have done anything “wrong;” it’s just that the heartfelt interaction we see in this story is not nearly as likely in a group setting.

Yet on this occasion the disciples were elsewhere. Certainly, the disciples were vital to advancing the message Jesus taught. And we will see in the Book of Acts that these same men (absent Judas) learned from Jesus and spread his message like wildfire. Just not at the well.

Our role in this faith is not always to be out front. Sometimes, we go buy the food so another can take the lead.

In the story of the woman at the well, we see that through a one-on-one interaction, many came to believe in the message Jesus brought. This is an amazing and memorable moment, and should be.

But let’s not forget the disciples. The moment would come when they would “turn the world upside down” with the same message. But before this could take place, they had to go buy food. They had to do the mundane. They had to get out of the way.

The disciples only got a sentence in the Bible for their trip to find food. But what they did was important as well. They paved the way for a powerful message that day; a message that would change the course of history not only for the Samaritan woman, but for those in her city and the millions upon millions who learn from this same story even today.

Sometimes, we do the mundane. That’s important, too.

by Jaimy Craemer-Adjei, LPN, Heartbeat Medical Specialist

Bear one another’s burdens, and so fulfill the law of Christ. Galatians 6:2

What does it mean to bear one another’s burdens?

In the Pregnancy Center it can be a daily unconscious ritual to bear another’s burden, and in the attitude of Christ, it is part of our calling. In that “routine” moment when a woman pours her heart out to you behind closed doors, you are bearing the burdens of Christ. You are following the commands of Christ as you offer a listening ear and kind words. You may be the only friendly face this woman sees in her life right now, even though you are a stranger.

But isn’t that part of who we are? Strangers in this world – with a higher calling?

And what exactly is the law of Christ that we are to fulfill? In Mark’s Gospel, Jesus tells us that the two greatest commandments are, “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength…”  and “Love your neighbor as yourself” (Mark 12:30-31). As we put Christ first in our lives and love Him with everything we have, we can then turn and love our neighbors – our clients – the women coming to us with one of the biggest burdens in their lives – an unexpected pregnancy. But here she is, in your consulting room, and you are the one taking on her burdens in that crucial moment of her life.

As nurses we take on so many things. Our families, our profession, our education, our church – and life can get overwhelming. Jesus says in Matthew 11:28, “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.”  The problems in not just our lives, but the problems in the life of the pregnant, devastated woman sitting across from us, can be overwhelming at times.

But it is not our responsibility to bear these burdens forever.

We are told to come to Jesus with our burdens, and He will give us rest. It’s that simple. Give it to Jesus. The devastated woman who feels she simply cannot handle one more crisis… the unborn baby whose life hangs in the balance… everything that weighs us down at the end of the day… give it to Jesus.

Jeremiah 31:25 says, “For I have given rest to the weary, and joy to the sorrowing.”  He has given us rest and joy. Thank you Jesus for rest and joy! As we turn over the heavy loads we carry day in and day out, we will be able to rest in Him and have joy in our lives. What a privilege our Father in Heaven has given us to allow us to turn our sorrows and burdens over to Him.

As we play this unique role in life, as we touch the lives of so many, we have to be reminded to give it all to Jesus – it's all in His hands anyway. As you see your clients in distressing situations, remember to pray, and turn her problems (on your shoulders) over to Christ, and He will give you the rest you so desperately need.

God bless each and every Nurse doing the work of Christ, bearing the burdens of others, and making a difference in the born and unborn souls of this world. Happy Nurse’s Week!!!

by Jay Hobbs, Director of Marketing & Communications

By now, it’s no mystery: If you don’t reach clients or donors online, you’ll have limited hopes of carrying out your life-saving mission.

What’s a little more mysterious, however, is exactly how to meet your clients and donors online. Is Facebook enough? How about Twitter? Instagram? Website banner ads?

Like any other technological shift, moving your reach online is an ongoing process, filled with unexpected twists and turns—and probably a lot more trial and error than we’d all like to admit. And so much of your online success depends on putting simple (and often cost-free!) tools to work in the most efficient way possible.

That’s why a group of my fellow Heartbeat International co-workers and I are looking forward to seeing you at our in-depth day, Putting Your Mission on the Map at this year’s Annual Conference April 18 in Chicago.

Running projects like Option Line, Extend Web Services, Pregnancy Help News and the Heartbeat International websites and social media outreach efforts, our team is constantly learning what it takes to be successful online—and we can’t wait to pass along our most recent findings at the Conference.

Together, we’ll hit five specific areas of online reach throughout the day. From getting the most of out Social Media—which you can learn more about here—to harnessing the power of the Web through Local Search, pay-per-click advertising and a SEM-optimized website presence, you’ll walk out with a clear-headed vision of reaching clients and donors in an online world.

Don’t miss out on this exclusive chance to roll up your sleeves and hammer out your online marketing strategy with our team. You can book your space here—but don’t hesitate, because spaces are filling up as we speak!

See you in Chicago!

by Kim Warburton, Executive Director, PRC of Metro Richmond

The Pregnancy Resource Center of Metro Richmond (PRC) serves from 13 to 15 different known ethnic groups. Since it is our goal to serve with excellence, it has been important to understand the cultural barriers and ways to overcome them so that we can reach more women who are at risk for abortion. We are blessed to have the International Mission Board just a few miles from the PRC and grateful that some of the missionaries have shared nuggets with us on some nuances that will help us.

As pregnancy help centers, we are On a Mission from God with rich opportunities to reach out in love to those who are seeking God and reaching out for Him as they struggle with life decisions in the face of an unexpected pregnancy.

As a child, I remember praying for missionaries throughout the world. I loved hearing their stories about the different people groups they served. What impressed me most was their love for the people and the joy in their hearts as they shared about how God was working in those nations.

Growing up most of my friends and neighbors had lived in the community for so many generations but I have always felt joy in getting to know people from other nations and hearing their stories. I am grateful and excited that God has brought the nations to Richmond, Va.

Over the years I have met some amazing people who were born and grew up in other nations. Their life’s experiences have often been so different from mine, yet I am blessed to have fellowship with my brothers and sisters in Christ. God is so good to enlarge our boundaries so that we can know our larger family throughout the world.

I remember a couple I met from the Netherlands who moved to Richmond, Va. on missionary assignment. Have you ever considered how many missionaries from other nations now live in the United States and see us as their foreign mission field? How many of those missionaries might live in the communities surrounding your pregnancy center?

Acts 17:26-28 reminds us, “From one man he made all the nations, that they should inhabit the whole earth; and he marked out their appointed times in history and the boundaries of their lands. God did this so that they would seek him and perhaps reach out for him and find him, though he is not far from any one of us. ‘For in him we live and move and have our being’. As some of your own poets have said, ‘We are his offspring.'”

I am hopeful that you are planning to attend the Heartbeat International Conference this year! I am looking forward to learning, serving and growing together!

Join me for my workshop “Cross Cultural Barriers to Reach the Most Abortion Vulnerable” as we explore some of the nuances that may help us connect with at risk women in our communities regardless of their ethnic background. With Jesus as our model we will discuss practical ways to reach out to women from diverse cultures and build beautiful relationships.

by Crystal Kupper, Citizen Magazine

When Valerie Huber tells people what she does for a living, she knows the risk of ridicule she could be facing. “Our critics like to pigeonhole this as a religious issue,” she tells Citizen, “but the truth is that this has value for every student regardless of faith or moral framework—or lack thereof.”

“This” is abstinence education, or, as Huber refers to it, sexual risk avoidance (SRA) for young people. The first term often conjures caricatures of middle-aged teachers lecturing on the evils of sex, but that’s an image that Ascend—formerly known as the National Abstinence Education Association, or NAEA—is working to reframe.

As president and CEO of Ascend, a professional association that supports, educates, represents and equips those with a hand in the SRA conversation, Huber has a message for America: This ain’t your grandma’s sex ed.

“Sexual risk avoidance is actually a term taken from public health,” she says. “I bristle at the terminology ‘abstinence only,’ because our programs are so holistic. They contextualize a whole battery of different topics that surround a young person’s decision whether to have sex or not. Rather than someone telling a young person, ‘Do this, don’t do that,’ it’s casting a vision for a young person’s future.”

Huber, meanwhile, envisions a future where Ascend is seen for its focus on SRA as a public health issue, using what she says is an “approach that sits so clearly within a public health model for optimal health.”

Getting Educated

A 56-year-old mother of four, and a Christian since age 17, Huber’s impetus to get involved in public health policy began when her oldest son was in middle school. His health class, in her view, was sending mixed messages about sex and healthy relationships, and ultimately normalizing the age-old myth that “everyone is doing it.”

“I didn’t want to be a parent that complained about a problem,” she says. “I wanted to be a parent that helped with the solution.”

To that end, Huber encouraged the school to introduce a more age-appropriate curriculum in her son’s classroom. The effort was eventually successful. One thought kept returning, however: What about kids in other schools in their Ohio county? What sorts of messages were they hearing in their health and sexual education classes?

So in 1999, Huber founded and directed REACH, a character-building and risk-avoidance educational organization. The program, which Huber ran until 2004, served an average of 25,000 middle- and high school students in southwestern Ohio each year, emphasizing the fact that waiting to be sexually active has major benefits.

From there, Huber made the move to managing the Ohio Department of Health’s Abstinence Education Program. The job, created through a Title V federal-state partnership aimed at improving the health and well-being of women and children, offered the chance to oversee and grant awards to community abstinence programs serving more than 100,000 students statewide every year.

“I kind of started a career that I didn’t necessarily anticipate,” Huber admits. “When I had that first meeting with my son’s health teacher and principal,

I had no interest in having a career in sex education. It never entered my mind; I was only concerned about the well-being of my own child. But I count it as a real honor to today be in that particular place—to have an impact that can really change the trajectory of a young person’s life.”

The two positions culminated in a spot for Huber on the National Abstinence Leadership Council. In late 2006, after meeting to discuss the trends and needs in the field, the Council voted to form the NAEA. Huber assumed the position of NAEA president when the 501(c)4 organization officially formed in 2007. Its board members represented more than a century’s worth of experience in the fields of public health policy and abstinence education.

“Really,” she says, “the organization was a topic expert from the very start.”

Yet NAEA board members noticed an odd quirk about that topic almost immediately: Even though emerging research was proving that teens benefit physically, mentally and socially when they avoid premarital sex, the narrative surrounding the abstinence approach was attacked from the beginning.

For example, the Sexuality Information and Education Council of the United States—founded in 1964 by Planned Parenthood’s medical director at the time, and which maintains strong ties to the abortion-selling group—called abstinence education a “failed approach” in an official February 2016 press release and blamed the movement’s backers for “wasting” nearly $2 billion in related federal support over the last three decades. Advocates for Youth, a reproductive and sexual health organization that often joins forces with Planned Parenthood, says on its web site that abstinence-only programs “ignore youth’s basic human right and the fundamental public health principle of accurate, balanced sex education.”

Huber and the NAEA board knew that they had to, as Huber says, “correct misinformation, and give an accurate portrayal of what SRA is actually about, in terms of making sure the policies are going to help young people thrive.”

What are those policies, exactly?

Just the Facts, Ma’am

First off, Huber wants the nation to know which policies SRA programs are not advocating. For starters, SRA is not a message exclusive to the church; instead, it finds its footing on “a public health standpoint,” as Huber says.

“When we’re talking about any potential risk behavior, the messaging and the skills around that should be designed to help that individual avoid all the risks,” she explains. “We’ve done that for smoking, but we don’t do it for teen sex. When we talk about the merits of sexual risk avoidance, that erases all those caricatures that our critics have tried to attach to our approach.”

That caricature certainly was a powerful image for Irva Antoine, a 27-year-old health educator in North Plainfield, N.J. As a teenager, she viewed any lesson that discouraged sexual activity before marriage as nothing more than a “Christian message.”

When Antoine graduated high school, however, she had a firsthand perspective on promiscuity’s universal consequences.

“I entered college with six other friends. We were all virgins,” Antoine tells Citizen. “By our sophomore year, only two of us (still) were. I saw the drama that revolved around casual sexual relationships. I also saw the pain and hurt it caused my closest friend.”

It’s a story Huber has heard hundreds of times through her work.

“In terms of health outcomes, what would you rather your child do? Avoid risk?” she asks. “Or do you want to say, ‘Go ahead, engage in everything, and let’s hope you just reduce that risk a bit’ ? ”

Something that often surprises well-intentioned people: SRA talks very specifically about avoiding those risks, including discussions on sexually transmitted infections and contraception. The difference between SRA and “comprehensive” sex education lessons, Huber says, is context.

“We don’t distribute or demonstrate [contraceptive methods]; we educate about it,” she says. “You may be told that ‘sex plus condoms equals safety,’ but it’s not true. We don’t want to over- or underestimate any of the facts.”

At the dawn of 2016, the NAEA changed its name to Ascend, but a key characteristic remained: its reliance on sound, scientific research to back up SRA’s efficacy. So Huber and the Ascend team regularly gather and analyze raw data on teen pregnancy, sexual activity and the like and post the conclusions on the organization’s web site, as well as compile related research-based studies and articles.

The research matches up with Ascend’s stated goal of “providing research expertise to evaluate raw data, interpret research trends, and correlate findings to healthy youth behavior.” Published studies like “Teen Relationship History Linked to Future Romantic Patterns” and “Age of First Sexual Experience Affects Future Relationships” help health and sexual education teachers—as well as parents and youth leaders—quickly navigate the science to find real-life statistics related to SRA.

Peggy Cowan, the founder and president of the New Jersey Physicians Advisory Group (NJPAG), a nonprofit research organization addressing teen pregnancy, STIs and single-parent adolescent families in the Garden State, says the research truly distinguishes Ascend from other teen-focused organizations.

“They’re a phone call away. Ascend really is the premiere organization with information that’s current and targeted on how we can help kids maneuver through the minefield of early sexual decisions,” she tells Citizen. “Sexual risk avoidance is not marginalized anymore—because it is now seen for the true health message it is, just like avoiding drugs, alcohol and violence.”

Besides research, Ascend also certifies SRA specialists—training that Antoine, Cowan and hundreds of others have completed. NJPAG utilizes that training each fall in seven-day conferences held across New Jersey.

J.T., a health teacher in Hudson County, N.J., who completed an Ascend-based educator workshop, told Cowan the message is vital. “Attending this conference taught me more information about keeping students safe than any course I took in four years of college,” he said. “The information debunked many things I was taught that sound true, but are not.”

Working in Washington

Beyond educating parents, teachers and youth leaders, Huber frequently works in the political arena, both nationally and locally. As Cowan says, Ascend “not only deals with issues in Washington, but also has tentacles into every state and supports those people who are looking to build credible support within their state.”
That’s a job the current administration has made complicated. This February, President Obama proposed cutting funding for abstinence programs in the 2017 federal budget by $10 million, while increasing funding for a program that emphasizes birth control and safe sex by $4 million. His reason? According to the official budget, “the [SRA] program is not focused on funding evidence-based models.”

Huber disputes that claim, pointing out that the number of teens who have never had sex has actually increased 15 percent in the last two decades, while funding for abstinence education has been at its highest. Still, Huber is unafraid of the future for the simple reason that SRA education has made great gains in the last decade, even with Obama in office.

“Despite the fact that almost eight years of Obama’s administration, with unprecedented hostility against sexual risk-avoidance education, and despite the fact that every budget he sends to Congress calls for the elimination of our funding, we have seen this field continue to improve,” she says. “That’s because when people understand what our programs actually do, they’re supportive. The more we are able to have that conversation, the more young people are served.”

At any rate, Huber plans to meet with the next president to discuss the future of SRA in America, as she has with Obama’s staff. She doesn’t think we’ll be “in any worse state than we are right now,” no matter who wins this November.

In the meantime, celebrities who have publicly announced their commitment to save sex for their future spouses have been making headlines nationwide. Men like NFL quarterback Russell Wilson and Heisman Trophy winner Tim Tebow have kept the SRA conversation in the spotlight. Huber appreciates the support, but continues to depend on the science more than the spotlight.

“Take it back to public health message: We know more today than yesterday on the dangers of smoking,” she says. “Just because someone begins smoking doesn’t mean that suddenly the value of not smoking diminishes. It just means that this is a risk behavior that has an allure.”

Though many church-goers believe in SRA, they sometimes doubt its effectiveness outside Christian homes. Antoine has something to say about that: “I wish that everyone could understand that the Ascend message is not a ‘Christian message.’ It’s a life-saving message. You can live to the fullest if you focus on your goals and enjoy that great sexual life within that loving, committed relationship, preferably in a marriage.”

That sort of talk gives Huber reason to hope for the future of America’s young people and SRA’s “pretty good trend line” that she’s “hopeful will continue.”

“We have to remind ourselves that if we care about the future of our nation and youth, we always have to side on what is in their best interest. SRA education is the only sex ed approach that does that, and does it well,” she says.

“The sexual risk avoidance approach and terminology just opens up the conversation so much differently than in the past.”

For More Information:

To learn more about Ascend, visit weascend.org.

The New Jersey Physicians Advisory Groups website can be found at njphysicians.org.

From the August 2016 issue of Focus on the FamilyCitizen magazine. © 2016 Crystal Kupper. Used by permission.

by Peggy Benicke, Executive Director at Robbinsdale Women's Center

Have you ever thought, “Okay, Lord, here’s what I’m planning to do. Please bless and provide.”

Have you felt the Lord’s clear calling to do something that you were sure was impossible to achieve because you thought you didn’t have the money, staffing or resources? Maybe you were willing to step off the “cliff” of faith but were held back or discouraged by others with influence. I’ve encountered these circumstances many times in my 22 years of pro-life ministry and look forward to helping you not only navigate these challenges but also helping you to achieve miraculous, God-glorifying effectiveness and growth in your pregnancy help organization's future.

Proverbs 3:5-6 Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him, and He shall direct your paths.

I’m very excited about encouraging you at the upcoming Heartbeat International Annual Conference and look forward to sharing amazing testimonies of not only effective ministry but significant growth through faith and obedience during my workshop. Topics we will explore include:

• Am I certain of my specific role in this ministry?
• Discerning God’s next steps, (“Is that really your will Lord?”)
• Being quiet and listening for God to reveal His plan
• Surrendering to His will
• Finding the courage to step off the “cliff” of faith when all the odds are stacked against us
• Convincing those with influence who may discourage us of the importance of faith

Peggy Benicke joined Robbinsdale Women's Center in Minneapolis in 1995 and has served as Executive Director since 2000. Peggy's background in business and marketing and her personal experience with unexpected pregnancies have enhanced her leadership at RWC. She gives God all the glory for the many lives saved from abortion. Peggy and her husband Ralph have 2 daughters, and 3 grandchildren. In addition, Peggy was recently reunited with her daughter whom she placed for adoption at age 17 and now has an additional five grandchildren and six great grandchildren. Meet her at the 2017 Heartbeat International Annual Conference.

by Ducia Hamm, Associate Director of Affiliate Services

Names have always fascinated me, maybe because my first name is Ducia (pronounced Doos-ya). It was given to me by my dad who emigrated from the Ukraine. Now here in the good ‘ol USA, Ducia is considered an unusual name but go to the Ukraine and it’s a common girls name.

Names give us identity – Mom, Dad, Aunt, Uncle . . . you get the idea. Before I had children, hearing “MOM!” wouldn’t make my head turn. Now, when I hear “MOM!” – you bet my head turns – after all they’re calling my name.

Names have meaning. Parents often choose a name for their children based on what they mean. That’s what my friend Sue and her husband did. They waited over three weeks to name their oldest son because they wanted his name to fit his personality. Sue & Pat chose Isaac, which means “laughter” and it fit baby Isaac perfectly.

Ducia means “sweet soul." I’ll let those who know me best judge whether it fits me or not.

When we think of the story of Daniel and his friends’ captivity in Babylon – the fiery furnace or the lion’s den tend to be what we think of. But in reading the first chapter of Daniel, something interesting about the power of a name emerges.

Daniel 1:3-7
The king ordered Ashpenaz, the chief of his court officials, to bring some of the Israelites from the royal family and from the nobility - young men without any physical defect, good-looking, suitable for instruction in all wisdom, knowledgeable, perceptive, and capable of serving in the king’s palace - and to teach them the Chaldean language and literature. The king assigned them daily provisions from the royal food and from the wine that he drank. They were to be trained for three years, and at the end of that time they were to serve in the king’s court. Among them, from the descendants of Judah, were Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah. The chief official gave them other names: he gave the name Belteshazzar to Daniel, Shadrach to Hananiah, Meshach to Mishael, and Abednego to Azariah.

Why the name changes? What made the boys’ Hebrew names unacceptable to the Babylonians? The meaning of their Hebrew names centered on the one true God: Daniel – God is my judge; Hananiah – Yah has been gracious; Mishael – who is what God is; Azariah – Yah has helped.

Contrast that to their “new” names whose meanings centered on several false Babylonian gods: Beltashazzar – Bel will protect; Shadrach – inspired of Aku; Meshach – belonging to Aku; Abednego – servant of Nego.

Assigning new names was a common court practice in the ancient world. Its blatant intention was to change the entire identity of the bearer until the life matched the title.

Actually, God is the one who originated the concept of a name change back in Genesis. God changed Abram's name to Abraham, meaning Father of many. Jesus followed in His Dad’s footsteps and gave the apostle Simon the name Peter which means Rock.

Matthew 16:18
And I also say to you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build My church, and the forces of Hades will not overpower it.

When we became believers – we either were given the name or took on the name "Christian" – one who follows Jesus Christ. The intent of the name changes for the Hebrew captives was to change their identity until their life matched their name.

It begs the question then: How intent are we as Christians to change our identities until our life matches the meaning of our name Christ follower?

Eph. 5:1-2
Therefore be imitators of God, as beloved children. And walk in love, as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us, a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God.

So . . . What’s in a name???

Acts 4:12
Jesus Christ . . . Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to mankind by which we must be saved.