Life Lines for Feburary 14, 2010
Written by Jeanne Strubbe
Life Ministry Coordinator
Salem Lutheran Church, Jacksonville

Today is Valentine’s Day … a day devoted to love. But I’d like to introduce you to another type of love story … a story of the love of one mother for her unborn child.

Letters to Darcy originated as a blog, written by a young woman from Texas named Tracy Ramos. The blog was comprised of a series of diary entries that Tracy wrote to her unborn daughter, Darcy, over the course of approximately nine months. Early in her pregnancy, Tracy learned Darcy had a rare, terminal genetic condition known as Trisomy 18.

Of people diagnosed with this disorder, about 95% die in utero, and for surviving infants who live to term, less than 10% survive their first year of life. Tracy’s response to her unborn daughter Darcy is an incredible testiment to the sanctity of human life.

You will walk with Tracy and Darcy through each entry and see how lovingly mom Tracy cares for her unborn child. Through her simple, honest, and intensely personal entries, Tracy beautifully and convincingly answers the question: When does life begin?

If you’d like to learn more about Letters to Darcy, it is available both new and used from Amazon.com or you can borrow the copy of the book from me. Letters to Darcy is not an acknowledgement of a short life … it is a celebration of an eternal life and well worth reading.

You gave me life and showed me kindness, and in your providence watched over my spirit (Job 10:12).

Life Lines for Feburary 21, 2010
Written by Jeanne Strubbe
Life Ministry Coordinator
Salem Lutheran Church, Jacksonville

Black History is observed in the month of February and my daughter, Stephanie, and I had the chance to visit the Civil Rights Museum while on a recent trip to Memphis,TN. The museum is located next to the Lorraine Hotel, the sight of the assassination of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. in 1968. We both found it to be informative, humbling and enlightening in regard to the plight of black Americans through the history of our nation. But I noticed one particular segment of black America that was not addressed at all and it seemed to be a glaring omission in a museum dedicated to civil rights, oppression and the mistreatment of humans.

The part that was lacking any recognition was the black American holocaust that has been taking place on a daily basis for the past thirty‐seven years … abortion. The latest stats that I have researched on abortion on black American women revealed that currently one out of every two black American babies is aborted. That’s right … 50% of all abortions in our nation kill black American babies. Blacks make up 12% of our population, but have 36% of all abortions.

These numbers are unconscionable! Where is the outcry from prominent black American leaders such as Jesse Jackson, Jr., Roland Burris, Al Sharpton, Maxine Waters, Charles Rangel, John Conyers, John Lewis, Sheila Jackson Lee, Gwen Moore and Barack Obama? Most of the preceding people mentioned support abortion and have a 100% voting record to prove it.

Abortion is both a violation of civil rights and human rights and the moral damage it has and still continues to heap on our nation is a tragedy.

Proverbs 31:89. Open your mouth for the mute, for the rights of all who are destitute. Open your mouth, judge righteously, defend the rights of the poor and needy.

Life Lines for March 7, 2010
Written by Jeanne Strubbe
Life Ministry Coordinator
Salem Lutheran Church, Jacksonville

How bad does it have to get for our nations leaders to stand up and say, “Enough is enough?”

A news story recently reported by LifeNews.com stated that officials were investigating an abortion center in that city after a woman died from a botched abortion last November. But, they found more than they could have imagined when they discovered the frozen remains of dozens of late-term babies who were killed in abortions from as long as thirty years ago.

The abortion center known as the Women’s Medical Society and run by Kermit Gosnell has seen its share of dubious activity over the years, but nothing as sickening as finding the bodies of the babies.

Gosnell’s abortion center has been shut down as the investigation into the death of one of his patients continues. It seems Gosnell gave the deceased woman massive amounts of painkillers as a result of the botched abortion. Furthermore, Gosnell is accused of illegally prescribing the painkillers and allowing an unlicensed staff member to participate in the abortion in question.

So far, as a result of the abortion death, Gosnell's medical license has been temporarily suspended, but he has not yet been charged with anything illegal.

Troy Newman, the president of the pro-life group Operation Rescue, stated that the suspension order described "deplorable and unsanitary" conditions at the clinic, indicating that "there was blood on the floor, and parts of aborted fetuses were displayed in jars." The suspension order declared Gosnell to be "an immediate and clear danger to the public health and safety." Newman further stated the notion that legalizing abortion made it safer for women is fiction.

"This is not the exception to the rule in our nation's abortion clinics. It is standard operating procedure," he said. "This clinic is no better than a back alley abortion mill, and in fact may be worse."

"Collecting the remains of dead babies over a 30 year time frame is reminiscent of the actions of deranged serial killers who keep body parts as trophies. It doesn't get much sicker than that," he added.

Clearly, people involved in the business of killing humans on a daily basis have no regard for the rights of humans and do not recognize the human body as the temple of the Holy Spirit.

1 Corinthians 6:19-20. Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, whom you have from God? You are not your own, for you were bought with a price. So glorify God in your body.

Life Lines for March 28, 2010
Written by Jeanne Strubbe
Life Ministry Coordinator
Salem Lutheran Church, Jacksonville

March 28 - Palm Sunday/Sunday of the Passion

Jesus’ journey during Holy Week from the triumphal entry to the torturous crucifixion really began in a fallopian tube. Jesus "made himself nothing, taking the form of a servant" (Philippians 2:7). That happened at Jesus’ conception in the fallopian tube of Mary. Celebrated on Thursday, March 25, the Annunciation of our Lord marks this event. The king who came into Jerusalem on a donkey and the mocked king who left Jerusalem carrying a cross was formed in a womb as we were. The next time you hear someone devalue life in the womb, remind them of Jesus’ journey.

Life Lines for June 6, 2010
Written by Jeanne Strubbe
Life Ministry Coordinator
Salem Lutheran Church, Jacksonville

A Rasmussen poll released on May 24, 2010 showed a new low for pro-abortion President Obama since he took office. Furthermore, the level of support for repealing the new health care law that includes taxpayer funding for abortion reached an all time high. The poll indicated that 63 percent of Americans want to repeal the healthcare law compared with 32 percent of Americans who oppose repealing the law.

Pollster Scott Rasmussen stated, "While opposition to the bill has remained as consistent since its passage as it was beforehand, this marks the first time that support for repeal has climbed into the 60s. It will be interesting to see whether this marks a brief bounce or indicates a trend of growing opposition.”

Running parallel to the poll on the healthcare law, a Gallup poll taken on May 15, 2010 revealed that 51 percent of Americans now consider themselves to be pro-life rather than pro-choice on the issue of abortion. Gallup also reported that this is the first time a majority of those polled gave that answer in the 15 years that Gallup has asked the question.

These polls are very encouraging for those of us involved in the pro-life movement, despite having the most pro-abortion president in our nation’s history serving in the White House.

Yes, we are encouraged by the current trend taking place among our citizens and their views on life, but we cannot stop or let up on educating people on the horrors of abortion. Therefore, the most vitally important thing that YOU can do is to become personally involved. Unless YOU become involved, our gains will become losses. Educate yourself and then others and then join a pro-life group.

Vote pro-life because we will continue to spin our wheels unless those who support and promote abortion are replaced with leaders who respect life.

Finally, pray, pray, pray for the unborn. Plead with God to intervene and put and end to this senseless killing of the unborn.

If my people, who are called by my name, humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and heal their land. II Chronicles 7:14.

Life Lines for July 11, 2010
Written by Jeanne Strubbe
Life Ministry Coordinator
Salem Lutheran Church, Jacksonville

The following article was written by Wesley Smith and appeared in the June 29, 2010 edition of “Secondhand Smoke”

A new test is in the works that will allow Down fetuses to be detected without the risks of current screening. From the story:

A quick inexpensive blood test for Down’s syndrome that could save the lives of hundreds of unborn babies each year is being developed by scientists. The ‘holy grail’ of diagnosis, it would pick up signs of the disease from a few drops of the mother’s blood.

The test could save lives by removing the risk of miscarriage associated with current tests…Dr Frints, of Maastricht University Medical Centre in the Netherlands, has already created a kit that can work out if the baby is a boy or a girl. She is adapting the kit to test for Down’s syndrome and other genetic conditions could follow. Around 25,000 British women a year have invasive tests for Down’s syndrome, so the test has the potential to save 250 lives annually.

The statement in the story really meant “save the lives of normal babies.” These tests are intended as a search and destroy mission, to find and promote eradication of Down fetuses. The babies miscarried now as a result of invasive testing might be called collateral damage in the larger eugenic drive.

I am certainly in favor of preventing those miscarriages. And, of course, some families will use the information provided to prepare themselves and family for the arrival of a child with a disability, as did the Palins (for which some will never forgive them).

But the latter benefit isn’t the primary point of the test and certainly not why the medical establishment promotes universal pre-natal testing so enthusiastically. Frankly, they are not satisfied with a 90% termination rate.

But isn’t it ironic–that we will save some “good” babies, in order to find a better way to identify others to terminate. If babies of color were being similarly targeted it would be called racism.

Children are indeed a heritage from the Lord, the fruit of the womb a reward.” Psalm 127:3

Life Lines for August 1, 2010
Written by Jeanne Strubbe
Life Ministry Coordinator
Salem Lutheran Church, Jacksonville

President Obama continues his assault on the value of human life with his recent recess appointment of Donald Berwick as the head of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services. Berwick has publicly advocated rationing care for the vulnerable … meaning the elderly and the sickest of our nationʼs citizens.
The recess appointment sidestepped strong opposition from pro-life leaders who would have certainly asked probing questions on Berwickʼs stand for government-imposed rationing of medical care.

Berwick was quoted in June of 2009 in the journal of Biotechnology Healthcare, “The decision is not whether or not we will ration care – the decision is whether we will ration with our eyes open.”

These are chilling words to me and should be to every American citizen. As early as 1994 Berwick wrote in the Journal of the American Medical Association, "Most metropolitan areas in the United States should reduce the number of centers engaging in cardiac surgery, high-risk obstetrics, neonatal intensive care, organ transplantation, tertiary cancer care, high-level trauma care, and high-technology imaging"

What drives this man to promote rationing healthcare? The answer lies in reducing costs. Cutting per capita healthcare costs will have immediate results if expensive medical treatment is reduced for those who need it most. For instance, cardiac surgery, high-risk obstetrics, and trauma care are just a few examples representing expensive advanced technology in medicine.

If these patients are simply allowed to die, healthcare costs per capita will go down. In other words, Obama is setting the stage for folks of his choosing to play God with American lives. Berwick has joined Obamaʼs stable of czars, making Berwick the death czar.

With the truth before you, what will you do about it? Will you make a stand FOR LIFE? Or sit by silently while the culture of death creeps even further into our lives?

Proverbs 24:11-12 "Rescue those who are unjustly sentenced to death; don't stand back and let them die. Don't try to disclaim responsibility by saying you didn't know about it."

Life Lines for August 22, 2010
Written by Jeanne Strubbe
Life Ministry Coordinator
Salem Lutheran Church, Jacksonville

The following five paragraphs were taken directly from the website of the Hope Clinic in Granite City, IL.

Hope Clinic for Women is a safe haven for pregnant women looking for options. Hope opens their doors to women – and men – who are in need of reproductive care.

Hope does not make decisions for you. Hope informs you of the options available and allows you to decide what is best for you.

Hope does not judge. Hope provides unconditional understanding of your personal needs. Whether you are looking into birth control or abortion, Hope provides the support you need to choose.

Hope does not burden or pressure. Hope provides a safe, confidential, compassionate environment with board certified physicians and staff who are ready to help.

Hope is a pillar of strength. Hope has welcomed women in search of choices for more then 35 years.

But what about the women who have been hurt and have even died under the “safe haven” care of the Hope Clinic?

"The doctors were getting lazy when I was there. They are inducing a lot more women to speed up the process. I've seen some stuff and frankly am tired of the clinic... I hate all the bad things they are doing, putting lives in danger!" ~ former Hope Clinic employee.

Another employee has stated, "It is an assembly line inside there." The last nurse they hired refused to run the O.R. rooms due to liability issues with these careless abortionists. Currently the "deadly Dixon duo" sisters are running them, with Clara being the certified nurse's aide. In December, Hope Clinic contracted a former nurse to work on a per diem basis, which pays more money than a hired employee to sign out records, etc. She has not returned since. (Source: Illinois Family Institute, Feb. 2009)

There have been many documented cases of women being rushed across the street to the hospital from the Hope Clinic because of complications from one of their abortions.

Also, Hope Clinic has been guilty of covering up cases of rape and incest while proceeding with abortions

There are many walking wounded in our society who are trying to deal with the aftermath of their abortion. Back in 1973, what was once thought to be the cure-all for society's ills and to empower women has turned out to be a devastating cancer on society. Abortion is the most un-natural act on a woman's life and her body and we know what it does to the innocent body within. It has had a ripple effect on all of those involved. And society is now reaping what has been allowed to happen over the past 37 years when this horrible holocaust was unleashed. Abortion leaves two victims: one dead and one wounded.

Nahum 3:1. “Woe to the city of blood, full of lies, full of plunder, never without victims!”

Life Lines for August 29, 2010
Written by Jeanne Strubbe
Life Ministry Coordinator
Salem Lutheran Church, Jacksonville

The following article is courtesy of Illinois Federation Right to Life.

University of Minnesota researchers have used non-embryonic stem cells to treat successfully children with a lethal skin disease.

Another team of researchers, meanwhile, reported Aug. 16 they had used a different form of non-embryonic stem cells to provide therapies for laboratory rats with Parkinson's Disease.

Using adult stem cells from donor bone marrow or donor umbilical cord blood, the Minnesota scientists treated children with recessive dystrophic epidermolysis bullosa (RDEB), a severe form of epidermolysis bullosa (EB). EB, which also affects the lining of the mouth and esophagus, causes skin to blister, which can lead to infections and a virulent form of skin cancer. The disease has been regarded as incurable. Most children with EB do not survive their 20s.

The research team, led by John Wagner and Jakub Tolar, has transplanted adult stem cells into 10 children since 2007. The recipients have responded to a variety of degrees, Wagner said.

"This discovery is more unique and more remarkable than it may first sound," Tolar said. "... What we have found is that stem cells contained in bone marrow can travel to sites of injured skin, leading to increased production of collagen which is deficient in patients with RDEB. Bone marrow transplantation is one of the riskiest procedures in medicine, yet it is also one of the most successful. Patients who otherwise would have died from their disease can often now be cured. It's a serious treatment for a serious disease."

David Prentice, senior fellow for life sciences at Family Research Council, posted an Aug. 12 report about the Minnesota research on the organization's weblog. The study was published in the New England Journal of Medicine.

Meanwhile, researchers at the Buck Institute for Age Research in Novato, Calif., used human induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) to treat Parkinson's in rats, they reported. The iPSCs were derived from skin and blood cells and converted into neurons, then transplanted into rats with mid-brain injuries similar to those in human beings with Parkinson's. The rats demonstrated improvements in their motor skills, they said.

"Human iPSCs may provide an end-run around immuno-rejection issues surrounding the use of human embryonic stem cells (ESCs) to treat disease," said researcher Xianmin Zeng. "They may also solve bioethical issues surrounding [embryonic stem cells]."

The extraction of embryonic stem cells requires the destruction of the tiny human embryos from which they are taken. Extracting iPSCs and other non-embryonic stem cells does not harm the donor.

Psalm 100:3 - Know that the Lord is God. It is He who made us, and we are his, we are his people, the sheep of his pasture.

Life Lines for September 5, 2010
Written by Jeanne Strubbe
Life Ministry Coordinator
Salem Lutheran Church, Jacksonville

The following article is courtesy of Illinois Federation Right to Life.

On Wednesday, August 25, Thomas More Society attorneys filed a motion to immediately transfer the legal case pending against the Illinois Parental Notice of Abortion Act from the Illinois Appellate Court to the Illinois Supreme Court. Arguing that pregnant minors at risk for abortion suffer harm every day that the Act is not enforced, the Society invoked the Supreme Court rule allowing transfer of an appeal when the "public interest requires prompt adjudication." The pending appeal, brought by the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), is currently in the Illinois Appellate Court, First District, where a decision may not come for a year or more.

Just Tuesday afternoon, Aug. 24, Attorney General Lisa Madigan, who is constitutionally obligated to defend the Parental Notice Act, joined the ACLU in opposing speedy resolution of the case by the Supreme Court. Earlier, after the trial judge threw out the ACLU's case, the Attorney General agreed to an indefinite stay of the Parental Notice Act during the ACLU's current appeal.

Thomas More Society wants to thank John-Paul Deddens, President of Students for Life of Illinois, who built the website www.letparentsknow.com, in order to support the Parental Notice Act. A coalition of pro-life and pro-family groups across Illinois have joined the website and the effort, and in response, thousands of Illinoisans called and petitioned the Attorney General over the past week to urge her to support the immediate resolution of the case by the Supreme Court.

The fate of the motion now rests in the hands of the Illinois Supreme Court, where "the Supreme Court or a justice thereof may order that the appeal be taken directly to it."

Proverbs 31:8-9
Open your mouth for the mute, for the rights of all who are destitute. Open your mouth, judge righteously, defend the rights of the poor and needy.

Life Lines for September 19, 2010
Written by Jeanne Strubbe
Life Ministry Coordinator
Salem Lutheran Church, Jacksonville

Dr. Seuss, author of numerous children’s books, wrote a book in 1954 titled “Horton Hears A Who.” This delightful story relates the story of Horton, a lovable, elephant with big ears and an even bigger heart. When a sound from a small puff of dust catches Horton’s ear, he’s blown away by the idea that there could be an entire world just like his floating around unseen.

Horton, with his sensitive hearing, is the only person who can hear the pleas for help from the microscopic world of the Whos, a world so tiny that it fits on a speck of dust. During his quest to protect the Whos, Horton repeats the phrase, “a person is a person, no matter how small.”

True words indeed! A person is a person, no matter how small. It is a fact that at the very moment of conception, a new human life has begun. What is even more fantastic is the fact that at the precise moment that the tiny new life begins, God creates a soul that is immediately joined with that body and a new person comes into being.

This newly formed human person is also sacred because the hand of God was present in its creation. This new little person is endowed with free will and was created in the image of God. Everything this new little person needs is present at conception … as long as it is allowed to develop in its mother’s womb.

God already has a purpose in mind for this new little person, as His Word tells us in Jer. 1:5  "Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, before you were born I set you apart; I appointed you as a prophet to the nations."

This new little person that is growing and developing in its mother’s womb is entitled to protection and allowed to live a life of love and service to God its maker.

Just as Horton knew that “a person is a person, no matter how small”, we should never forget that simple message.

Are you doing all you can do to help stop the slaughter of the unborn?

Philippians 2:4. ȁLet each of you look not to your own interests, but to the interest of others.”

Life Lines for September 26, 2010
Written by Jeanne Strubbe
Life Ministry Coordinator
Salem Lutheran Church, Jacksonville

Fiction or fact?

Fiction: Abortion is legal only in the first three months of pregnancy.
Fact: Abortion is legal for the entire nine months of pregnancy for virtually any reason.

Fiction: Everyone agrees Roe v. Wade is good constitutional law.
Fact: Even pro-choice legal scholars admit its reasoning is suspect.

Fiction: The vast majority of American women believe abortion should be legal for any reason.
Fact: Only 30% do.

Undeniable truth: The human heart begins beating at 22 days. Roe v. Wade says a doctor can legally stop it for the next 244 days.

Even U.S. Supreme Court justices find Roe v. Wade disturbing law.

“ Roe v. Wade ... ventured too far in the change it ordered and presented an incomplete justi

– Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg

– Justice Byron White

– Justice Sandra Day O’Connor

Source: www.secondlookproject.org

James 1:22 & 27
But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves.... Religion that is pure and undefiled before God, the Father, is this: to visit orphans and widows in their affliction, and to keep oneself unstained from the world.

Life Lines for October 10, 2010
Written by Jeanne Strubbe
Life Ministry Coordinator
Salem Lutheran Church, Jacksonville

The following article is compliments of Illinois Federation Right to Life.

Never underestimate the creativity and excellence of our scientists. New research seems to have overcome the difficulties of IPSCs, allowing pluripotent stem cells to be created from normal body cells without using genes or viruses. From the story in the Washington Post:

In 2006, researchers discovered that they could coax adult cells into a state that appeared identical to embryonic stem cells, dubbed induced pluripotent stem cells (iPS cells), by activating four genes. Those cells could morph into various tissues in the same way that embryonic stem cells can. But the process involved inserting genes into cells using retroviruses, which raised the risk the cells could cause cancer. Since then, scientists have been racing to develop alternative methods. Several approaches, using chemicals or other types of viruses, have shown promise. But none has completely eliminated the safety concerns, and most have been slow and inefficient.

The new approach involves molecules known as “messenger RNA,” or mRNA, which the DNA inside cells use to create proteins they need carry out various vital functions. The researchers created mRNA molecules carrying the instructions for the cell’s machinery to produce the four key proteins needed to reprogram themselves into iPS cells.

After tinkering with the mRNA molecules in the laboratory to make signals that the cells would not destroy as dangerous invaders, the researchers found that a daily cocktail of their creations were surprisingly fast and efficient at reprogramming the cells. The approach converted the cells in about half the time of previous methods – only about 17 days – with surprising economy – up to 100 times more efficient than the standard approach.

Moreover, detailed tests indicated the cells had not experienced any disturbing changes in their DNA caused by previous methods and were virtually identical to embryonic stem cells. In addition, the researchers went one step further and showed that they could use the approach to then coax the iPS cells they created into a specific type of cell, in this case muscle cells.

I have three observations:

First, this story validates President Bush’s faith in the science sector’s capacity to find ethical ways to do what scientists used to claim only ESCR could accomplish. In fact, I think Bush deserves some credit for these advances because his policy kept society focused so closely on the moral issues surrounding the embryo.

Second: Even if this advance did EVERYTHING that scientists wanted from ESCR, it won’t stop many from wanting to experiment on nascent human life.  Indeed, some would look at the advance, shrug, and keep on trying to clone. Why? Because stem celladvances are not the end game. As I wrote here, they are merely the opening stanza of a much longer symphony that seeks to open the door to Brave New World technologies such as genetic engineering and enhancement, that requires cloning and experimenting on the resulting embryos to perfect.

Third: Obama should restore the Bush policy he revoked giving priority to NIH funding for non embryonic research into sources of pluripotent stem cells. But he won’t.  Many among his base loathe the very idea that a human embryo would have any moral standing.

Written by: Wesley J. Smith
Source: Secondhand Smoke
Date Published: October 1, 2010

Life Lines for November 14, 2010
Written by Jeanne Strubbe
Life Ministry Coordinator
Salem Lutheran Church, Jacksonville

Life does matter and pro-life voters proved that on Tuesday, November 2, 2010 when they “rocked the vote” in favor of life.

20 pro-life governors were elected nationwide and we also saw the election of a number of pro-life Attorneys General, giving us hope that abortion clinics will not be given carte blanche to evade and avoid state laws governing their killing business.

The overwhelming victory in the U.S. House and the election of a new speaker means that in the very near future, pro-life legislation will have a fighting chance instead of helping to profit the abortion industry at the expense of the American taxpayer.

We can also rejoice in the distressed comments of Cecile Richards, president of Planned Parenthood. Ms. Richards remarked, “Yesterday was a difficult day” for the pro-abortion movement. Despite some bright spots in important races — and the resounding defeat of an anti-choice ballot initiative in Colorado — the House of Representatives is now in the hands of dangerous politicians,” she said. “There’s no getting around it: the results of yesterday’s election are truly alarming.”

“Starting today, we have a tough fight on our hands. The months ahead will not be easy. Anti-choice House leaders like John Boehner will be egged on by Sarah Palin and her followers,” she said, calling pro-life advocates “extremists” who will “pursue a dangerous agenda.”

“The stakes are as high as they’ve ever been: their goal is to outlaw abortion, even in cases of rape, incest, and harm to the health of the woman,” she said.

Richards launched into her organization’s main concern, a bill sponsored by pro-life Rep. Mike Pence that would de-fund Planned Parenthood.

“That’s the frightening reality we face, and it’s only going to get worse,” she said before asking for money to help fight it.

The “frightening reality” that Planned Parenthood may face is the very real possibility of pro-life leaders who actually have the courage and strength to defund their operation using taxpayer money. May God bless their efforts in that endeavor.

“For it is God who is at work in you, enabling you both to will and to work for His good pleasure.” Philippians 2:13.

Life Lines for November 21, 2010
Written by Jeanne Strubbe
Life Ministry Coordinator
Salem Lutheran Church, Jacksonville

While contemplating my article for this Sunday I was thinking about the upcoming Thanksgiving holiday and my own personal faith in God. I have many sad days since the death of my dear husband, Rich, and I too often forget to give thanks to God for the many blessings I still have in my life. I have my children, a wide circle of friends, my health, my horses, and a lovely home and I am blessed to live in the greatest nation in the history of the world.

Yes, our nation is still a great nation, despite the dark deeds that take place in the abortion mills and offend our loving God.

While thinking about the Thanksgiving holiday, I was reminded of the last Thanksgiving proclamation given by George W. Bush. It is as follows:

November 21, 2008. A Proclamation by the President of the United States of America. Thanksgiving is a time for families and friends to gather together and express gratitude for all that we have been given, the freedoms we enjoy, and the loved ones who enrich our lives. We recognize that all of these blessings, and life itself, come not from the hand of man but from Almighty God.

Every Thanksgiving, we remember the story of the Pilgrims who came to America in search of religious freedom and a better life. Having arrived in the New World, these early settlers gave thanks to the Author of Life for granting them safe passage to this abundant land and protecting them through a bitter winter.

Our Nation's first President, George Washington, stated in the first Thanksgiving proclamation that "It is the duty of all nations to acknowledge the providence of Almighty God, to obey His will, to be grateful for His benefits, and humbly to implore His protection and favor." While in the midst of the Civil War, President Abraham Lincoln revived the tradition of proclaiming a day of thanksgiving, asking God to heal our wounds and restore our country.

Today, as we look back on the beginnings of our democracy, Americans recall that we live in a land of many blessings where every person has the right to live, work, and worship in freedom. Our Nation is especially thankful for the brave men and women of our Armed Forces who protect these rights while setting aside their own comfort and safety.

Their courage keeps us free, their sacrifice makes us grateful, and their character makes us proud. Especially during the holidays, our whole country keeps them and their families in our thoughts and prayers. Americans are also mindful of the need to share our gifts with others, and our Nation is moved to compassionate action. We pay tribute to all caring citizens who reach out a helping hand and serve a cause larger than themselves.

On this day, let us all give thanks to God who blessed our Nation's first days and who blesses us today. May He continue to guide and watch over our families and our country always.

It will be my sincere prayer that our nation will one day recognize what all pro-life believers already know in their hearts. All life is precious to God, the Author of Life, and should be and must be protected from conception to natural death.

For one day this city of rebellion and oppression will take correction and fear the Lord. God will remove from this city those who rejoiced in their pride. He will leave the remnant of Israel, who do no wrong, who speak no lies, nor will deceit be found in their mouths. And no harm shall come to them.”

Life Lines for December 5, 2010
Written by Jeanne Strubbe
Life Ministry Coordinator
Salem Lutheran Church, Jacksonville

We are truly blessed to live in the U.S. It’s been said many times, but how many of us think about what it really means. I know that I am guilty of taking my life in this great nation for granted, as I am sure many of you are. We are a nation founded on Christianity, despite what some of our nations leaders say in contrast.

Our form of government grants us freedom and liberty and puts these rights in writing. I am always in awe of our founding fathers when I read the words of the Declaration of Independence. Here is an excerpt from the second paragraph:

We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness. — That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed, — That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness..

These words are the foundation of our government and guarantee that we are given rights by our Creator. The first right mentioned is the right to LIFE. Yet, since 1973, over 50 million babies have not been afforded the very “right to life” that is the foundation of our government. Abortion was only the beginning of the stripping of the right to life. Physician Assisted Suicide takes place in our nation, along with euthanasia and fetal farming. Apathetic people sit by while humans are being destroyed; yet they demonstrate on the front lines to save seals, whales, turtles, birds and much more.

The next assault from the culture of death on the horizon is “death panels” as part of Obamacare. Sarah Palin was ridiculed for warning us of the death panels months ago, but now we know it’s real. Just read the following clip from a syndicated news site and see what you think.

Paul Krugman, Nobel Prize winner in economics and an influential New York Times columnist, also has a blog, "The Conscience of a Liberal." On ABC's "This Week" (Nov. 14), during a discussion on balancing the federal budget against alarming deficits, he proclaimed the way to solve this problem is through deeply cost-effective health-care rationing.

"Some years down the pike," he said, "we're going to get the real solution, which is going to be a combination of death panels and sales taxes."

Yes, he used the words “death panels” which means in essence that your health and end of life decisions will not be made by your doctor and family, but by bureaucrats in Washington D.C. who have never met you and only know what they read about your health.

Americans must stand up and protest against this trend before it’s too late. The government is here to serve us and protect our lives, and not to assume a government right to our lives.

"I am your God; I will strengthen you, I will help you, I will uphold you with My victorious right hand." Isaiah 41:10

Life Lines for December 26, 2010
Written by Jeanne Strubbe
Life Ministry Coordinator
Salem Lutheran Church, Jacksonville

The following is courtesy of LifeNews.com

Planned Parenthood Federation of America finally released its 2008-2009 Annual report detailing its financial figures. The report shows it received more government funding, which has translated into more abortions. The nation’s largest abortion business released a factsheet in September showing the number of abortions it performed in 2008 increased to 324,008, a 6.1 percent increase over the 305,310 abortions it did in 2007.

The total government grants and contracts received by PPFA affiliates from government sources including state, local and federal governments, increased from $337 million to $350 million in 2009. The new report shows that figure has increased again to $363 million, though it does not specify what portion of the figure was received from each level of government.

Government grants accounted for 33% of Planned Parenthood’s income compared with just 28 percent for private donations. Income from its abortion centers generated another 37 percent.

In 1997, Planned Parenthood did about 160,000 abortions and received approximately $160 million in total taxpayer funding from various levels of government. Both the number of abortions and the amount of money received from government, supposedly for family planning to reduce abortions, has more than doubled since then.

Commentary by Jeanne Strubbe
Rep. Mike Pence, the leading member behind legislation in Congress that would de-fund Planned Parenthood, is not happy about the new annual report the abortion business released. Pence, an Indiana congressman with potential presidential ambitions, made the statement, “It is morally wrong to end an unborn human life by abortion.  It is also morally wrong to take the taxpayer dollars of millions of pro-life Americans and use those funds to promote abortion. Planned Parenthood’s own report shows that the largest abortion provider in America is being bankrolled by American taxpayers.  With a nearly 10 percent unemployment rate, there is simply no reason during these tough economic times why taxpayers’ hard-earned money should fund the activities of abortion providers and equip them with the resources they need to end innocent human life. The time has come to deny any and all federal funding to Planned Parenthood by passing the Title X Abortion Provider Prohibition Act, which I intend to introduce again in the next Congress.”

Pence went on to say, “Originally, family planning services were not allowed to include abortions and currently federal dollars are not used directly for abortions. However, over the years, the subsidy of abortion providers under the umbrella of family planning has been gradually accepted.”

Clearly, government funding for Planned Parenthood has increased under both Republican and Democratic leadership. Regardless of who was in charge, government sanctioned snuffing of human life is unconscionable. What really concerns me most is the lack of interest that the general public has about what is happening. Where is the outcry from the American citizens? And why are the lawmakers in Washington thumbing their noses at the very folks who sent a clear message to them on Nov. 2, 2010 that we are tired of the insane spending in this country?

Let us not be weary in doing good; for at the proper time, we will reap a harvest if we do not give up. Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good…” Galatians 6:9-10.