Be Not Afraid (Mt 14:27) by Tess Allman

05 Aug Be Not Afraid (Mt 14:27) by Tess Allman

“At once Jesus spoke to them, ‘Take courage, it is I; do not be afraid.’ ” ~ Mt 14:27 (full readings)
.
Tess’ Reflections:   One of the most important qualities we must have as defenders of life is courage.  We must listen to Our Lord’s words when He says, “Do not be afraid.”  Some years ago, perhaps only the second time I went to pray outside an abortion mill, an enraged man was shouting at us pray-ers, “Who of you would adopt these babies?  Huh?! No one?!  That’s what I thought!”  My first gut reaction was to be so fearful or to defend myself—I thought, “I’m a teenager, I can’t adopt in my circumstance right now—so I’m off the hook…”  Well, thankfully, the Holy Spirit immediately nudged me to pray for that man…to not be shaken by his words…to realize that there is something in him that probably needs to be healed by Our loving Savior…and to pray for people to adopt or parent these precious children.  I still pray for this man, and I must cling to Jesus’ words.  Last January at a big social function for young people, a loving Catholic father in our community took the microphone and told anyone who would listen that he and his family would adopt any child in danger of abortion.  He pleaded to all 200 of us to tell this to anyone if we find out there is a child in danger of abortion.  God opened my eyes to see what it means to not be afraid, just like this man and his family.  For all of us, this pro-life courage will manifest itself in different ways, but let us pray it does!  God bless us all with courage, and God help those who have lost their way.
* Tess Allman is an elementary school speech-language pathologist in Gladstone, MO.  She is active in her city-wide Catholic young adult group and is the Vice President for Vocations of the North Kansas City Serra Club.  She is proudly a brand new aunt and is also getting married to the love of her life, Justin, in Fall of 2014.
.
Faith Challenge:  Let us pray to discern how we can be more courageous in our efforts for the unborn.  Let us pray for those who believe in the sanctity of life but who are still afraid to speak up.

Counter-Culture News: LifeSiteNews, LifeNews, American Family, Vatican, Project Rachel..
.
Our Prayers: Pray LIFE Runners Creed to End Abortion.  Add Prayers. Pray with meals, bedtime, wake up, unceasingly. Consider mid-week Family Rosary (17 min). Let’s pray now.
.
Feast Day:  St. Addal
.
Faith Quote:  “We run for Charity, to provide support for mothers and fathers tempted to abort their child, and healing support for post-abortion women, men and families.” ~ Life Runners Creed
.
Through Christ our Lord,
Tess
Luke 1:46-48