Rescuing the Innocent: Is it a Burden or a Joy?
by Rev. John Ensor
Rejoice with us, our Hialeah Pregnancy Help Medical Clinic is open! This past month we held our Open House
and Dedication Service with a full crowd of pastors and partners in this Great Work. Afterwards, with fresh
resolve and many, many helping hands, and working long days and throughout the weekends, we completed the
repairs and upgrades, set up the furniture and equipment and opened our doors!
Now the real work begins. And what is that work? What we are laboring to do together is to
be willingly, generously, and faithfully cross-bearers for child-bearers. I
wrote about this earlier.
Cross-bearing for the child-bearing best describes what we are striving
to do together under the HOM banner. As we begin this work in Hialeah now, and as we begin to
explore opening clinics in North Miami and Little Havana next, it is fair to ask, is this a
burden or a joy to do?
The Biblical answer is yes. Yes, cross-bearing is a burden and yes, it is a joy.
The work of saving the innocent by helping the weak is a heavy labor that could easily be avoided if we
want. It is costly work, requiring sacrificial giving of resources that could easily be spent on our own
needs, if we chose. It takes time and patience to help a young woman overwhelmed with fear or driven by
self-interest. And we could say instead, "They got themselves into this mess; why make it my problem?"
And Christ could have said the same concerning you and me.
Cross-bearing work is freely taken up and it is no light-work. In the context of a pregnancy help medical clinic
it is often tearful work; it is usually anxious work; and it always drives you to desperate prayer.
While we are not much trained in cross-bearing Christianity these days, nonetheless, this is what
it takes, most of the time and over the long haul. The Gates of Hell do not yield to beliefs alone
and once a year symbolic events. Miami's 37 abortion facilities will not yield to well-wishing. But it
will give way
to cross-bearing love and sacrifice. I can testify to the life-saving, death-defying power
of neighborly love in action. And I ask you to bear this burden with us, by giving generously and praying
earnestly for the glory of God in the saving of many lives.
But remember, even the cross of Christ was borne in part by the infusion of strength that joy
provides. Hebrews 12:2 says of Christ's work, "who for the joy set before him endured the cross."
His endurance in cross-bearing came through the anticipated joy of all the glory to come from it.
So in asking you to bear in the financial burdens of this effort, I am not just asking you to feel the
pain and anguish of a mother and her pre-born child facing the temptation of abortion. I am asking you
to invest in the advancement of your joy and mine in seeing the mighty power of God; his life-saving,
death-defying power at work in our midst.
Consider the sacrifices that many are making to establish the Heartbeat of Miami, but also take note of their
joy.
A youth group from Vida Nueva Christian Ministries gave up their youth night to prepare baby bottles for distribution in
local churches. Do they look dour or do they look pleased to find a way to help save babies and mothers
from the violence of abortion?
A group from Miami Shores Christian Church showed up in sweltering heat to dig out rocks, weeds, rotting
ties and completely landscape our new office space. Later a group from Jubilee Church came to paint all our
office spaces. They were happy to do it.
A couple sent us a check for $10,000! Martha Avila, HOM Executive Director tried not to faint, by
showing it to David Behar, our Church Development Coordinator. Do you think that the people that sent
this gift were glad to do so? I do. I think they anticipated the thousands of babies that will
be saved and the hundreds of mothers that will see and hear the Gospel. And they invested treasure in this
eternal joy (Matthew 6:19-20).
Archbishop Favalora of Miami attended our Dedication to preach, pray and pledge his support. Does he not have
enough burdens to bear? Evidently not. For he wants to partner with the Evangelical churches and bear this
burden with us. And he rejoices in what it will produce.
The New Testament Baptist Church invited me to preach at all three of their services in June. They promised
to share in the burden and thanked us for the opportunity!
Jeanne
Pernia, who in 1979 started the first abortion business in Hialeah, took a pay-cut
and agreed to serve as our Hialeah Clinic Director, opening right next door to where she opened her abortion
business so many years before... before God's goodness and mercy (Psalm 23:6) caught up to her. She told me, "Whatever
it takes, (burden) John. I am eager (joy) to do it."
Peggy Hartshorn, President of Heartbeat International, presented the Sermon on the Mount written in picture
format (of our Lord) to the new Staff and Board of HOM at the Dedication. For 36 years she has borne the
burden of opening pregnancy help clinics. She rejoices in Heartbeat of Miami's progress.
High-risk, ob/gyn specialist, Dr. Mary Jo O'Sullivan, in spite of the many demands on her time, agreed
to serve as our Medical Director, reviewing our policies and procedures and working with our nurses
and sonographers. More work, but not without it's joyful reward.
Will you bear the burden with us of cross-bearing for the child-bearing? Will you share our
joy in the progress made and what it means for the saving of many lives? If so, become
a Heart for Life monthly partner or give what
makes you happy. We thank God for your sacrifice.
Your partner in the Great Work,
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Thank you to all who came out to celebrate our Hialeah Clinic Open House & Dedication on Saturday, June 2nd!