Radiant

Ideas have power, and if we consider or accept ideas that run contrary to the principles of Scripture, we become susceptible to being lured away from the truth of God's Word.  That has certainly been the case with respect to life, but so many other areas, as well.

Paul had a heart to see the people of Laodicea walk free from deception. Colossians 2 states:
1 For I want you to know what a great conflict I have for you and those in Laodicea, and for as many as have not seen my face in the flesh,
2 that their hearts may be encouraged, being knit together in love, and attaining to all riches of the full assurance of understanding, to the knowledge of the mystery of God, both of the Father and of Christ,
3 in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge.
4 Now this I say lest anyone should deceive you with persuasive words.

The Laodicean church, in the book of Revelation, was chastised by God for being "lukewarm."  Paul feared the Colossians and Laodiceans would be deceived.  Apparently, one of those groups ended up giving in.  In the marketplace of ideas and plethora of influences, we can become so easily led away from the truth, or mix the truth with error.  We tolerate sinfulness because of willful rebellion or harmful inaction.  In these days, we have to know and speak the truth and be able to discern what is true and what is not.

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We have to guard against deception in our lives and in our culture. Deuteronomy 11 states:
16 Take heed to yourselves, lest your heart be deceived, and you turn aside and serve other gods and worship them,
17 lest the Lord's anger be aroused against you, and He shut up the heavens so that there be no rain, and the land yield no produce, and you perish quickly from the good land which the Lord is giving you.

Not only is Planned Parenthood the nation's largest abortion provider; the organization is also trying to promote its agenda and to desensitize young people to the horror of abortion.  And, the school board in Reading, PA turned an effort back to allow Planned Parenthood access to its students, albeit by a disappointing 5-4 margin.

On the Family Policy Alliance website, Dan Bartkowiak of the Pennsylvania Family Council wrote a piece about the proceedings.  He stated:

Planned Parenthood made a push this summer to gain direct access to thousands of high school students in Reading – and to have you pay for it. But, after this proposal was brought to our attention from residents, we were able to rally together with other groups such as Students for Life of America, Berks Republican Women and Pro-Life Berks to show the school board that this was not the right choice for Reading.

I’m happy to tell you that the Reading School Board, in a 5-4 decision, voted against the proposal and to keep Planned Parenthood OUT of Reading High School.

The Radiance Foundation, a pro-life organization founded by Ryan Scott Bomberger and his wife Bethany, has developed an infographic of Top 10 Reasons to Keep Planned Parenthood Out of Your Local School.   

Bomberger has written an article coinciding with these reasons.  Please allow me to highlight a few:

One is, they promote promiscuity.  Bomberger writes:

When asked if “promiscuity is a bad thing”, Planned Parenthood Federation of America (PPFA) responded: “It’s a word that’s used to judge or shame people.” No. It’s a word used to describe sexually risky behavior. Planned Parenthood encourages it, declaring: “There’s nothing bad or unhealthy about having a big number of sexual partners.” Our nation is facing an STD epidemic. The 18% failure rate of condoms is alarming. Birth control pills, shots, implants, rings, and IUDs don’t prevent STDs at all. Abstinenceis the only 100% effective way to avoid STDs, HIV, HPV and unintended pregnancy. Should a business that profits from selling abortions, birth control and STD treatments to be teaching our teens that there’s nothing wrong with promiscuity?

That leads to another of these reasons: they fail to reduce STD's.  Other reasons include; they fail to report rape, they deny basic science, and they fail minorities.

With regard to the latter, Bomberger writes:

In NYC—the home of Planned Parenthood—more black babies are aborted than born alive: 1,101are aborted for every 1,000 born alive. PPFA calls this “reproductive justice” falsely claiming it’s due to lack of access to reproductive healthcare. Black abortion rates are 5 times higher than whites and twice as high as Hispanics even though Hispanics have higher poverty rates than blacks (24% versus 21.5%) and higher uninsured rates (17% versus 10.5%). NYC has the highest abortion rate (36.3 abortions per 1,000 women ages 15-44) and an epidemic of STDs yet the most prevalent access to contraception.

Coming up, an NFL player has spoken up against abortion and Planned Parenthood, and I'll explore his comments coming up on Friday.

The Radiance Foundation lists the #1 reason to keep Planned Parenthood out of schools: they kill human beings.  Bomberger states:

The first black PPFA president, Faye Wattleton, at least admitted what abortion really is: “I think we have deluded ourselves into believing that people don’t know that abortion is killing. So any pretense that abortion is not killing is a signal of our ambivalence, a signal that we cannot say yes, it kills a fetus, but it is the woman’s body and therefore ultimately her choice.” The fetus, or Latin for ‘children’, is not part of anyone’s body but a distinct human with separate DNA. Last year, PPFA reported killing 328,348 unique human beings. Abortions bring in 80% of their ‘health services’ revenue enabling a $77.5 million profit last year.

Pro-life groups are touting the possibility of ceasing or reducing taxpayer funding of abortion this fall as Congress goes back into session.

There are certainly some disturbing concepts that are laid out in this piece from the Radiance Foundation.  The fight against abortion involves awareness.  Awareness can lead to action. Certainly, we can recognize the Bible's teaching about the sanctity of life.  But, recognizing that and acting upon it are two different things. We can each seek to recognize how God would use us as a voice for those who have none.

Also, you have to see that Planned Parenthood has a strategy to desensitize the culture to the offensive nature of abortion.  And, they are starting with the young - with access to students!  I think this can speak powerfully to what is being taught in Christian homes, as well as to the church; I am thankful for children's and youth ministries in churches across our land.  And, there are other organizations, Christian organizations, who have access to young people - Child Evangelism Fellowship is an effective tool in schools across the nation; so is the Fellowship of Christian Athletes, who encourage students to seek Christ.  And, strong students can spread the message of Christ and of life, as well.

Planned Parenthood teaches us the validity of marketing and branding, even though there is deception in what they're selling.  When you pull back the curtain, you realize the insidious nature of what they are doing - they position themselves as concerned with women's health; but these health services are available at scores more places - community health centers.  It comes down to abortion - highly profitable, and assisted by taxpayers.  The light is being shone on this darkness; the question is: will the Congress, and the Church for that matter, respond?