Unexpected

We have each been given a wonderful gift - the gift of life; created and ordained by God.  We should
be people who take that very seriously, with rejoicing for God's goodness. Psalm 139 states:
13 For You formed my inward parts; You covered me in my mother's womb.
14 I will praise You, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made; Marvelous are Your works, And that my soul knows very well.

The awareness of truth about unborn children and a greater level of devotion to protecting them are trends that we are seeing in our culture today.  And, it's a good thing.  There has been a consistent cultural debate that has been heightened over the past few months over the issue of abortion.  The facts are becoming clearer, I believe, and the truth is prevailing.  We as the Church can devote ourselves to speaking out for the defenseless.

+++++

In a dialogue with the prophet Jeremiah, found in Jeremiah chapter 1, the Lord says to him:
5 "Before I formed you in the womb I knew you; Before you were born I sanctified you; I ordained you a prophet to the nations."
6 Then said I: "Ah, Lord God! Behold, I cannot speak, for I am a youth."
7 But the Lord said to me: "Do not say, 'I am a youth,' For you shall go to all to whom I send you, And whatever I command you, you shall speak.

Developments surrounding the new movie depicting the life transformation of former Planned Parenthood director Abby Johnson have garnered quite a bit of attention.  The movie, Unplanned,  has exceeded the $7 million mark at the box office in just its sixth day of release.  It closed out the weekend as the number 4 movie in America.

And, on social media, the movie's Twitter feed stated:

Today we passed #PlannedParenthood in followers.

The tide has shifted as the world is exposed to the reality of what happens behind the curtain in #unplannedmovie #whatabbysaw is changing hearts and minds #godisgood

But, the social media presence of the movie has certainly faced its challenges.  The Wall Street Journal reports:

Film critics who didn’t ignore the new movie “Unplanned” generally rejected it. Executives across various media platforms have intentionally or accidentally limited its marketing. But audience members are giving the film rave reviews according to a survey firm called CinemaScore. And “Unplanned” was a box-office overachiever in its weekend release. The movie also sparked a new conversation about whether social media companies are discriminating against people with whom they disagree.

The article pointed out the antics of Twitter, which suspended the movie's account on Saturday night and then reinstated it, although there were reports of people not being able to follow the account as recently as Monday.  The Daily Wire reported on certain instances.  The number of followers, which seems to have been corrected, slowly propagated as the account got back up to speed.  The Journal quoted from a Hollywood Reporter piece, quoting Cary Solomon, a co-writer and co-director of the movie: "It is a sad time we live in when corporations can remove individuals freedom of speech at will. When did we empower these corporations to have such authority? More importantly, why do we empower them to do so?”

The Journal piece, by James Freeman, goes on to say:

Some Twitter users may have particular trouble answering such questions because the premise of the service is that users select on their own which people or media outlets they wish to follow. The timing of the Saturday blackout—during the weekend of the movie’s theatrical debut—was a remarkable coincidence given that the film’s Twitter account has been active since August.

The “Unplanned” account debuted on the service shortly after Twitter tried to put to rest previous accusations that it was discriminating against certain viewpoints. “Setting the record straight on shadow banning,” is the title of a Twitter blog post dated July 26, 2018.

Twitter claims to have suspended the movie's account because it was linked to another account that had posted content that Twitter had found objectionable. So, things may be back to normal, but questions remain.

And, then of course, you have the ratings controversy - because of its graphic content, Unplanned received an R rating.  It has been pointed out that the rating does underscore the graphic nature of abortion itself.  Another opinion is that it could be a factor in limiting the audience.

Content concerns have been cited for the refusal of television networks, outside of Fox, to air commercials for the movie.  Newsbusters reports that:

Several mainstream channels like HGTV, Lifetime, and Hallmark have straight up rejected advertising for Pureflix’s new movie, so if you’ve been wondering why you’ve only seen ads for the film on Fox News Channel, the promotional fix is in. Oddly enough, this is coming from channels that we regularly consider as providing wholesome, family friendly material.

Citing The Hollywood Reporter, the article goes on to say:

THR reported that, besides FNC, “every other mainstream television outlet has declined to air the ad.” Among these, the Travel Channel, Cooking Channel, HGTV and Food Network, — all owned by Discovery — “refused to sell ad time for Unplanned due to the ‘sensitive nature’ of the movie,” Unplanned’s promoters claimed. Unplanned producer John Sullivan claimed, “We were looking to spend money, but they didn't want to get involved.”

So, what do we make of all this?  Well, for one thing, the message is clear: abortion kills.  Planned Parenthood is concerned less about the lives of women and children and more about the bottom line. This is obvious.  And, the movie takes you inside the four walls of an abortion clinic and exposes the culture of death inside.

I believe that we are in a moment of national debate about the sanctity of life.  We have been given an opportunity to share truth, rooted in the Scriptures, about life.  The talking points of the abortion movement are fading in the light of that truth.  And, lawmakers are more intent on making sure that this brutal practice is severely restricted.  Georgia legislators stood in the face of screaming Hollywood actors and passed bold pro-life legislation.  Alabama lawmakers will have the chance to restrict the practice even further if a new bill passes.

The success of Unplanned also illustrates how the power of story and the presence of the Holy Spirit can touch and change hearts.  Jesus used stories - parables - to highlight His truth and to reach the hearts of people.  These filmmakers have taken Abby Johnson's story and used it - and God has used it - to drive home powerful truths about life and death.