Upholding Life

Things were about to get rough for Jesus and His disciples - He was preparing to go to the cross, and He told His disciples that they would abandon Him. He offered some encouraging words, even in times of trouble, in John chapter 16:
32 Indeed the hour is coming, yes, has now come, that you will be scattered, each to his own, and will leave Me alone. And yet I am not alone, because the Father is with Me.
33 These things I have spoken to you, that in Me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation; but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world."

We are not promised a comfortable or conflict-free life - because we inhabit this planet with other sinners, inside and outside the body of Christ, there may be disagreements, sometimes pointed.  There may be circumstances about which we never agree. But, God gives us the strength and clarity to navigate the relationship challenges and to exalt Him in all things. We can rest in the peace of God and be bold to exhibit Christ's love.

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Jesus stands with us when we face opposition or hostility because we love Him. He said in Matthew 5, in the Sermon on the Mount:
10 Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness' sake, For theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
11 "Blessed are you when they revile and persecute you, and say all kinds of evil against you falsely for My sake.
12 Rejoice and be exceedingly glad, for great is your reward in heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you.

Austin Clark wants to be a doctor; he has a desire to help his family, which includes his wife, their son who was born deaf, and their pre-born child, as well as to help patients.  He has completed three years as a medical student at the University of Louisville, according to the Students for Life website. 

And, as of July 15 of last year, he was dismissed.  Unfortunately, Austin started running with the "wrong" crowd, in the estimation the the university.  According to SFL:

...Austin alleges that the trouble with the school began when his pro-life group hosted speaker Alex McFarland in Fall, 2018. Austin was on the leadership board of the Medical Students for Life group at University of Louisville School of Medicine. The administration did everything they could to prevent the event from happening, largely by mandating impossibly expensive security fees – a common tactic of schools trying to silence views of the students they don’t like, as SFLAction/SFLA President Kristan Hawkins observed in her Wall Street Journal opinion piece. The student group even had to involve Alliance Defending Freedom, a legal foundation committed to the free speech of conservative students, to ensure that the event took place.

That opened the door to harassment by his professors, and resulted in Austin Clark filing a lawsuit to be reinstated.  The Christian Post stated:

The complaint alleges that from the 2018 event until his 2020 expulsion, Clark was frequently harassed by professors who allegedly verbally assaulted him. The complaint also alleges that he was arbitrarily given a failing grade in internal medicine even though he claims to have earned a passing score.

And, it is alleged that Clark was on the receiving end of what is known as "viewpoint discrimination."

Well, it seems that the U of L is strongly tied to the abortion industry. Students for Life reports: "the medical school’s professors do all of Kentucky’s surgical abortions. Records also show that the school has a Medical Students for Choice group listed, and that students were used in multiple studies on how to promote abortion." It goes on to say:

In a 2020 news conference, the Kentucky Family Foundation alleged that “the only remaining abortion clinic in Kentucky is being run as an official or quasi-official arm of the University of Louisville’s Medical School,” with group spokesman Martin Cothran adding: “Not only is U of L involved in the abortion clinic’s activities, but the clinic operates, for all practical purposes, as an extension of the Medical School’s program.”

Austin Clark is someone who desires to integrate his pro-life perspective, based on his worldview, into his work as a doctor.  His medical school wants to force him to embrace a different worldview, that takes life rather than protects it.  This is unfortunately the default position of so many in our world today, and it is important that we passionately align with our Creator, who has made us all in His image. 

There may even be strong hostility to our position, that is grounded in Scripture. The Christian Post includes Austin's words:

“They are saying I was being unprofessional, but all I’ve done is to be a vocal pro-life student, standing up to bullies,” said Clark in a statement last week, as quoted by Students for Life of America.

You may encounter those who want to silence you for your Christian viewpoint, who will try to "bully" you into submission.  We can rely on the Lord within us to give us the strength and confidence to speak the right words in the right way at the right time.  We don't have to counter anger with anger and become hostile and combative.  We can be firm in our convictions and forthright in our comments.