Much has happened on the abortion front over the last thirty years. The last five years has seen the most prominent changes. Those changes have not been so much a matter of legislation or court rulings as it has been a change in the hearts of Americans. I believe the way the pro-life community has matured in the way they approach this battle has had a large influence on this shift in public opinion.

I can remember the days of activists who would block the entryways to abortion clinics in violation of the law. I also realize that I make some of my good friends upset with me when I say that those actions were wrong and were not a help to the cause. As much as those sincere people wanted to draw attention to the heinous acts of the doctors, they ended up drawing the attention to them and allowed the argument to skirt around root issue.

I say that it is the maturity of the pro-life camp that has helped swing the tide. Rather than showing the ravages of an aborted baby, they began to bring attention to the wonders of modern technology that allow the mother to see the development of the child. With GE’s new ultrasonic machine the parents can see their new child in 3D and color!

The argument against pro-lifers that they did not care about the mothers was also countered. They were painted as being ideologues who ignored the real life issues that many women faced. It wasn’t that the argument was true, but people did not know what was being done. Now with more and more women’s shelters and crisis pregnancy centers springing up around the country – many of them becoming integral parts of the community – the abortionists’ arguments ring hollow.  They now begin to appear to be the idealogues who ignore the real hope that many women can have.

Now, all of this isn’t to say that legislation has not had its positive effects on abortions in America. Nor am I saying that the unvarnished truth about abortion should be avoided. Just as with preaching, you need to preach grace and hope but you also have to preach about sin. No one knows the need of grace and hope until they realize they are sinners.

It will be interesting to see the results of this year’s 30^th Annual Stand Up For Life Pro-life March and Rally to be held this weekend in Columbia. The featured speaker will be Vera Faith Lord. The only child of an only child, Vera Faith Lord aborted her only child. Vera says, "I have pledged the rest of my time here on earth to ripping the mask off of abortion and revealing its true face to the world."

Hear her powerful story of post-abortion pain and desperation, and ultimately her healing through Christ’s love. Ultimately, it is when the Jane Roes become Norma McCorveys that the true impact of abortion is realized. It is when the anonymity is removed that we begin to see the impact this scourge has had, not only on the unborn children, but the mothers as well. Vera’s story is worth a hundred people resisting police in front of the abortionists’ clinics.

The marches will have much to celebrate this year.  The partial birth abortion ban has passed - though it still faces a battle in the courts.  Many strides have been made in South Carolina to combat the spread of abortion and many clinics have closed.  However, the thing that should be most celebrated is the growing recognition among Americans that the baby within the womb is just that -- a baby.

You can join the march by calling South Carolina Citizens for Life: 803-252-5433 or contacting them by e-mail at [email protected].