Senior Projects Bless the Pregnancy Care Center

Brittany Rea, a senior from Columbus East High School, decided to incorporate the Pregnancy Care Center into her Senior Project and learned how to crochet. She made 100 crocheted baby hats with the help of her family and mentor. Her parents and grandparents helped her with purchasing the materials needed to crochet the hats and she began working on them last May. She has donated all the hats to the Pregnancy Care Center. Judy Snow, Bartholomew County Center Director says, “they will be used in the layettes and/or distributed to mommy's to help keep their babies warm.”

Another senior from Columbus East, Ashton Setser, also included the PCC into her Senior Project. She hosted a Holiday Bazaar at Otter Creek Golf Course with a percentage of sales from her many vendors going to the PCC. Vendors including Thirty-One Gifts, Jafra Makeup, Silpada Designs Jewlery, Ribbonz & Curlz, Uniquely Yours by Robin Arnold, Hot Glass Cool Jewlery by Lori Erfmeier, Tastefully Simple and Handbags by Katie Miller were there to showcase their products. Aston has a connection with the PCC, which is why she chose us for her project. She wanted to personally help the PCC because her family members have received help in the past.

Many thanks to Brittany and Ashton for blessing the Pregnancy Care Center!

Merry Christmas

From our Pregnancy Care Center family to yours, have a true and meaningful Christmas!

Selfless Generosity

This year when asked by her grandparents what she would like for Christmas, Hannah McCord, an eighth grader at Central Middle School simply said “to go shopping for the Pregnancy Care Center.” Hannah had decided she did not want her grandparents on either side of the family to buy her Christmas gifts but instead to take the money they would have spent and go shopping for the PCC. And that is just what they did. Hannah along with her grandparents went shopping for items to donate to the PCC including diapers, wipes, lotion, sleepers, onesies and much more. Judy Snow, Bartholomew County Center Director said, “Hannah has given the PCC a wonderful gift. I think Hannah has given her family a wonderful gift also, in displaying such selfless generosity in her character.”

Terrace Lake Community Church

This year Terrace Lake Community Church will bless various ministries in the Columbus area during the holidays and the Pregnancy Care Center is among those ministries. Terrace Lake’s Children’s Ministry will be raising awareness and money to go towards furthering the mission of the Pregnancy Care Center. To help reach their goals they have created Christmas wreaths out of diapers and beautifully decorated a baby themed Christmas tree. Thank you Terrace Lake Community Church for your continued support!

Indian Creek Baby Shower

December 2nd will be a day to remember for 30 women who were overwhelmed by the generosity of families from Indiana Creek Christian Church. For the past four years ICCC has thrown a baby shower for clients of local pregnancy centers including the Pregnancy Care Center in Shelbyville. Nine clients from Shelbyville were blessed with new car seats, diapers, baby cloths and much more. Enola Joplin, Shelby County Center Director said, “It is truly like an Oprah Giveaway! They just kept pouring the gifts on each client.” Not only were there gifts but the church goes all out by providing food, cake and punch. They really aim to make the girls feel special and give them a real baby shower.

Making Wise Media Choices in a World of Teenage Dreams

While at the National Youth Worker’s Convention in Nashville, Tennessee recently, I attended a session by Walt Muller from the Center for Parent and Youth Understanding (CPYU) on teaching students to integrate their faith into their media lives by processing media from a Christian perspective.

Walt talked about what our role as parents and educators should look like in helping with that process:

When our kids are young, we think for them.
As they grow older, we think with them.
When they are older, they will think for themselves.

Unfortunately for a lot of us, we never move past step one. When it comes to media choices, we want to yell at our kids for what they’re watching or listening to and tell them to turn it off when the message is less than positive. This does not prepare kids to learn to think for themselves.

In the session, we were able to practice thinking through a media choice with a teen. We watched the music video for the Billboard Chart topping song “Teenage Dream” by Katy Perry. For those of you who haven’t heard the song it starts, “You think I'm pretty without any make-up on, you think I'm funny when I tell the punch line wrong, I know you get me, so I'll let my walls come down.”

Is there anything wrong with the feelings portrayed with these lyrics? I don’t think so. She’s sharing that her significant other likes her for her. That’s a good thing. It’s the expression of these feelings where things go wrong in the lyrics. “Let's go all the way tonight, no regrets, just love” and “We drove to Cali and got drunk on the beach. Got a motel and built a fort out of sheets. I finally found you, my missing puzzle piece. I'm complete.”

What an opportunity this song provides to talk about what healthy relationships look like compared to what happens when we live out relationships like they’re portrayed in this song.

CYPU has put out a great resource entitled “How to Use your Head to Guard your Heart: A 3(D) Guide to Making Responsible Media Choices.” In it, Walt suggests a three step process of Discover, Discern and Decide when evaluating your media choices.

Here are just a few of the questions he encourages us to work through during the Discover phase:

• How is the media piece intended to make listeners/viewers feel? How does it make me feel? Does it manipulate listener emotions in any way?
• Does the piece make any overt or covert suggestions on how to think, talk, act, or live?
• Where are human value and worth found?
• What is the source of happiness and satisfaction in life?
• What does it say about sexuality?
• What does it say about the nature of love? What does it say about how to express that love?

In the Discern phase, examine what Scripture has to say in light of what the media piece is presenting.

Finally, Decide the following:

• Should I watch/listen?
• Will I watch/listen?
• Should I support this artist and media message with my money and attention?
• Will I support this artist and media message with my money and attention?
• How does this help me see and understand the worldview and needs of my culture and my friends?
• How would Jesus share His story and message with people who think and live this worldview?
• What biblical examples of Jesus and God’s people can shape my response to these needs?

Don’t pass on the opportunity to have open, honest discussion with the kids in your life when it comes to the media. Help them to think things through rather than just telling them what to think. Then you can trust they will be able to make God-honoring choices when you’re not looking.

Teresa Russell
Director of Development

You can receive CYPU’s weekly Youth Culture e-Update for free by signing up on their website.

Grants for Nonprofits

The Decatur County Community Foundation (DCCF), along with MainSource Bank, is looking for nominations for six grants to be awarded to local non-profits. The grant program, known as Give Where You Live, awards six grants at $500 each to be used for anything in each organization's budget.

According to Sharon Hollowell, Executive Director of DCCF, nomination forms are available at the foundations Website www.dccfound.org, and all nominations must be turned in by Dec. 3. Forms are also available at locations around Greensburg: The DCCF office, the Greensburg Chamber of Commerce office, Hilliard Lyons, Edward Jones on Main St., and Decatur County MainSource Bank locations. All forms, including those retrieved online, must be dropped off at one of those locations.

DCCF will select the winners of the grants Dec. 3 from 5:30 p.m. to 7 p.m. at Chamber of Commerce Business After Hours at MainSource Bank on Broadway St. If you live in Decatur County and love the Pregnancy Care Centers, nominate us for Give Where You Life!

A Baby's Perspective

Recently when talking with one of the Pregnancy Care Center Ambassadors, she brought to my attention a poem she had written 24 years ago about abortion from the baby's perspective. She came across it as she was going through papers from her childhood and says, "I got tears in my eyes when I recalled that I was so young but so strong in my beliefs even then." I thought it was touching and wanted to share it.

My eyes are blue like mommy’s

My hair is blond like dads

But things like this they’ll never know

I’m the only chance they had



God gave me to my parents

A gift money can’t buy

They weren’t very thankful

Because they made me die



I never had a chance to live,

A chance to hear or see

They said I was still tissue

That wasn’t meant to be



I was just a tiny person

I only need time

If they had let me grow and live

I would have been just fine



They said I’m not a person

Unless I’ve actually been born

But if they really knew the truth

My sad, sad death they’d morn



The doctor came with the instruments

The pain was so intense

They pulled me from my mommy’s womb

And I had no defense




By Alison Simo
Printed with permission

By the Truck Load

In October three churches in Jennings County came together to support the work of the Pregnancy Care Center by throwing a Baby Shower. Two truck loads and a total of 230 grocery bags filled with diapers, wipes, bottles, lotions, blankets and much more was collected. Jane Bevers, Jennings County Center Director says, “We finally got it all put away!” A huge thank you to the families of St. Ann Catholic Church, St. Mary’s Catholic Church and St. Joseph Catholic Church for your amazing support. What a blessing our church partners are to the work that is being done in the centers. We greatly appreciate you! If you would like more information on throwing a Baby Shower for the Pregnancy Care Center contact Abby Glasser at AbbyG@affirminglifeonline.org.

Adopting Children

Legally, adoption is defined as the transfer of the parental rights of a child from one set of parents to another. Once an adoption is finalized, the adoptive parents are legally (and otherwise) the parents in every sense of the word. But leaving the definition at that misses the heart behind adoption, particularly for us as Christians.


Let's step back and look at the big picture. Ephesians 1:4-5 says, "For he chose us in him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight. In love he predestined us to be adopted as his sons through Jesus Christ, in accordance with his pleasure and will."


As John Piper so eloquently puts it, "adoption … is greater than the universe … Adoption was part of God's plan. It was his idea, his purpose. It was not an afterthought. He didn't discover one day that against his plan and foreknowledge humans had sinned and orphaned themselves in the world, and then come up with the idea of adopting them into his family. No, Paul says, he predestined adoption. He planned it."1


For some reason, adoption can have a negative stigma associated with it, partly due to the horror stories we've all heard. But what we have to remember is that adoption is designed to bring healing to a child that has been abused, neglected, abandoned or unable to be cared for by birth parents. It's because of this that adoption is even an option.


Families considering adoption first need to agree (particularly mom and dad) that it is something your family should consider further. It's also important to evaluate the reasons for considering adoption as well as any expectations. Adoption has to be focused on the needs of the kids rather than the needs and desires of the adults. Take the time to evaluate your motivation in adoption. If it is to "round out your family" because you want a girl or to fill an unmet need to be a parent, your tendency will be to put your needs before the child's needs, which doesn't help anyone.


Once you decide that adoption is the right decision for your family, the next step is to decide which type of adoption you will pursue and to select an appropriate agency. From there, the agency will walk you through the other steps such as paperwork, a home study, background check and training.


By Katie Porter
www.focusonthefamily.com



1http://www.desiringgod.org/ResourceLibrary/topicindex/89_Sonship_Adoption_by_God/175_Predestined_for_Adoption_to_the_Praise_of_His_Glory/, last accessed May 25, 2010.

Fathering Teen Daughters

An excerpt by Dr. James Dobson from his book Parenting Isn't for Cowards.

Let's talk now about fathers and daughters. Most psychologists believe, and I am one of them, that all future romantic relationships to occur in a girl's life will be influenced positively or negatively by the way she perceives and interacts with her dad. If he is an alcoholic and a bum, she will spend her life trying to replace him in her heart. If he is warm and nurturing, she will look for a lover to equal him. If he thinks she is beautiful, worthy and feminine, she will be inclined to see herself that way. But if he rejects her as unattractive and uninteresting, she is likely to carry self-esteem problems into her adult years.

I have also observed that a woman's willingness to accept the loving leadership of her husband is significantly influenced by the way she perceived the authority of her father. If he was overbearing, uncaring or capricious during her developmental years, she may attempt to grab the reins of leadership from her future husband. But if her dad blended love and discipline in a way that conveyed strength, she will be more willing to yield to the confident leadership of her husband.

None of these tendencies or trends is absolute, of course. Individual differences can always produce exceptions and contradictions. But this statement will be hard to refute: A good father will leave his imprint on his daughter for the rest of her life.

Many fathers are also called upon to perform another vitally important role during the adolescent years. It occurs when tension begins to develop between mothers and teenage girls. That conflict is very common among the ladies of the house. Several years may pass during which they don't even like each other very much.

In that setting, fathers are desperately needed as peacemakers and mediators. I have found that teenagers who are greatly irritated with one parent will sometimes seek to preserve their relationship with the other. It's like a country at war in search of supportive allies.

If fathers are chosen in that triangle, they can use the opportunity to settle their daughters and "interpret" their mothers in a more favorable light. They may also be able to help their wives ventilate their anger and understand their role in perpetuating the conflict. Without this masculine influence, routine skirmishes can turn into World War III.

In conclusion, I have this recurring message for today's fathers — especially to those who have teenagers at home: Don't let these years get away from you. Your contributions to your kids could rank as your greatest accomplishments in life — or your most oppressive failures.

Transformed at Grace

We recently completed a Transformed presentation at Grace Lutheran Church in Columbus. It was a great group and a real privilege to share with the parents and students there. Here are a few comments we received from the evaluations participants completed at the conclusion of our time there:

• “I felt all sessions were extremely helpful—even shared with my 21 year old college daughter….I really liked how scripture was used to prove points so wonderfully.” --Mom
• “I loved every session!! I think all the sessions are necessary to make a complete package…I really loved the whole program. It was so well done and up to date.” --Mom
• The most helpful? “Honesty about sexual thoughts and temptations and about how difficult a struggle it is.” --Teen male
• “The whole program helped a bunch. Very uplifting.” --Teen female
• Most helpful? “Encouragement in the common battle” --Dad
• “Loved it! Thanks so much…Homework got me thinking!’ --Dad

If you are interested in learning more about Transformed and bringing it to your church, you can go to our website or contact Lisa Newton, Director of Christian Education, at 812-378-4114 ext. 102 or toll free 866-510-5067.

"The Principle of the Path" by Andy Stanley

In every area of the PCC Ministries, one of our goals is to help others pursue God’s path for their life. We are always on the lookout for illustrations, techniques and tools that will equip us to communicate this message in effective ways. In his book, The Principle of the Path, Andy Stanley provides simple, fresh narratives that create a biblically-grounded blueprint for a successful life. He begins with a relevant story from his own life, explains the principle and then leads the reader toward applying this truth. The wisdom is subtle, maybe even a bit simplistic, but the more I think about it, the more profound and applicable to our ministry it becomes.

The principle of the path simply states, “Direction—not intention—determines destination.”

We all have dreams and desires for our future. Most of us have great intentions. But our intentions alone aren't enough to get us to our desired destination. We must be making choices and decisions that keep us moving in the right direction. Life is connected. Yesterday affects today and today will affect all our tomorrows. Our final destination is determined by the path we choose and where it leads, regardless of our intentions.

In addition to discussing this dynamic, Stanley also leads the reader through additional truths, including:
• "Prudent people look as far down the road as possible when making decisions."
• "When happiness points in one direction while wisdom, truth, integrity, and common sense point in another, that's when really smart people start doing really stupid things."
• "Your heart can't be trusted... The truth is, if you let it, your heart will direct you down a path that leads to the very spot you most want to avoid."
• "One never accomplishes the will of God by breaking the law of God, violating the principles of God, or ignoring the wisdom of God."

The book is filled with practical tools that can lead the reader to God’s best while avoiding regret filled detours along the way.

Lisa Newton
Director of Christian Education

* You can purchase this book by clicking on the title at the top of this page.

"A Tireless Servant Working Behind the Scenes Unto the Lord"

Many of you know Morris Nading as the Pregnancy Care Center’s Men’s Ministry Coordinator but last month at the National Care Net Conference in Grapevine, Texas, Morris was recognized for much more than his job title. Morris received Care Net’s 2010 Ruth Award for being a “tireless servant working behind the scenes unto the Lord.” Nominated by Annie Romine, she writes “I am floored at how much time and passion is exuberated through Morris. He is blessed with a strong sense of discernment, grace, humbleness, and faithfulness to Christ that all could learn from.”

Morris is in the Center each week working with the men who come through the door. He often prays and reads Scripture with the men as well as leads a post abortion bible study each week. He recognizes the need for truth to be presented in the lives of these men and dedicates his work to speaking that truth in a compassionate yet urgent way.

Not only does he do this well, he does it without recognition. Morris is our volunteer Men’s Ministry Coordinator and as Annie puts it would “probably be upset knowing I was submitting this nomination as he is serving in the Center solely out of his love for Christ and his desire to bring light into the darkness.” He may be upset with the recognition but it is all well deserved.

Morris, we thank you and we love you! You bring not only light into the darkness but Jesus to those who need him most. Congratulations on receiving the Ruth Award. You are a blessing to the Pregnancy Care Centers. “May the Lord repay you for what you have done. May you be richly rewarded by the Lord, the God of Israel, under whose wings you have come to take refuge.” Ruth 2:12

Meet Melanie

Melanie Dearing is the Pregnancy Care Center's new Internet Educator. She is originally from Kentucky and has worked as a Special Education Teacher both at Paris Elementary School and Bardstown High School in Kentucky. Melanie has a Bachelor of Science from Eastern Kentucky University and an Education for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing Certification from the University of Kentucky. She enjoys laughing with her husband Mark and learning with and from their three children. She also enjoys homeschooling, blogging, reading and being with her friends at A.W.A.N.A. where she volunteers. Melanie also volunteers as a small group bible study leader and with the Children’s Ministry at First Baptist Church in North Vernon. We are so excited to have Melanie as part of the PCC family. Please help us in welcoming her!

Walk for Life 2010

A big thank you to all participants, volunteers and ambassadors who made the 2010 Walk for Life a huge success. What a great day we had and so far we have raised nearly $44,000. Take a look at all the smiling faces!

One Care Net Conference Experience

Wow! Where do I begin? The opening session was a powerful speech presented by Melinda Delahoyde, president of Care Net. She encouraged us: YES, we are on the front lines of the pro-life movement! YES, we are being heard! YES, we are making an impact. Public opinion is changing. Many would then be asking—OK, what do I do now? Melinda challenged us to ask another question first—who am I going to be? How can I further surrender myself to Christ to be changed and become more like HIM? Then, I can better serve where He has called me.

We participated in daily praise and worship led by the Oak Mountain Praise and Worship Team from North Carolina. Sharing in worship with folks from across the U.S. was an awesome, joy-filled experience! We also praised God together for three new urban centers that are currently being launched in Detroit, Washington D. C. and Richmond, Virginia. The leaders of these new centers were introduced and shared their heart for the work. Another powerful testimony we had the privilege of hearing was that of Chet McDoniel who was born with no arms and shortened legs. Chet and his father shared their journey and God’s sufficiency all along the way. Chet is married and has a daughter and is filled with love for the Lord. Powerful pro-life testimony!

The workshops were very equipping for us! I took the workshops in the Client Issues Tract. The three I especially appreciated were about 1) dealing with the millennial clients— 2) helping women address childhood sexual abuse and—3) working with the negative test clients. Others in our group attended tracts for client marketing, post abortion healing, fund raising, and governing. The trip was inspirational and as I review all of my notes and handouts, I am again reminded how very blessed I am to be a part of this organization and the work that God is doing through the Pregnancy Care Centers across this country and in our community.

Judy Snow
Columbus Center Director

I Just Don't Understand

“I just don’t understand how anyone could ever do that”. I winced as I heard this statement voiced by an acquaintance. The person who made the statement was talking about abortion. Specifically, how could someone ever do that, have an abortion? I realized how a comment like this could cause tremendous harm and damage if said to a post abortive person who had not received healing. The person who made this comment was not trying to inflict guilt or pain, but words can cause much pain and suffering even without malicious intent. The old childhood ditty, “Sticks and stones can break my bones but words can never hurt me”, is untrue.

The second thing I thought about is, how do I answer that question? How do I explain why people have abortions? I tried to explain that abortion is a desperate act and that most people do not want to have an abortion, but I felt like I was trying to justify it and that frustrated me even more. The decision is never morally acceptable, no matter how much a person agonizes over the decision. Yet the more I tried to explain the more inadequate I felt in helping her understand. Even though I did not feel bruised by her comment, I was very concerned that her lack of understanding and her lack of knowledge could cause other post abortive people to feel shame and self-condemnation. These feelings could keep them from ever getting the help they needed to face their past and heal.

The comment was a few years ago and since that time I have had many instances to talk about abortion and why people choose abortion. Simply put, abortion is sin. I retyped the comment made above and instead of the word “that” I put the word “sin” in its place, “I just don’t understand how anyone could sin.” Now, how does the statement sound? Hurtful, condemning, self-righteous? I believe the comment was made with no intent to wound but no matter the intent, we hear condemnation.

As lovers of Christ, we strive to be very careful with our words. We do not want to say anything that would cause anyone to feel judgment or condemnation. We are here to offer hope and restoration. The world is a place of unforgiveness and pain but when our clients walk into our Centers; they have entered a safe place, a place where the light of Christ shines. You’ve heard the following cliché’ many times, but it’s true,” you are the light of the world”. Christ is in us and we share Him with those we meet.

We choose our words carefully. We build up, not tear down. We love unconditionally. We don’t question why someone sins; we simply open our arms and show them the way to sin no more. That way is through God’s Son, Jesus.

By Chris Bullock
Abortion Recovery Coordinator

Real Life...Real Answers

When asked what was most helpful from the Transformed workshop in which he and his family had just participated, a teen male wrote on his evaluation, “The honesty about sexual thoughts and temptations and about how difficult a struggle it is.”

What a privilege to be a part of a ministry that strives to provide open, honest dialogue about real life with real answers. Families are incredibly vulnerable to our culture’s ability to shape their values, attitudes and behaviors—especially in the area of sexuality. Unfortunately, the public image of sex in America bears virtually no relationship to the truth. That is one of the reasons we at the PCC find it so important to support churches in their efforts to equip families to have effective, age appropriate conversations about sex in loving and spiritually mature ways.

Information alone seldom changes behavior—but truth in the context of relationships (within both families and church families) is powerful. 9 out of 10 teens surveyed said it would be much easier to postpone sex if they could have real conversations with their parents. The PCC is committed to providing opportunities for these conversations to happen.

“We know that the Son of God came so we could recognize and understand the truth of God—what a Gift!...This Jesus is both True God and Real Life.” 1 John 5:20 (The Message)


Lisa Newton
Director of Christian Education

The Photo that Grasped the World

For me it still seems like yesterday—August 19, 1999. While on assignment at Vanderbilt University Medical Center the click of my camera’s shutter changed my life forever.

Dr. Joseph Bruner was performing fetal surgery for spina bifida on Samuel Armus—at just 21 weeks gestation—as I was shooting photos for USA Today. Suddenly I saw the uterus shake and little Samuel’s fist force its way out. His tiny arm flailed about and when the doctor squeezed his hand Samuel responded, squeezing back.

I fired my camera and was mesmerized as the more Samuel squeezed, the harder Dr. Bruner pulled. My camera was capturing the earliest human interaction ever seen on film.

Here in the states, I was originally told the photo—though miraculous—was too graphic for the U.S. literary market. On Sept. 7, 1999 however, USA Today ran the photo and it soon spread across the globe. In Europe a media firestorm spread regarding the photograph that came to be known as The Hand of Hope.

Much later Dr. Bruner would claim Samuel was under anesthesia and could not have reached out, saying he alone was responsible for creating a staged photo.

I’m sure Dr. Bruner has reasons for his version of history. Was Samuel under anesthesia as Dr. Bruner claims? Perhaps; as I’m no expert. Yet I saw—with my own eyes and my camera—a little fist burst forth on its own. After seeing the miracle of pre-born life, my world—and my viewpoint—would never be the same.

Samuel—the most important person in this story—is now ten and doing well. He is a joy to visit with, exuding optimism at every turn. Samuel knows—as do I—that his photograph is changing hearts every day.

As I share my story at pro-life events around the world, one of the greatest blessings is seeing first-hand the importance of pregnancy resource centers. At these ministries, men and women—many for the first time—experience true compassion. And these ministries—just like a photo of a child grasping hope—are winning hearts and saving lives.

Michael Clancy is an award-winning photojournalist and frequent speaker at prolife events. His story can be found on the web at MichaelClancy.com. Photo and Article used with permission from Michael Clancy.

Meet Melissa

Melissa Morrow is the newest addition to the PCC family and will be filling the role of Administrative Assistant. She is a native of Indiana, born and raised in Indianapolis but has also spent time in Denton, Texas. She is currently continuing her bachelor degree in chemistry at Butler University. Melissa is very gifted musically and actually met her husband, Nick, while playing the cello. Since then they have started a band called Quick Said the Bird. Melissa and Nick have one son, Lincoln, who was born last September and has been a wonderful blessing to their family. We are so excited to have Melissa at the Pregnancy Care Center. Please help us in welcoming her!

The Dark

I was on a mission for my mother the other day and had visited one of those fragrance stores; you know the kind that has scented everything from candles that smell like food ingredients to soaps that smell like flowers of which you have never even heard? I had searched, picked and plucked through 432 fragrances to find what I was asked to get and at the check-out counter it caught my eye: The Dark Kiss.

Touted as the new, “dangerously sexy fragrance” the Dark Kiss is “daring and seductive.” It is a “tempting” blend made up of “sensual” ingredients. I seriously looked around for a card-board cut-out of Satan standing there grinning. What is this generation’s fascination with the “dark?”

What happened to the light? What ever happened to brilliant and bright? What happened to protected and safe, lovely and beautiful, joyful and pure?

Outdated you say? NEVER! This generation is inundated with dark images and many drag themselves out from dark circumstances in dark homes to be about their daily lives looking for all those adjectives that go with light. Most of us have had a good dose of danger and I don’t know about you but I’m sick of being tempted and seduced! Who couldn’t use a good dose of light? After all; Joy comes in the morning! You know why? Because that’s when the Son comes up!

Tracey Pike, Director of Community Education

Dressing Up to Play the Part

Recently First Baptist Church in Shelbyville embarked on a Baby Bottle Campaign during their Vacation Bible School. The goal was to raise $700 for the Pregnancy Care Center but Larry Fisher had a bigger goal. He not only wanted to raise money for the PCC but to get the students excited about the ministry. So Larry promised to dress up like a baby if their VBS goal was reached and as you can tell he makes a pretty good baby. Such dedication!

If your church is interested in participating in a Baby Bottle Campaign you can contact Abby Glasser at abbyg@affirminglifeonline.org or call the office at 812-378-4114 or toll free at 866-510-5067. We won’t make you dress up like a baby…we promise!

Abby Glasser, Events Coordinator

Back to School With Reality Show Perspective

In the unscripted reality show Big Brother, numerous “house guests” live in the same house for months and vote to evict one member a week until there is only one person left: the winner. The most fascinating part of the “game” is that the house guests are cut-off from all communication with the world outside the house in which they live. Because of this isolation, the contestants begin to view the small drama that unfolds within the house far more seriously than those of us living with a larger world view.

The loss of a “big-picture” perspective has house-guests in the Big Brother house behaving out of character by their own admission. I think most of us tend to do that at times in our lives; especially when in stressful situations or problems arise. With such a narrow focus we tend to make selfish or poor choices out of character with who we really are.

Many of today’s teens are inundated with an “it’s all about me” attitude by our culture. With that narrow of perspective can you imagine how the drama of wading through the emotions, hormones and challenges of the teen years could be difficult resulting in many making poor choices out of character of who they are and want to be?

Pregnancy Care Center will walk into hundreds of classrooms in approximately 42 schools in 7 counties this school year to give young people perspective. Overwhelmingly, they are grateful for a good dose. They are eager to learn how to make decisions from truth rather than emotions. They will be challenged to keep perspective that decisions made today will affect their entire lives. Tools will be given to help recognize what they are; precious and valuable. Please join us in prayer for the back-to-school teens and pre-teens as we war with the culture against the “me” mentality and short-sightedness that destroys.

Tracey Pike, Director of Community Education

Another Great Day on the Golf Course

Last Monday, 235 golfers joined together at Otter Creek Golf Course to raise funds for the PCC Ministry. While it was an extremely hot day, the golfers were excited to be there, supporting a cause they love. Through sponsorships and pledges, more than $78,300 was raised. While we did not meet our budget of $83,000, we are blessed by the generosity of the businesses, churches, and individuals who gave sacrificially to support the event.

The winning men’s team was Greg Harter, John Fairbanks, Tom LaBarbera and Jeff Smith with a score of 50. The winning women’s team was Judy Jones, Marilyn Jerman, Lainie Horn and Julia Marshall with a score of 70.

Steve Fisher raised the most in pledges for the ministry with a total of $2,390 while Brent Whitson came in second with $1,885.

Thanks to the golf captains, golfers, sponsors and staff at Otter Creek for a great day!

Thank you VBS!

A big thank you to all the churches that chose the Pregnancy Care Centers for their Vacation Bible School Mission Support Project this summer. Over $650 was raised for the PCC, which is already being put to use in our centers, churches and schools. We greatly appreciate all your support.

Flintwood Wesleyan Church
Cornerstone Baptist Church
St. Bartholomew Catholic Church
St. John Lutheran Church at White Creek
Zion Lutheran Church
Calvary Baptist Church
Immanuel Lutheran Church
First Baptist Church in Seymour
Calvary Baptist Hispanic Church
Redeemer Lutheran Church
New Life Community Church
Fairland Christian Church
Fairland United Methodist Church

Message in a Bottle

Message in a Bottle

Last year over 100 churches completed a Baby Bottle Campaign, over 12,500 bottles were distributed and over $70,000 was raised. Many times we might receive checks or cash in the bottles instead of coins, however, in one bottle we received a special message from one of our donors. His note read: “I am adopted—so, that means I was not aborted. Now I was born in 1942 and I don’t know how many abortions were being done back then—but probably not many and as a result I was lucky to be adopted. I have never been able to find out who my biological parents are—the records were not kept very well back then with the war going on and all. The Lord blessed me and I am a Christian believer. I know this money will go to good use. In Christ’s Love.”

How great it was to find that message. Praise God for that mother who chose life for her son and for the family who adopted him. Even in 1942 God was at work in the lives of moms, dads and babies; not to mention families wanting to adopt babies. The donor called it luck that he was adopted and not aborted, but God would say it was simply His will being done. Now 68 years later we see how God’s will is always good, pleasing and perfect (Romans 12:2).

Abby Glasser

The Spill that Steals

If you own a television and have turned it on even once in the last two months, undoubtedly you've seen it. You've probably been as horrified as me watching the images of black, sticky crud violently spewing from the center of the earth into the beautiful, clear creation of God.

If you thought that the previous paragraph was about the BP oil spill, it wasn't! The images of the oil disaster are simply a perfect physical picture of the spiritual darkness spewing form the center of the earth into crystal clear creation threatening to pollute and steal the pure thoughts, mind and breath from all life it touches. The majority of our media and entertainment industry plays a unique roll in facilitating such dark, poisoning crud.

A key concept to all that we do at Pregnancy Care Center is to reveal the truth that concentrating only on the physical aspects of anything has us missing a huge part of the truth. Physically; there truly is a disastrous amount of dark "crud" spewing into culture. Ignoring the mental, emotional, social and spiritual aspect of any physical reality keeps us shallow and unhealthy; covered with a coat of crud that threatens to steal our lives. PCC is about the business of addressing disasters such as the effects of a massive "oil spill" of a more massive measure on a daily basis. The great news is we have a cleansing Savior that promises beauty for ashes!

Please join us in the clean-up effort! Whether financially, with your time, or with your talents, will you take a moment to pray about what role God would have you play to help mankind avert future, further disaster?

Tracey Pike, Director of Abstinence Education

Finding Forgiveness and Hope

This is an excerpt from the Abortion Recovery Bible Study, Prayer Intercessor Letter.

"Faith" seems to be glowing with the Holy Spirit. Her “breakthrough” last week has helped her to see more and more pieces of her life and how the many hurts and losses led her to sin. She has confessed her past sins and finds peace in knowing God has forgiven her. She stated she felt as if “a thousand pounds were lifted off her shoulders”.

She said the past week her soul has been grieving. But this is a cleansing for her and she feels relief and peace. She has never cried before like she has cried and it feels good to be able to release what she has always felt but she has never been able to express or let go until now.

Only God can do this and we praise Him! She is now working on forgiveness of those who have hurt her. She asks you to please pray she will be able to forgive all who have hurt her and that she will be able to let go of the hurt and pain. Pray too God will continue to reveal past memories necessary for her healing.

Join us in praying God's continued healing in the life of "Faith" and the other men and women currently going through the Forgiven and Set Free Bible Studies.

Old Book Brings New Possibilities

When material assistance volunteer Donna Gividen came across a Little Red Riding Hood Golden Book while sorting donations at the Bartholomew County Center, she had a hunch it was worth more than the 29 cent label on the cover.

"While the back cover had been ripped off, none of the pages had been cut out," Donna said referring to the fact that the book was filled with punch out paper dolls.

So she took the book to her friend Judy Bowman who deals frequently with Antiques. She told Donna that the book was a rare find indeed and offered to sell it for the PCC. The final bid? $50! That one little book was multiplied to allow us to purchase many little books for babies of our clients. What a find!

Driving Up Donations

Have a car you don’t need anymore? Don’t know quite what to do with it?

Avoid the numerous hassles of selling / trade-ins and help keep our ministry alive by donating your vehicle through our giving partner, idonate. Why?

- CONVENIENCE: you’ll receive free nationwide pick-up
- TAX DEDUCTION: based on the current IRS tax laws
- SIMPLICITY: avoid the hassle of resale or trade-in
- MAKE A DIFFERENCE FOR GOOD: your donation will support our ministry

Our new giving process couldn’t be easier! All you need to do is gather your vehicle’s make, model, vehicle identification number and current mileage.

Visit our giving website and follow the steps to quickly submit your vehicle donation online. idonate will handle the rest of the details - turning your vehicle into a cash gift to our ministry. Questions? Call Abby at 812-378-4114.

Thanks for partnering with us so we can continue the work God has called us to do.

The Power of One

This may sound drippy, but have you ever sat down and thought about your impact on the lives of others? In the movie It's a Wonderful Life — one of my favorites I refer to often — we see the story of George Bailey, who through a series of events comes to see how incredibly vital he is to those around him.

We don't have an opportunity to go through town with an angel, showing us what life would be like without us. Instead we see through the glass darkly, as Paul says in I Corinthians 13. Yet even though we can't see it all, we do have God's promises, and story after story in Scripture of those who changed history by simply following God.

When we read these stories let's keep in mind that David was not "David" when he was out in the fields with the sheep. He wasn't out there thinking, "Well, this is the tough part of life, but one day the books of Samuel will chronicle my life for everyone to see." And Moses — when he faced down Pharaoh — had certainly heard from God but could not say, "Wow, Exodus is going to be a great book when this story hits the press." Moving to the New Testament, what about Peter? When he was denying the Lord, he wasn't thinking about how his would be a grand story of redemption. Peter was frightened and he denied the Lord rather than risk his life, not knowing whether he had any future at all. Later he would preach one of the most effective sermons of all time, in the Book of Acts. Even then, he had no idea of the impact of his life. Nor did Stephen, who died at the hands of his persecutors. Or Saul, who became Paul. They were all regular people loving and serving God in any way they could.

And that's us. We too are regular folks, doing what we believe are simple acts of faithfulness in a love relationship with our Leader, the Lord Jesus Christ. When times get tough, let's keep in mind that we have some great company. There won't be another Bible to chronicle our lives, but there is a cloud of witnesses (Heb. 12:1). And as we serve, they smile.

Kirk Walden

Ambassadors....the connection between the church and the Center!

Recently at the Pregnancy Care Center we looked deeper into the purpose of an Ambassador. One could easily define an ambassador as a messenger or spokesperson. However, when looking at the role of a Pregnancy Care Center ambassador it is much more than a spokesperson.

Since working with and getting to know our ambassadors I have come to realize these are amazing people whom love their church and are passionate about the work of the PCC. Many would say “I know I can’t do it all but I can do something” and that is all it takes.

An ambassador of the Pregnancy Care Center is the connection between the local church and the Center and therefore is crucial to the ministry of the PCC. It is through the ambassador that the Center accomplishes four things:

1. Ambassadors help the PCC become integrated and anchored within the church.
2. As a strong relationship develops between the PCC and your church, PCC can refer clients to your church.
3. Ambassadors help us find ways to assist your church in its stand for the sanctity of human life.
4. Ambassadors share information about PCC programs with members of their church so they can receive our services.

If your church does not have an ambassador and you would like to get involved please contact us. Being an ambassador is a great way to serve not only the Pregnancy Care Center but also those you worship with. It requires a little amount of time but can make a significant impact and be incredibly fulfilling.

Abby Glasser, Administrative Assistant