We’ve all at least seen a video of this. Maybe you have experienced it firsthand. You’re tabling on a campus, looking to have productive dialogue about abortion. A pro-choice person marches up and starts loudly accusing you of trying to control women, telling you that women need choices or that a fetus is just a clump of cells. You make one remark in response, and it’s met immediately with another stream of objections. As intimidating as this can be, what we don’t want to do is shut off the conversation. We want every person to see the value of human life, even the person who seems very uninterested in hearing about it. So what can we do to help the encounter move from a battle of smart remarks to a productive dialogue about the issue of abortion? Read through this infographic brochure to learn tips about how to have charitable conversations. PDF and physical print options available below.
Sometimes it’s easy to be a Gospel-motivated voice For Life. You simply wait for God to open a door, and then you walk right through. But sometimes God opens doors to paths we’d rather not travel, paths with life issues we weren’t expecting, life issues we’re sure we’re really not ready for …. Like hearing a close friend has terminal cancer. Or discovering a child has been diagnosed with a life-altering disability. Or sitting next to a woman on a plane who looks you straight in the eye and says, “I used to have a niece, but now I have a nephew. And my other nephew started saying he was a girl when he was three, so he transitioned early.” It’s tempting to jump off the path, to shut your eyes and hide from the issues. Weighed down by sin and death and brokenness in a fallen world, life issues can be heavy, and responding to them with a Gospel-motivated voice often means saying things that are both counter-cultural and unpopular. Yet … “God gave us a spirit not of fear, but of power and love and self-control” (2 Timothy 1:7). Yes, God’s Word is pretty clear: We’re called to speak the truth in love so that we might win our neighbor, and in so doing, bring him to Jesus. Read through our C.A.L.V.A.R.Y. infographic to learn more about a life-affirming approach to conversations about life issues. PDF and physical print options available below.
Need an easy way to refer back to the acronym C.A.L.V.A.R.Y.? We’ve made a quick reference for you with this downloadable poster! As you seek to be a Gospel-motivated voice, use the acronym C.A.L.V.A.R.Y. to engage in conversations from a life affirming approach. PDF and physical print options available below.
Downloadable and FREE, Teaching For Life is a unique, Gospel-centered, curriculum supplement designed to help Lutheran school teachers apply God’s word to life issues! Designed for pre-school through eighth grade teachers, this supplement teaches nine truths about life and provides age-appropriate ideas for integrating these truths into each content area.
Lesson Plans 4 Life are ready-made lesson plans for the high school classroom or youth room. Each lesson plan has a leader guide full of facts, discussion starters, and Bible verses to support a Gospel-motivated approach to the given life issue. PowerPoint Slides and supplemental materials are available with the purchase of all digital copies of Lesson Plans 4 Life. Printed copies of Lesson Plans 4 Life are also available for teacher use (shipping included in the price of the lesson plan).
Available as either digital downloads or physical kits, Y4Life Kits are designed for youth leaders to use as they address life issues from a Gospel-motivated perspective. Each kit includes basic information about the topic in relation to life issues as well as facts and talking points that encourage honest, thought-provoking discussion with youth. In addition to educational materials, each kit provides an activity youth can engage in (directions included!) and at least one alternate activity you can use to make the event your own.
Ready to start creating your summer reading list? Check out this resource! Whether you’re a lover of fiction or non-fiction, these books will not only help you sharpen your Christian perspective but also better equip you to recognize life issues and respond to them courageously from a life-affirming, Gospel-motivated perspective.
“A Lutheran Catechism on Abortion and Life,” by David A. Kaufmann, Ph.D., F.A.C.S.M., offers a question and answer primer on abortion and life in a format similar to Luther’s Small Catechism. This booklet has unlimited educational use!
Life issues didn’t arise overnight. Their frequent connection to medical technology can make them seem like recent developments, and advances in understanding physiology and pharmaceuticals have made abortion and euthanasia more efficient and available of late. But these circumstances have been causing society’s difficulties – and providing opportunities to proclaim the Gospel – since ancient times. Even Martin Luther applied his voice to life issues! Luther promoted marriage, encouraged childbearing, and praised parenting. He concluded even unborn babies qualified as full-fledged human beings.
Speaker: Michelle Bauman, former Director of Y4Life
Topic: Being a Gospel-motivated voice for life
Speaker: Rev. Trevor Sutton
Topic: Difficult conversations via social media
Speaker: Josh Brahm, Co-founder of Equal Rights Institute
Topic: Advocacy, Compassionate Conversations
