Speaker once needed help

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id you know that the Center for Disease Control reported over 600,000 abortions in 2018? While that may sound like just a statistic, the number represents the more than half a million unborn babies deprived of their right to life each year. For a nation that promises to protect everyone’s right to pursue life, liberty and happiness, we seem to be doing a very poor job. However, the story doesn’t have to end there. Many people across America are working together to defend the lives of the unborn, and the citizens of Weston County are no different. 
I recently had the opportunity to attend a banquet hosted by the Weston County Right to Life chapter at the Weston County Senior Center on Wednesday, July 14, at 6 p.m. It was a carry-in dinner. While enjoying a delicious meal and good fellowship, we heard the testimony of Tracy Barber, who is the development director at the Women’s Resource Center in Gillette. 
Barber shared her life story from childhood to adulthood, and the transformation she experienced was absolutely incredible. While she grew up knowing about God, she said, she wasn’t raised with an understanding of just who Jesus is and what he did — she was missing that personal relationship with him. While she was in college, Barber became pregnant, and she was unsure of what to do. Before she could decide, however, the pregnancy ended in a miscarriage, which at the time was to her relief. 
But then she became pregnant a second time. After weighing her options, she decided to have an abortion so that she wouldn’t have to deal with the shame and burden of an unplanned pregnancy. Later in life, Barber said, she dealt with a lot of guilt and regret over her decision. That’s when she decided to turn her life over to Jesus. She began attending post-abortive Bible study programs to help with the healing process, and in Christ, she found forgiveness and hope.
It was a complete turnaround of her life. First, she was a promiscuous college student who had an abortion, and now she works at the Women’s Resource Center as part of a team that helps women who are dealing with unplanned pregnancies to offer alternative options to abortion and to give birth to their babies. Barber has even led post-abortive Bible study programs to help women heal from the same guilt she experienced. Now, she is  married with kids of her own, and as part of the healing process, she gave names to her unborn children. Callie was her miscarried daughter, and Gabriel was the name the one she chose to abort. 
For me, what made her testimony so amazing was the powerful redemption of Jesus Christ. It was such an important reminder that Jesus can truly change the lives of anyone and offer healing to those who seek it. I want people to know that the pro-life movement isn’t here just to be a voice for the unborn; we also want to support mothers who have had an abortion so that they too might be healed and forgiven in a way that only Jesus can. While physical life on earth is precious and worth protecting, the eternal destiny is of far greater importance. The souls of those mothers are just as important as the lives of the unborn. 
So, if you are dealing with the same guilt Barber was — or even something completely different because everybody has their own story — I encourage you to turn your heart to Jesus for only true forgiveness and healing can be found in him. I guarantee that He’ll change your life — for the better. 
If you would like know more about the Weston County Right to Life chapter, visit its Facebook page, and it will keep you informed about upcoming events and meetings and how to get involved.