Dear Friends,
I am reminded today of the journey for women who are tempted by abortion and the struggles they face in their “deserts” when I read this Sunday’s Lenten Gospel about Jesus.
Jesus was filled with the Holy Spirit and was led into the desert to be tempted.
It reminds me especially a woman named Christa. Christa had a very troubled childhood. Her parents were separated when she was young because of her mother’s drug addiction.
Her father took her away from that toxic environment to raise her in the best way he knew how, he worked hard, and was a wonderful and loving parent.
One day, he came home from work, saying he didn't feel well. Three days later he was dead.
At age 16, Christa was on her own.
She was in her desert. A real wilderness, and she was a real wild woman!
She was tempted following the wrong crowd, and spent years in and out of juvenile (jail).
It was in this desert of loneliness that she found herself with an unplanned pregnancy.
That’s when the Holy Spirit led her to the Women’s Center. God had a plan!
At this time in her life, Christa felt that the world was a cruel and cold place, and she did not know what Compassion was.
Thanks to you she experienced compassion for the first time since her father had died.
She felt the strength that compassion from someone filled with the Holy Spirit can provide.
She chose life for her baby. Her baby changed her life!
The baby is her blessing!
Christa’s journey continues, and she knows that there is a place of compassion and Mercy for her and her baby. She says, “I finally feel like I have a family and a home at the Women’s Center”
You have walked with Christa and please continue to pray for her as she builds her life.
We remember that God encounters us with His compassion and forgiveness no matter how far we have drifted from Him.
Jesus was filled with the Holy Spirit and stood on His Word to battle the temptations of the devil...
May you have the blessing of the Holy Spirit while you journey through the desert with our Lord this Lent!
In Christ,
-Marie Joseph
