Maria felt exhausted.
She had not experienced this kind of nausea since she was pregnant with her youngest daughter, almost ten years ago.
She wondered if it was simply stress.
The possibility of pregnancy seemed too difficult to even consider.
The past few weeks had seemed like total chaos.
Maria’s alcoholic husband had left her and their children.
One part of Maria felt a sense of relief that she and her children would no longer be subject to the fear and anxiety caused by his addiction.
Another part of her was deeply overwhelmed by the thought of raising her three children, two pre-teens and one nine-year-old, on her own.
Weeks passed, and the nausea remained.
Maria finally decided to buy a pregnancy test.
She watched as the test began to clearly read “positive.”
The only emotion Maria could feel was dread.
She threw away the test and picked up her phone, searching Google for abortion information.
Maria clicked on a Heroic Media ad, connected to our Pregnancy Help Center partner in Los Angeles, and made an appointment.
Maria walked into her appointment determined to get an abortion.
She sat down with her counselor and began sharing everything.
She unveiled the pain of her husband’s alcoholism and the deep fear that she would not be able to provide for her three children.
Having a newborn seemed like adding an impossible situation on top of an already-impossible situation.
The counselor shared with Maria the risks of abortion, emotionally and physically, alternatives to abortion, and the support the center could provide for both Maria and for her family.
Maria told the counselor she would need time to think about her decision.
A few weeks later, she told her counselor she had chosen life for her child!
Having someone listen to her and offer to walk alongside her had made all the difference, changing her life and saving her child.
Praise God for Maria’s courage and hope!
Mark 10:27: “Jesus looked at them and said, ‘With man it is impossible, but not with God. For all things are possible with God.’”
