Article written by Austin Marshall on November 7th, 2011.  

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I know it’s been a while since I have posted anything, but I wanted to take this time to write a few things down. I wanted to write about some things that God has placed on my heart. These are some things that have torn lives and families apart. But, before I go any further, I want to clarify that what I say in this article has nothing to do with political issues, debates, or any other issues that may arise with this subject. This is simply a reflection of my Heart and the Issues that God has place on it.

On Saturday November 5th 2011, I voted yes… What did I vote yes for, I voted yes to Proposition 26… However, I didn’t just vote yes to an amendment to our state constitution, I voted yes to life. You might ask yourself, “why does all this matter, and why do I care about reading what you have to say?”  Well, quite frankly, it don’t… What matters is what God has to say about the issue, but first, I want to take a moment to talk about four similar stories that have affected me both directly and indirectly. These stories are all true, and have happened within my life.

Grant at one of his baseball games

This is Grant, he is the son of two predominate people in my life. However, he isn’t their biological son. See, Grant is adopted. His story starts a few years back. Grant was born to an unstable mother, not long after his birth. He was soon taken under the foster care of Mike and Amy. Not long after, Mike and Amy were given a chance to legally adopt little Grant. Not much is know about Grant’s biological parents, but what we do know is that Grant was given a chance. I’m pretty sure that his mom was given several options as far as how to deal with him. I can’t speak on the behalf of his biological mom and the issues she faced, but what I can say is that she made the right choice. Grant’s mom gave him a chance! I say these things, only to tell you that Grant is one of the biggest people of influence in my life. He might only be a young boy, but he has shown me more then I could ever imagine. I have always heard that “you will never know how much influence you will have on a person’s life”, and I think this is the case with him.  See, grant and me have been buds for a while. I have been given the chance to keep him, and to help out around their house. You might ask, “why are you telling me about keeping him?” well, I tell you this because grant and his little brother Jacob, whom you will learn about later, have not only taught me about myself, and how God wants to use me in the lives of others, but they have also taught me a little bit about being a father… A father! Yes, they have taught me how to be a dad. Mark Driscoll, a very predominate pastor of Mars Hill Church, tells young newly weds, and even young single men and women to help the parents of children. Driscoll says that we should do this, not only to teach young people about parenting, but also to help the family of God out by giving them a time to spend together. Well, Mike and Amy have given a few friends and I that chance…

Grant’s story doesn’t stop here. He has also been a major source of encouragement for me in certain times of my life. I remember sitting at church one day and I had my computer zoomed in, being that I’m legally blind, it’s zoomed in a pretty good bit, but that’s not what I’m here to discuss. I remember sitting there and hearing the words of some of my really good friends making fun of me (I actually encourage it…). Grant walks up to me and says, “Austin, God made you blind for a reason, He wants people to see what He can do through you, and when you get to heaven you wont be blind anymore…” That one statement buy a small little boy that was given a chance, has stuck with me for the past few years. There has been several more occasions that Grant has done such a thing, but my point here is that God has used a small boy to influence so many people’s lives. This is all done because Grant was given a chance… Not only by his biological mom, his adopted parents, but also a chance of life by his Heavenly Father as well.

This is Jacob showing us how many easter eggs he found

This is Jacob. Jacob is also the adopted son of Mike and Amy. Jacob’s story is a little different. Jacob was also born due to an unplanned pregnancy. Jacob’s mom, however, was also faced with the same challenges many other young unwedded moms face. Where Jacob’s story I different comes into play with the choices his mom was about to make. See, Jacob’s mom had made the decision to have him aborted. She had even gone as far as going to a clinic to discuss the process. However, she wasn’t able to deal with the issue of losing her son that way. She then made the decision to continue to carry Jacob until he was born. Jacob’s mom soon got into contact with Mike and Amy through a mutual friend. They soon made the decision to adopt Jacob at birth, through much prayer and talking with God. Soon after the decision was made, Jacob was born. Again, I don’t know that much about his biological parents, but I do know that his mom had been given two options. After a decision, she chose the right option. She chose to give her son a chance…

Jacob’s influence on me is just as powerful as his older brother’s. He might only be three, but what an awesome guy… Like Grant, Jacob is also a great source of encouragement to me. Not just because he is a precious little boy that loves to help people, break things (we call him bam bam…), and to do the things that little boys like to do, but quite simply because he was given a chance….  He was given a chance not only by his mom, but also by God. Jacob’s story is one of many. He has also encouraged me, and in many ways, but the thing that strikes me most about his story, is quite simply that. He was just an innocent child that was given a chance to live.

This is a still shot of Landri, we don't get many chances to take one...

This is Landri. Landri is the daughter of Savannah. This story is a very personal story. First of all, Savannah is my cousin. She is a young unwed mother who had an “accidental” pregnancy. However, there is nothing accidental about Landri, nor her mom. Landri’s story is a little different then Grant and Jacob’s. Savannah wasn’t given the option of abortion. I boldly remember her telling me “even given the option, I wouldn’t have even considered it, simply for the fact that I will not kill my innocent child for the mistake that I have made.” Landri came into our lives about three years ago. She has not only a great story to tell because she was given a chance, but she has also had a major impact on the lives of our family. I go back to my original statement about having influence in someone’s life. I don’t think Landri will ever know how much she has affected this family. Not only has she brought lots of joy and laughs to all of our lives, but also she has been used by God to bring our family closer to each other, and ultimately to Him. Savannah’s family has been through a few rough patches, but since the birth of Landri, they have since re-patched things. I say this to say that Landri’s birth was far from accidental… God had a plan for the whole situation, and in that plan was Savannah, Savannah gave her precious little daughter a chance.

This is Jesus... God's ultimate Chance for us to Have life after death

This is Jesus. He is the Son of God. His story is quite different then the other three that I have discussed. See, He was given a chance just like the other three stories, but what makes His story different, and more powerful isn’t that His mother Mary gave him a chance; it’s the fact that He gives us a Chance… a chance at Life… You might ask yourself “what does this have to do with the other stories, and how does Him giving me a chance have to do with the above?” Well, the simple fact that the three mothers in the above stories gave their innocent children a chance regardless of the mistakes that they had made. Christ’s story is only different in the fact that He is the one giving the chances to us. The Bible says in Romans 3:23 that “all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.” See, we are all born sinners, and Christ was born so that we would be given a chance. I go back to the end of each story; I wrote that each child was also been given a chance by God. This is the Chance that He gave them. Not only a chance to live here on earth, but also a chance at eternal life… God gives us all that same chance, a chance at life after death.

God gave us a chance through the birth of his son, just like the mothers of the three children did. Please note that I am not comparing them to God or vise versa, I guess my point is that God gives us the same chance at life.

Now, how does all of this relate to me voting yes on that day? Well, by voting yes to proposition 26, you are saying that life begins at conception.  In a nutshell, you are giving an unborn child a chance. The three stories are similar in the fact that chances were given to people that were the product of sin. You might ask how Christ is a product of sin; well He is a product of our sin. He was sent to die for us so we would have a chance at life.

My whole point in this is not to be political, or even politically correct. It’s to show you that by voting yes to 26, you are giving innocent children “a chance”. Jesus gave us a chance at life, why shouldn’t you be able to give an innocent child a chance. By voting yes on 26, you are giving someone that chance.

All stories in this article are told with the consent of the Legal Guardian of the subjects mentioned. All stories are also true real life accounts that have actually happened.