(Photo courtesy Life Matters Worldwide via Facebook)
International (MNN) — What comes to mind when you hear the term “sanctity of life”? For many, it’s fighting abortion. But at Life Matters Worldwide, the phrase offers so much more.
“We understand from a Biblical perspective that it’s talking about life’s continuum from conception to natural death. And how do we treat people? How do we think about people? Do we respect them as image bearers of God, especially amongst believers in Christ,” asks Tom Lothamer with Life Matters.
So if all life matters, and there’s so much need, where’s the starting mark? Lothamer suggests looking inside your own church.
“We think about the end-of-life ministries, where the body–the Church, the church community–is caring for their own: those who are elderly, chronically or terminally ill, who have great physical struggles. It’s an opportunity and a blessing to serve them and their caregivers, the family loved ones,” explains Lothamer.
(Photo courtesy Life Matters Worldwide via Facebook)
Helping can be as simple as fixing something around the house for an elderly neighbor, staying over so a loved one can get some rest, or just taking time to visit. But it also means being a safe haven for people who are hurting.
“We have young women in our churches all over the country that are pregnant, not married, and they feel lost, alone. They maybe feel pressured to get an abortion, and so we want our churches to be able to understand that so they can truly minister to them and help them to choose life,” says Lothamer.
So really, it all boils down to this: “It’s caring for them for their spiritual, emotional, and physical needs that they have at that time,” Lothamer says. As Christians, it’s our responsibility to take care of those whom God has given breath.
How to Help
- Check out Life Matters Worldwide website here for information.
- Talk to your pastor about how to minister to others in relation to the sanctity of life.
- Connect with people who are struggling.
