I graduated Yay! 36 hours of training and assessment for being a volunteer at the Whatcom County Pregnancy Clinic.

It’s kind of scary, because I still don’t feel prepared to handle all the challenges that will surely come as I meet with clients and help them sort through their options, and help prepare them for motherhood.

The ladies on staff at the Clinic are awesome: godly, skilled, affirming, deeply caring and compassionate. Really, they’re warriors surrounded by a hostile environment that would like very much to shut down the clinic.

During our six-hour per day training sessions, we opened with a Bible study on Ephesians 6:

“Finally, be strong in the Lord and in His mighty power. Put on the full armor of God so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes. 

Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the Word of God. And pray…”

None of God’s protective blessings comes from me. My job is to choose to walk in His power, not my own.

And that is my great comfort. That my work at the clinic does not depend on me. God does the work of changing hearts.

When I get this mixed up and start thinking it all depends on me, my peace flies out the window.

• The truth that I can stand on is not my truth; it’s God’s truth
• The breastplate of righteousness has nothing to do with anything good I’ve done. (Hah!) It’s the righteousness of Jesus, covering my most vital body parts.
• The gospel of peace isn’t my personal message of how I found peace (even though my story might be powerful), but God’s provision of reconciliation and peace we can have with Him because of what Jesus Christ did on the cross.
• The shield of faith isn’t something I can muster. That, too, is a gift from God.
• The helmet of salvation protects my head, where every wayward thought and feeling once separated me from God.
• And the sword of the Spirit—the Word of God—speaks God’s thoughts, not mine.

Again, I say, what a comfort!

“Lord, You are holy; may Your kingdom come and Your will be done. And may I simply be faithful to do whatever it is You want me to do each day.”