40 Days for Life - Day 3 Devotional

http://40daysforlife.com/blog

Today's devotional was prepared for you by Fr. Frank
Pavone, the national director of Priests for Life...

------------------------------------------------------
DAY 3 INTENTION
------------------------------------------------------

May God's people understand that the Lazarus of the
21st Century is the unborn child, and respond
accordingly.

------------------------------------------------------
SCRIPTURE
------------------------------------------------------

There was a rich man who was dressed in purple and
fine linen and lived in luxury every day. At his gate
was laid a beggar named Lazarus, covered with sores
and longing to eat what fell from the rich man's
table. Even the dogs came and licked his sores.

The time came when the beggar died and the angels
carried him to Abraham's side. The rich man also died
and was buried. In hell, where he was in torment, he
looked up and saw Abraham far away, with Lazarus by
his side.

So he called to him, "Father Abraham, have pity on me
and send Lazarus to dip the tip of his finger in water
and cool my tongue, because I am in agony in this
fire."

But Abraham replied, "Son, remember that in your
lifetime you received your good things, while Lazarus
received bad things, but now he is comforted here and
you are in agony.

"And besides all this, between us and you a great
chasm has been fixed, so that those who want to go
from here to you cannot, nor can anyone cross over
from there to us."

-- Luke 16:19-31

------------------------------------------------------
REFLECTION by Fr. Frank Pavone, Priests for Life
------------------------------------------------------

The rich man did not go to hell because he was rich.
He went to hell because he ignored the other man. He
thought that because Lazarus had less, that he was
worth less.

He failed to recognize that Lazarus was his brother.
Lazarus was waiting at the door of the rich man for
scraps of food; the Lazarus of our day, the unborn
child, is waiting at the door of the womb for birth
itself.

God does not only prohibit aborting the unborn; he
prohibits ignoring them.

------------------------------------------------------
PRAYER
------------------------------------------------------

Father, I thank you for the life that I possess, and
for the birth that you granted me. I hear the cries of
the Lazarus of our day; I see them sitting at the
door.

Grant that I may never ignore them, and that through
this 40 Days for Life campaign, I may stir many others
to pay attention to them as well. Through Christ our
Lord, Amen.

http://40daysforlife.com/blog