Family Focus Newsletter | Jan/Feb 2025

[Focus on the Family]

Thank you for giving mothers and babies a chance!​

Vivian* didn’t think she could possibly have a baby. She wasn’t married and couldn’t afford a child. Abortion was the clear choice, she decided.

Her boyfriend secretly wanted to have the baby but wasn’t sure his opinion mattered.

They found a local pregnancy medical clinic for counseling and a free ultrasound. The baby was only 5 weeks old during that first ultrasound and barely visible. But the nurse told her that the baby would undergo rapid growth in the next few days.

Then she handed Vivian a tiny model just about her baby’s size. Vivian closed her hand tightly around the miniature baby and began to cry.

Something about holding that small figure opened the mom’s heart to her child!

Vivian and her boyfriend were able to have a tough conversation and decided together to choose life!

Just a couple of weeks later, the second ultrasound showed a dancing 7-week-old baby and the rapid swoosh of the heartbeat loud and clear. Mom and dad were beaming at the progress. The pregnancy medical clinic also connected the couple with resources and parenting classes to help the little family succeed.

After a contentious election year, the danger to babies like Vivian’s is very real. Seven out of 10 states passed proposals on the ballot supporting abortion. While we are grateful for voters in Florida, South Dakota and Nebraska who defeated abortion initiatives, lives continue to be at risk across our country. We must press ahead to convince people in every state that there is life in the womb and that every baby deserves love and protection.

That’s why your support of our Option Ultrasound program is so critical as we enter the new year. The best way to reach an expectant mother like Vivian before they make a choice that they’ll always regret is by revealing to them the truth about life in the womb.

A free ultrasound is the most effective lifesaving weapon! Over half of women considering abortion who receive counseling, and an ultrasound choose life.

Through our Option Ultrasound program, your gifts provide training and equipment that make free ultrasounds possible. When a young woman considering abortion, hears her child’s heartbeat and sees the life growing inside of her, she will often choose life!

Since the beginning of the Option Ultrasound program in 2004, the number of babies and their mothers saved is estimated to be more than 500,000. It takes just $60 to help save the life of a preborn baby through Focus on the Family’s Option Ultrasound program.

Your support also helps provide abortion pill reversal training for medical staff at local pregnancy medical centers. Mothers who change their minds during a chemical abortion can get the help they need to save their babies.

Your support also helps our My Choice Network online search connect expectant moms with pregnancy medical centers to get the help they need. Your gift will support a comprehensive, holistic plan to not only save a life, but come alongside an expectant mother with the loving arms of Jesus.

Thank you for your compassionate gifts to save lives.
*A fictional name was used to protect the identity of the mother.

Be a hero in 2025. Help save lives.​

You can save mothers and babies from abortion this year by doing just one thing today — giving to support the Option Ultrasound program.

Your support will provide training and technology for free ultrasounds that reveal the truth about life in the womb. It takes just $60 to help save a life through the Option Ultrasound program.

Babies like Sarah’s are depending on you When Sarah walked into the pregnancy medical center, she admitted through tears that she had an abortion planned for the next day. “Everyone at home wants me to get an abortion. I feel lost and alone.” Because of friends like you, Sarah received a free ultrasound. That’s when something miraculous happened. Sarah met her baby!

The sonogram revealed a 12-week-old baby. Sarah took one look and said, “I’m going to cancel my abortion appointment.” Once she saw her healthy, growing baby, Sarah CHOSE LIFE!

This is the kind of lifesaving impact you can make with your gift of support today.

Give Now to Help Save Lives!

Abortion Survivors Break Their Silence​

In appreciation for your gift of any amount today, we’ll send you the book, Abortion Survivors Break Their Silence, with true stories of people who defied the odds. In this book, you’ll hear the true stories of abortion survivors whose resilience and courage humanize this discussion of “choice” and life emerging from the womb. They are flesh and blood people who, against all odds, survived abortion attempts and have dramatic, touching stories of their own.

Get Your Copy

Jim's Heart​

Happy New Year from all your friends at Focus on the Family! The last few months have been eventful in our nation, to say the least, but it’s my hope that you were able to take a deep breath over the Christmas holiday, gather with loved ones, and savor the wonder of our Savior’s birth over two centuries ago. I pray, too, that you are venturing into a new year filled with hope as we remember that the Lord remains firmly and eternally in control. No matter the chaos and unease surrounding us, we can rest in the certainty that the end of the story has already been written.

Obviously, we’re on the other side of an incredibly contentious election that many considered to be the most consequential of our lifetime. Of course, we often say this with every new election cycle — but, in this case, I would submit to you that never have we watched such a rapid and wholesale unraveling of the values and ideals that have made our nation a beacon of hope, opportunity, and goodwill.

One element of America’s moral decline that is particularly disturbing to me is the societal embrace of abortion. Our grandparents and great-grandparents never could have imagined that in just a few short generations we would begin to see abortion celebrated as an acceptable — and even desirable — option for women facing unexpected pregnancies.

It grieves me to think of the millions of precious lives that have been snuffed out — not to mention the mothers and fathers who have been left in pain and anguish after submitting to abortion. They have been deceived by the abortion industry into believing life in the womb is not actually life and is, therefore, expendable.

Nonetheless, not everyone in our country believes in abortion on demand. The very fact that abortion shows up on ballots across the United States every Election Day demonstrates that many folks remain committed to upholding the sanctity of human life. And even when the measures we vote for aren’t adopted, I hope you’re encouraged to know that many legislative victories have been achieved in recent years — both before and after Roe v. Wade was the law of the land.

Nonetheless, pro-abortion forces continue to advance. Their determination serves as a sobering indication that Focus on the Family’s own work in this realm is more crucial than ever.

If you’re familiar with Focus’ outreach, you’re probably aware of our Option Ultrasound program. This initiative was established when we learned that an abortion-minded woman is far more likely to carry her baby to term when she is given the opportunity to see an ultrasound image of her baby. Declaring the evils of abortion is important, to be sure, but we must not neglect to show the other side of that coin: the beauty of life in the womb.

Toward that end, in 2004, we began equipping qualified pregnancy medical clinics all around the country with ultrasound training and technology. Now, more than two decades later, well over half a million tiny lives have been spared as a direct result of this program!

We always love receiving updates from the pregnancy centers that have received ultrasound grants from Focus on the Family. The story of Linda and Zen is especially inspiring:

A couple of years ago, Linda and her boyfriend, Zen, came into our clinic with an unplanned pregnancy. They were in their teens, and an unknown future gripped them with fear and anxiety. This young couple felt that they were left with very few options. Linda was a Christian herself who initially did not believe in abortion. However, the thought of disappointing her mother with this unplanned pregnancy left her thoughts spiraling downward, and the enemy planted the lie that abortion might be the only way out.

During the ultrasound, we gave them the option to see their baby on the screen, which left both with a sense of excitement and joy. The deception that initially convinced them to receive an abortion was not a choice any longer.

Zayden in now an active, joyful 18-month-old toddler. He is curious about life and enjoys playing outside and being amongst nature. Linda went on to attain her license as a manicurist and has a thriving nail business. Zen is very much involved as a father in Zayden’s life and works hard to support their family. They continue to go to the church Linda grew up attending, where they have received much support. The couple both expressed that they could not imagine what life would have been like if Zayden wasn’t in their lives.

Little Zayden owes his life to an ultrasound. Isn’t that amazing?

When an expectant mother can see her preborn baby on an ultrasound and hear that tiny little heartbeat, she will often choose life! Your kind support today will help make these ultrasounds possible at local pregnancy medical centers across the country.

It takes just $60 to save the life of a child like Zayden through the Option Ultrasound program. How many preborn babies can you save with your generous support today? You’ll also support abortion pill reversal training. And you’ll help the My Choice network connect frightened mothers with their local pregnancy medical center through a quick online search.

I hope you’re uplifted by this snapshot into our efforts in the pro-life arena, and I invite you to contact us if you or someone you love is facing an unexpected pregnancy. We would consider it a privilege to pray with you and point you in the direction of a pregnancy center in your area that will provide you with expert care and thorough, accurate information about life in the womb. Our staff counselors can be reached by calling 1-855-771-HELP (4357) weekdays from 6 a.m. to 8 p.m. (Mountain Time); the representative who answers the phone will take your contact information and arrange for a counselor to call you back as soon as possible.

I’m always grateful for the opportunity each month to describe for you an aspect of our work. Heartfelt thanks for caring about families and standing with us as we defend life. Together, let’s continue striving for the day when abortion will be unthinkable! May God’s abundant blessings and surpassing peace be yours.

Sincerely,

Jim Daly
President, Focus on the Family

Help Save Lives Today!

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