At Arizona Baptist Children’s Services & Family Ministries, we serve the full spectrum of Arizona families, from unborn babies to senior adults. One common thread of all seven of our ABCS ministries is that we value the sanctity of human life. We understand that each person is made in the image of God and therefore has inherent value and dignity. June 24, 2022 is a day marked in history. The Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade. We praise God for the Supreme Court’s Dobbs decision which allows states to determine their own laws regarding abortion. In a post-Roe world, the main goal of our New Life Pregnancy Center ministry remains the same—to provide hope and care to those facing a pregnancy, planned or unplanned, through Christ-centered ministries. We continue to walk alongside and support parents through pregnancy and beyond. Most importantly, families have a place to go where they feel welcomed and loved. Our work will not only continue but expand. Shortly after the decision, our community of supporters rallied to show up in a big way. Dozens of volunteer inquiries poured in across the state. Donors gave generously to show their support. People committed to learning more about how to have life-affirming conversations. An investment was made in our pregnancy center staff to equip them for the season ahead. God was moving and we are grateful!

Responding with Grace & Truth

For many years our pregnancy center and ABCS staff members have led workshops at the Arizona Southern Baptist Convention’s youth camp, Zona. The topics of the workshops have been centered on purity and how to help a friend experiencing a crisis pregnancy. A new expanded version of the crisis pregnancy workshop was created for summer camp 2022. The content included how to have grace-filled, life-affirming discussions. God’s timing was perfect. Just days after the Supreme Court Dobb’s decision, Zona youth camp began. The room assigned was too small as it overflowed with students. This required them to move to a lecture hall to accommodate all the interested teen boys and girls who wanted to attend. There were roughly 120 students in attendance. During the workshop, there was a good discussion and many questions were answered. Several students lingered after the workshop ended to continue the discussion.

From that point forward, youth pastors and church leaders gave our staff feedback about the positive impact the workshop had on their students. They shared how the content would also be beneficial for their church members and other students who were not able to attend the camp. These conversations about providing this information and resource to churches are how the Responding with Grace and Truth workshops began. After camp, our pregnancy center team got to work on making this resource more widely accessible. The first community workshop was hosted in Phoenix in September. Partners from the Central region were invited to attend. Another workshop was offered in Tucson in November with our partners in the Southern region. More are planned for the future! God has already used these workshops to have a positive impact on the community. People have brought their children with them so the whole family can feel equipped to have life-affirming conversations. Attendees have shared how they feel more confident in how to have these conversations whereas before they wouldn’t have known where to start. We praise God for His timing and work in this project.

Come Alive: Care Net Conference

Care Net is a nonprofit organization that empowers women and men considering abortion to choose life for their unborn children and find abundant life in Christ. They support and equip one of the largest networks of pregnancy resource centers across North America. One of the ways they provide support is by hosting an annual conference, which ministry leaders and pregnancy resource center staff can attend to be spiritually fed, experience fellowship with their peers in pro-life ministries and learn more about how to best serve the people cared for through their work. In August, the Care Net conference was in Phoenix! This presented a unique opportunity for New Life Pregnancy Center directors to attend, most for the first time. The Lord made a way for this to be possible through a generous donor. This donor funded the conference ticket and hotel stay for the directors and leadership—11 total. The 2022 theme was “Come Alive” which was yet another God-ordained detail for that season. Attending the conference provided refreshment, encouragement, helpful information and times of fellowship both together as a team but also with others across the nation working towards the same goal. This was particularly impactful after the Dobb’s decision and its aftermath. During their week at the conference, the team was able to strengthen their relationships and unity. Raquel Williams, Statewide Director, said “We are serving across Arizona, but our mindset is united for the mission of NLPC.” The Care Net conference was just the fuel needed to launch into what is in store ahead and to continue serving each family who walks through the doors of our centers with the love of Christ.

New Life Pregnancy Center is a ministry of Arizona Baptist Children’s Services & Family Ministries (ABCS). To read more impact stories and ministry updates like this one, check out ABCS’ 2022 Annual Report.