Two wrongs don't make a right.

Ok, so I haven't put anything out there for a post in a while...  Stuff has been so crazy lately, what with trying to balance a full time church position, a part time school bus route, and a growing family at home.  However, something happened this week that made me stop and take notice of how short and strange life really is.

The local and national headlines are currently running a story about Dr. George Tiller, who was a local abortion provider here in Wichita.  I say "was" because he was shot and killed Sunday morning while ushering at his church.  

Here's a little history on him:  Dr. Tiller had been in the headlines back in 1991 during Wichita's "Summer of Mercy".  There were hints and allegations at that time that Dr. Tiller had been performing abortions on young girls that did not have the proper permissions given by parents or guardians.  There were also some allegations of illegal late term abortions happening as well.  The Attorney General of Kansas was leveling these accusations, and had launched several investigations into what was really going on.  When pro-life advocates caught wind of this, they started major protests against Tiller and his facility.  During those protests, many citizens, church members, and ministers were arrested due to their protests being on private property, which is illegal.  Dr. Tiller was also forced into a high security lifestyle, including armed guards and a bulletproof vest when out in public due to many bodily harm and death threats leveled at him during this time.

Dr. Tiller referenced this in an interview given to one of the local news stations, when he matter-of-factly stated that what he was doing was legal, moral, and ethical.  His basis for this rationale was the experience he had as a doctor in taking care of women who were dying from "back ally" abortions that had been performed by unlicensed medical practitioners.  He felt that he was saving more lives by performing abortions in a safe and sanitary medical environment.

As a pro-life advocate this rationale is understandable, but not supportable.  Those women could have chosen to go through the birth process and then given the children up for adoption versus having any abortion of any type.  Life begins at conception when the DNA from the mother and father combine to form a completely new and unique DNA.  Regardless of "viability", this is a new life created that deserves an opportunity to grow and have a chance at life.  Abortion is, in my opinion (and I believe in God's eyes), murder.

Dr. Tiller had been on trial over the past year, and had been put there by two former Attorney Generals that had been disgraced and mired in scandal themselves.  Whether or not those issues played a hand in Dr. Tiller being acquitted of 19 felony counts is unknown, but the fact remains that he was acquitted and allowed to resume his life.

Now back to what happened to him on Sunday.  A man in his lat 50's walked into Reformation Luthren Church on Sunday, stepped up to Dr. Tiller as he was ushering, and shot him in the temple which killed him instantly.  One might say that this was poetic justice, but it was in fact murder.  

Romans 12:18-19 says - If it is possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone.  Do not take revenge, my friends, but leave room for God's wrath, for it is written: "It is mine to avenge; I will repay," says the Lord.

If we are to live Worship as a lifestyle, we cannot take sides in something like this.  While we may not approve of Dr. Tiller's actions when he was alive, we also cannot count his death as "justifiable homicide" either.  We are called by God to obey the laws where we live.  That is BIBLICAL.  Currently in America, abortion is legal but murder is not.  While our ethical standards may cause us to abhor Dr. Tiller's profession and the trail of physical, spiritual, and emotional baggage the women carry post-abortion, we cannot justify "an eye for an eye" due to what the passage in Romans 12 says.

I urge you to pray for the Tiller family.  His wife watched it happen from the choir loft, and his daughter watched it happen from the congregation.  I urge you to pray for those who were in the congregation that day.  I urge you to pray for the man who killed him.  I urge you to pray for the young ladies that will be walking into the clinic when it opens again next Monday.

I also urge you to remember that the next moment is never promised to us.  All God promises is to sustain us in THIS moment at THIS time.  Let's worship Him for each and every one of those we are given, as they are a gift!