Why I'm Voting Yes on Amendment 26

             "I am a Christian, I am pro-life, but after doing a lot of reasearch, I've decided to vote no."  I've heard this statement from a number of people (largely on Facebook) and it breaks my heart.  I have to wonder where all of their research is coming from.
             It is no longer a secret that "Mississippians for Healthy Families" is Planned Parenthood and the ACLU in disguise and that the two agencies have pumped millions into trying to get this amendment stopped.  They have a lot to lose if this thing passes, and not just in the state of Mississippi, as other states have this amendment coming up on their ballot as well.
            The opposition to the Personhood Amendment is smart.  They have pushed their "scare tactics" through social media and other channels by persuading people to think that "If you're really smart, if you educate yourself on this issue, you will see that Personhood is a bad amendment.  It's vague.  It may have good intentions, but needs to be re-done."  See how smart that is?  Convince people who are pro-life that while this amendment  would end abortion  (something they want), it's "poorly written" and "there's a better way to stop abortion" when really the people behind these tactics don't want to stop abortion at all!   The argument that really got under my skin was the whole "don't just listen to what your pastor says or what the sign in his yard says.  Educate yourself.  Be smart.  Don't be like your dumb pastor."  Okay, that last little bit might be pushing it a little far, but you get the point: "Your dumb pastor just doesn't get it.  Research! Then you'll see how bad Personhood is."  And what should we be "researching?"  Why all of the liberal propaganda they have put out, of course!
            Now, I am not an idiot and neither is my pastor.  :)  I have "researched" Amendment 26.  A lot.  I have considered all of the implications of this Amendment.  Do I believe it will affect birth control?  Yes.  An IUD?  Yes.  Do I believe it will have consequences for IVF?  Yes, though it won't be banned.  Do I think that a woman who miscarries will be investigated for murder?  No, that's stupid.  Do I understand that it makes no exceptions for rape victims or victims of incest?  Yes.  Am I just so insensitive that I don't care about any of these issues?  No.  I deeply care.  I allowed myself to get caught up in all of the "research" for a few weeks and I was troubled.  What do I do?  What about all of these consequences?  What about the fact that if this amendment does pass it will likely be held up in courts for so long that it will never amount to anything and end up costing the state millions? 
             There are many reasons why I could easily vote no.  There was a point where I honestly didn't know what to do.  So, I turned to God.  In agony and near tears for several nights I just prayed and prayed and prayed.  The first thing I heard from God was "trust me."  Trust me that it will be okay for the women of Mississippi, those who suffer rape or an ectopic pregnancy or other illness while pregnant.  Trust me that if this passes it will all be okay. 
            I started to think about the "what if's?"  "What if" this limits IVF?  Well, should we really be freezing embryos anyway to one day be used for scientific experiments if unused?  "What if" this puts great limits on birth control and we have more and more unplanned pregnancies from unwed mothers who can't afford them?  I know of a pretty good way not to end up pregnant, what's so wrong with abstinence anyway?  It's how I kept from having any unplanned pregnancies before I was married.  "What if" this prevents a rape victim from getting access to a morning after pill?  "What if" I was that rape victims baby?  What would I want? "What if" we've really been allowing the murder of human beings through these methods all of these years without even realizing it? 
           A lot of pro-life Christians have gotten caught up in the difference between fertilization and implantation and when a person is really a person and it seems like we've forgotten the fact that pro-lifers can all agree that once a woman is pregnant she is pregnant with a person and an abortion ends that person's life.  Planned Parenthood and the ACLU's research has done a great job of turning our attention away from what Amendment 26 is at its core:  ending abortion.  Don't believe the lies that say "this isn't about abortion."  The people behind Personhood have nothing to gain if this amendment passes, while Planned Parenthood has everything to lose.
          "I'm a Christian, I'm pro-life, and I've researched and decided to vote no."  If you fall into this category, I have to ask, "where is this research coming from?"   Have you bathed this issue in prayer and study of the scripture?  After having felt God say, "Trust me" Bible Verses just started coming at me everytime I opened my Bible (or, in my case, Bible App).  Proverbs 24:11-12 hit me hard,
"¹¹ Rescue those who are unjustly sentenced to die;
      save them as they stagger to their death.
 ¹² Don’t excuse yourself by saying, “Look, we didn’t know.”      For God understands all hearts, and he sees you.   He who guards your soul knows you knew.
      He will repay all people as their actions deserve."
         
           I added the underlying for emphasis.  I want to replace "Look, we didn't know" with "Look, we were fooled!"  Fooled by an organization that has aborted millions of babies.
           Abortion is one of the issues that I am most passionate about.  What have I done to stop it thus far?  Nothing.  Not one single thing.  I imagined standing before God on judgment day and being asked, "what did you do to save these lives?"  What would I say? "Well, God, I strongly was against abortion in my lifetime and never would have considered one myself."  God, "Yes, but what did you DO?"  Me, "Well, there was this one time that an amendment came forward that could have ended abortion, but I voted against it because it was 'poorly written.'"  What would God say then? 
          This is my chance!  This is the first chance I have ever had to speak up for all of those innocent lives who are lost everyday!   How could I vote no?  I am voting YES, and trusting God that it really will be okay.  If this Amendment doesn't pass, then I will know that I have done what I could and can say to God that I did something, as small as it was.