Friday, July 10, 2009

No such thing as chance

One cool thing about EMC is that we have so many outposts throughout the city -- I believe in the Bronx alone we have four different locations from which we work.

Earlier this week, I spent the day at our clinic near Fordham & Jerome, and I counseled a girl of about 18 who said a lot of the things we hear every day -- she's scared to tell her mom, she's just 'not ready' for a baby, she had never really considered the possibility that she might get pregnant, even though she's been sexually active for several years. We talked for awhile, she cried, I gave her a sonogram appointment for a few weeks hence, but when she left I could tell she was far from convinced.

Today I was assigned to another one of our clinics in the Bronx, on E. 149th Street. We had an incredibly busy morning, and I felt like I was rushing from girl to girl for several hours. While counseling one girl, I momentarily stepped out to grab a pamphlet, and there in the corner, filling out the intake form, was my girl from Fordham & Jerome. She had no idea the two centers were connected, and she had come to another EMC center looking for an abortion -- two in one week!

After I spotted her and she realized she was in another EMC clinic, and after talking to Jose and Maria for a few minutes, she realized that maybe God was telling her something, sending her across my path twice in one week. She happily told me that she was definitely keeping her baby now, and we agreed to meet up at her sonogram appointment in a few weeks.

In a city of 8 million people with untold numbers of abortion clinics and pregnancy centers, not to mention the fact that I could be in any one of six locations on any given day, I can only marvel at the amazing way God orchestrated our meetings this week. What a beautiful way to spend a Friday afternoon.

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