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Our average life expectancy is 29,200 days, 700,800 hours, 42,048,000 minutes, or 2.5 billion seconds.
At what point do we assign value and worth in the extensive but fleeting amount of time that constitutes a human life? If I were to put my life on a timeline and mark it every instance I felt valued or devalued, there would be shifting pinpoints across a spectrum. If you were to mark my timeline for every time you thought I was valuable or invaluable, your spectrum of answers would probably differ from mine.
In contrast, the Gospel provides clear, objective answers to our questions about human value and worth.
Often, pro-life culture claims that life begins at conception, and from there on out, life has inherent value and worth rooted in the concept of the Imago Dei. I would take this one step further—life begins in the mind of God. As His creations and intricately crafted designs, our value is owned and protected by God himself.
Our worth and value were established the moment we entered God’s creative mind. Recognizing and accepting this fundamental truth ensures that no one or nothing can take our value and worth away from us. They do not change whether or not our timeline has significantly valuable moments that others can pinpoint. We are not defined by where others draw the line.
But what does all of this have to do with a ministry that provides free maternal healthcare?
Recently, I have been reflecting on how our culture undermines the value of women and motherhood. Indeed, we have difficulty defining “What is a woman?” and we seem to care less and less about the babies in our mothers’ wombs. Our culture scrambles to “draw the line” of value concerning women while lacking a solid foundation that upholds human dignity beyond subjective cultural norms.
It would be easy to lose heart when looking at our society’s increasing tendency to devalue human life and motherhood. However, our hope only increases if we keep our eyes on Jesus. The complicated scenarios fade away with this simple truth—a woman is an adult female who has a fearfully and wonderfully made biological makeup. She is God’s intellectual property, and her value and worth originate in God's mind.
At the Morning Center, our mission is to provide free prenatal and postpartum care to women in need. However, this is just a vehicle for transformational interactions in which our women experience the love of Christ. Ultimately, we seek to instill value and worth by introducing moms to a God who smiles at them and says, “I value you; you are my beloved and intricate creation.”
Here is what I would ask: In the 29,200 days, 700,800 hours, 42,048,000 minutes, or 2.5 billion seconds that constitute your life, will you continue to instill value and worth in others?
The Morning Center was founded on the belief that an investment in a mom's life—instilling value and worth—causes a ripple effect that will spread to her children, her family, and her community.
Partnering with the Morning Center is just one way that YOU make it possible for moms at the margins of our society to receive the life-changing, culture-defying, dignity-establishing news of the Gospel. You, my friend, change the narrative for a woman who does not even have access to proper medical care, a fundamental human right, for her and her baby.
Thank you for nurturing and caring for mothers during this critical time.
Matt Larson is the National CEO of the Morning Center. A passionate leader, Matt is dedicated to transforming society by revolutionizing maternal healthcare. He joined the Morning Center after two years as Executive Director at the Peoria Dream Center and has been with us for seven years. Matt wholeheartedly believes in our mission and how the Lord is using the Church to meet practical needs while transforming the lives of the moms we serve and beyond. We are grateful for the strength and wisdom Matt brings to our team every day!
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