Winning Isn't Everything

"You are the salt of the earth" (Matthew 5:13, NIV).

In the late 1990s, I saw an interesting statistic. In Russia, two-thirds of pregnancies were ending in abortions. In the United States, one-third of pregnancies were ending in abortions.

What could explain the vast differences between the statistics of the two countries? Both had virtually unrestricted legal access to abortion. Both promoted contraceptives to their respective populations. Their public policies were practically identical.

The American pro-life movement had helped in electing pro-life politicians, but the policies of the nation were only marginally changed. Abortion continued as an unrestricted right.

Although the pro-life movement looked like a loser among American political movements, I believe it made a significant difference in the culture. Russia lacked a significant pro-life movement, while America's pro-life movement possessed a determined vibrancy. The statistics reveal the results.

Since the pro-life movement never gave up, fewer children died from unnecessary abortions in the United States than in Russia. Thousands of pro-life pregnancy resource centers sprang up to offer pregnant girls and women the pre-natal and post-natal care needed when they had no one else to help. Pro-lifers continued to press the argument that pre-born children were human beings; as a result, most Americans came to believe that unnecessary abortions were murder even though they did not want to outlaw the procedure. Simply believing that abortion was unethical played a role in keeping the abortion rates lower.

Winning is good, but even losers can make a difference for good. Don't worry too much about winning and losing. Don't get worked up about being popular or unpopular. Simply continue to do good, and you will be a winner even when you lose.