For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand so that we would walk in them. Ephesians 2:10

I remember her face. I was fresh out of my training to become a peer counselor with a local pregnancy center and she was my first client I was to counsel alone. When she made it clear that her intent was to have an abortion before she moved out of state, I froze. I guess I had never expected that I would sit face to face with the girl I had read about in the packets that coached us on how to gently guide her into making a choice for life. But here she was: young, pretty, and nonchalant in her presentation of her current predicament. I was able to pray with my director in her trip to the restroom and then collect myself to present her with pamphlets on the development of the child within her and she shocked me when she saw the images and literally had no idea that there was, indeed, a recognizable baby in her womb.

I recall this story and see that girl a lot when I hear a story of an abortion minded woman. A woman faced with a choice as she puts down the pregnancy test and looks at her future. I don’t know what that particular woman ended up choosing. It was hard watching her walk out the door, now with doubts, but still very aware of the ramifications being a mother could have on the life before her.

I have actually found myself attempting retroactive prayers that she is holding the hand of a teenager now. Or that if she lost her child as a result of a procedure, that she found grace and hope at the foot of the cross. Why does my heart stay so wrapped up in a situation 16 years in my past? Because she represents all of the what if’s. What if I would have been more studied on abortion? What if I was more bold in my approach? But what God so graciously shows us in the middle of what if’s is that he is working despite any weaknesses we bring into the battle. Notice in Ephesians above it says” which GOD PREPARED”. I hope that I can be willing to walk in His good works and not assume my role is bigger than that of Jesus in the life of anyone I come in contact with. I just need to be available and willing to serve where He calls me.

Do you struggle to walk in His good works and accept not knowing the outcome every time? That might mean just praying with no answers. Saying the difficult thing and getting no response. Or maybe sharing truth and being rejected. We may feel like a total failure or like we lack the credentials needed to be an effective witness, but being a willing servant and trusting in the sovereignty and power of Christ is all we need to lead us to a place where we find peace in the good works of our savior. And as for the woman from my story earlier, he doesn’t just remember her face, He is acquainted with all her ways.