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October is Respect Life Month!

October 7, 2021 by Heather Vasquez Leave a Comment

When did you realize you were Pro-Life?

The featured image above is of my “unexpected blessing holding my ‘expected’ blessing!

The first picture below is of my parents, Rich and Pat, and I in front of the Capitol on one of many Marches we attended! You can tell by my determined expression I was in this for the long haul!Its definitely something to think about especially with the current events of today. Were you always pro-life? Or did certain life experiences or relationships steer you that way?

October is Respect Life Month.

A month to celebrate, protect, and fight for the most vulnerable of our brothers and sisters.

Last weekend there was a Women’s March and some folks exercised their right to march in front of Next Step. Once again the group seemed determined to make false claims about what happens at Next Step Pregnancy Services and all pregnancy resource centers truly. Sadly none of those folks have ever accepted our invitation to come inside and see firsthand all that Next Step provides for women, babies, and families. All we can truly do is live our faith through acts and pray for those who continue to fight for what they see as their right but what is really the killing of the unborn.

When you support Next Step Pregnancy Services you make a difference. Here are some statistics from the first half of this year of all the support and love you’ve helped Next Step achieve. In 2021 up until and through August there have been twenty-four young women between the ages of 15-19 who came to us for supplies for their babies, pregnancy tests, and subsequent ultrasounds. Twelve of those tests were positive – twelve of those young women were pregnant. Twelve new lives were taking shape! Of those twelve – five of them intended to carry and parent and three were unsure. However, two were fairly certain of their plans to terminate. None of the twenty-four girls listed were married – most are students, and most were in a committed relationship with the fob (father of the baby).

That being said we’ve noticed that at times a young single gal who intends to parent when they meet with us is still vulnerable. The excitement of a child may wear off into uncertainty and fear, especially if she is surrounded by those in her life who may not think she should continue with the pregnancy. One of the things the staff and I have been talking about recently is follow up calls and outcomes. Especially for those young ladies who are uncertain. How can we reach out and let them know we are still here and ready to listen and help? If they come in at roughly 5 weeks sometimes it is hard to detect a viable pregnancy, so we urge them to come again in a week or two. But that is a long week or two where the pressures and worries of their lives and families can intrude and break them down. We need to let them know they are not alone. That they are supported. And cherished.

So far this year we’ve had ninety-nine young women aged 20-24 who have come in for supplies for their children, pregnancy tests and ultrasounds. We had 48 pregnancy tests of which 33 were positive. Of those young women, 18 listed themselves as single. Of those 33 young women there were 2 that expressed a strong desire for information on an abortion and at least 9 more that were very uncertain as to whether or not to continue the pregnancy. And one had chosen adoption.

As a side and very wonderful note – of those considering abortion we know that at least 6 of them chose life. Very, very good news.

And there’s more – between the ages of 15-24 there were 80 clients who came in for supplies for their children and all with income levels well under the Federal Poverty Level. For every young woman who continues with her pregnancy there is one who is scared and feels helpless. For every couple who are happy and hopeful with their pregnancy news there is a couple who now feel trapped and anxious about their future. For every bag of clothes, we are blessed with and every pack of diapers we are gifted there are families struggling to support themselves and their children. And some of them are still children themselves!

Even before my first birthday I was fighting for the unborn! Here is my mom Pat, pregnant with yours truly, and my big brother Ricky. Check out the “Fight Abortion” sticker on the back of our super cool pinto!

Where do we go from here? Where do you come in? Well prayer certainly. The easiest and surest way to support these women and men and families as well the team at Next Step. Donations of clothes – newborn to 2T, maternity, diapers and wipes, formula, breast pumps and bottles, strollers, playpens, bouncers, books, stuffys, crib sheets, nursing accessories, socks, hats, shoes, and more. Volunteers to help bundle diapers, sort clothes, and greet clients. To help with mailings and market booths. To spread the word!

And yes funding. Monetary donations. Your help ensures we have more than adequate staff, nurses, medical supplies, and resources for these families to remain open and serving.

Check out our support site – nssupport.org – for information and all the good news at Next Step. Fall Newsletter coming soon as well as Snapshot Tax Letters!

And thank you for the continued support of these young women and the lives you are touching and ensuring in the process. Whether you have always been Pro-Life or have recently joined this ministry – your help and prayers changes lives. One at a time.

“Never be afraid to trust an unknown future to a known God.” Corrie Ten Boom

September 2, 2021 by Heather Vasquez 2 Comments

“Fear not, for I am with you; be not dismayed, for I am your God; I will strengthen you, I will help you, I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.” Isaiah 41:10

This month has been full of life altering images, events, failures, and victories. I would like to focus on but two of them – both extraordinary in their power and predicament.

On August 15^th, after months of violence as the Taliban virtually overran all of Afghanistan, they entered the Capital city of Kabul and expeditiously ousted the Afghan government, and the sitting President fled the city. Nine days after seizing the Capital they took over simply and completely.

Thousands of people, families, fled to the Kabul airport in hopes of escaping what they knew may be terror, violence, and death. And as of today, there are still many and more still stranded with no hopes of rescue. The despair for themselves and their families must be horrific. The helplessness is unimaginable.

“Women in Afghanistan face rising levels of domestic violence, abuse, and exploitation.” In the past the Taliban “barred women from working outside the home or leaving the house without a male guardian, eliminated schooling for girls and publicly flogged those who violated the group’s morality code”, women and girls are rightly feeling scared, isolated, and uncertain of their fate. (Farnaz Fassihi, 2021, Taliban Take Over in Afghanistan, New York Times,)

The freedoms women (like myself) enjoy and expect each day remind us that we are free and blessed beyond measure. Our hearts go out to those women, mothers, daughters, sisters, wives – whose future is so uncertain. Prayer for their safety and prayer for an end to the many injustices our sisters far away in another place face each day.

On September 1^st, 2021 “the U.S. Supreme Court formally denied the abortion lobby’s request to block the Texas Heartbeat Act Wednesday evening, voting 5-4 to let the historic law take effect”. (Calvin Frieburger, 2021, LifeSiteNews.com)

The Heartbeat Law, signed into effect in May by Gov. Abbott of Texas requires abortionists to screen for a preborn baby’s heartbeat and prohibits abortion if a heartbeat can be heard (generally as early as six weeks), with exceptions only for medical emergencies.

This is HUGE! A HUGE victory for the innocent lives lost because of an abortion. There is still a lot of movement expected in the Judicial system however this unprecedented ruling may not be a ruling “on the merits of the Texas Heartbeat Act, many pro-lifers have taken the majority’s willingness to let the law stand even temporarily as an encouraging sign.”

And it is that – an encouraging sign. A sign that hearts and minds are changing. That the fact that the act of abortion takes the life of a living breathing human being with a heartbeat is beyond dispute. And the hope is that sometime perhaps in the near future the sanctity of all human life – born and unborn, man and woman, American or Afghan, will be beyond contention and protected.

The future is indeed unknown, for all of us in truth. But trusting our future to Him and stepping forth to protect those who cannot protect themselves, standing firmly in the light of truth is what He asks of us – scary and uncertain as it may feel at times. His power is known.