Printer-friendly versionFor many, the struggle with post-abortion regret has been long and exhausting.  They desperately need help, but how can their secrets safely be released to bring healing to aching hearts? Psalm 27:14  “Wait on the Lord; be of good courage and he shall strengthen thine heart." People will use a variety of methods to help them deal with abortion: repression/suppression (an attempt to hide or exclude from consciousness painful or unacceptable memories, emotions or occurrences); rationalization (to explain one’s behavior by self-satisfying reasons, but not by the actual or unconscious reasons); denial (to refuse to believe); minimizing (to deny the importance of what occurred); atonement baby (try to become pregnant or impregnate another person to make up for the wrong); bargaining (e.g., becoming pro-life); blaming (placing the responsibility on someone else); anger (covering up true feelings); avoidance (staying away from pregnant women). Each chosen defense mechanism is a way people hope to eliminate or, at best, mask painful memories.  These defense mechanisms help for a time to protect women from the truth, but the Bible tells us in John 8:32, “Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.”  Just what do women do with those recurring, bad memories lodged in their hearts? The Process of Biblical Counsel For many, the struggle with post-abortion syndrome has been long and exhausting, and now life is in turmoil.  They desperately need help, release from the burden, and hope for the future.  But what will be the trigger for that release?  How can their secrets safely be released to bring healing to empty, aching hearts?  Gently and lovingly confronting post-abortive people with the truth about abortion in light of Scripture and helping them recognize their dependency upon chosen defense mechanism(s), instead of upon God, will begin the first steps to Biblical hope and forgiveness found only in Jesus Christ. The goal of counseling Biblically is viewed in light of the truth presented in Scripture.  In 2 Timothy 3:16-17 we read, “All Scripture is inspired by God and is useful for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and training in righteousness; so that the man of God may be adequate, equipped for every good work.” The process of Biblical counseling is to generate both hope and change in the hearts of post-abortive men and women.  This concept of change is central to the gospel and inevitable for the Christian.  Accepting the gift Christ offers while continuing contentedly in sin is inconceivable for one who has trusted Jesus as Lord and Savior.  Through Christ we are offered salvation from sin, from the guilt of sin, and from the power of sin.  The guiding principle of Biblical counseling is to bring counselees to recognize sinful behavior and habits when held against the standards presented in the Bible.  This includes openness to the ministry of the Holy Spirit working within both counselors and the counselees. The counseling process thus brings about a conviction of sin, an understanding of who God is, and what He says about the individual’s abortion and present situation.  The Biblical counseling process will ultimately bring about the necessary peace and joy post-abortive men and women are so desperately seeking. The Role of the Holy Spirit The best post-abortion program or the personal charisma of the person leading a group is not sufficient to bring about Biblical change in people.  The somewhat mystical agency of the Holy Spirit is essential.  Many Christians are confused about the ministries of the Holy Spirit and, since our experience of His ministry is not sensory (we don’t feel, hear, see or smell), we are dependent upon the Word of God to know His ministrations.  We apprehend our knowledge of Him by faith.  There are seven operations of the Spirit which are necessary for effectual counseling (Rom. 8:5-9): 1.  He convicts concerning sin   John 16:8 2.  He regenerates lives   John 3:5 3.  He indwells believers   John 14:15-17 and 1 Corinthians 6:19 4.  He gives and ministers hope   Romans 5:3-5                5.  He sanctifies believers   Romans 8:26-31 6.  He teaches believers   1 John 2:20, 27 and 1 Corinthians 2:9-16 7.  He empowers believers   Acts 1:8 The Bible refers to the process of change as sanctification, the specialized work of the Holy Spirit.  Sanctification is not an optional extra for Christians.  If the Holy Spirit indwells the life of a believer, then inward change through sanctification is the outcome so that the believer’s life is conformed into the likeness of Jesus Christ. Confession, Repentance, Forgiveness and Hope Before men and women can have any hope for healing or even begin to think of forgiveness, they should come to an understanding of the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus Christ and His atoning sacrifice and payment for their sins on the cross.  By faith, they must receive Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior, believing and understanding God is the Creator of all life, and understanding that the life of a human being was ended through abortion.  By admission and confession of a guilty plea to God and by repenting of sin, the individual is accepting God’s verdict of the abortion as the Holy Spirit prepares the heart for deliverance through forgiveness in Jesus Christ.  Once forgiven, people are cleansed and set free from their guilty stains: “Though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they are red as crimson, they shall be like wool,” Isaiah 1:18.  They are completely forgiven through the shed blood of Christ. Forgiving Self and Others For many people, trusting in Christ’s forgiveness and accepting themselves becomes a stumbling block in the process of healing.  However, just as they have been forgiven by God, people must choose to forgive themselves and others connected with their abortions.  This is a conscious choice they must make as they relinquish the desire to continually punish themselves and others.  The reason many people do not fully experience the joy found in God’s forgiveness is their unwillingness to forgive others.  Despite their responsibility for the abortions, women and men need to believe in their hearts that they are lovable and have worth.  They need to see themselves and others as gifts God has created, believing and applying 2 Corinthians 5:17, “Therefore if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creature; the old things passed away; behold, new things have come” (NASB). Grieving the Loss of the Baby Grieving is part of the healing process.  It involves an expression of various emotions affecting both body and mind.  Grieving allows individuals to separate from those who have been lost.  Some post-abortion programs encourage people to name their babies and so identify their losses.  This, for many, brings about great emotional release and resolution to the tragedy of the loss.  By naming and honoring the babies they are restoring dignity to their unborn children and accepting the death of the babies as part of the past.  Now they no longer need to dwell on their painful memories nor try to hide them.  Their lives can now move forward under the guiding hand of the Holy Spirit as they claim Isaiah 35:10, “And the ransomed of the Lord will return and come with joyful shouting to Zion, with everlasting joy upon their heads.  They will find gladness and joy, and sorrow and sighing will flee away.” Conclusion There are several post-abortion programs in use in pregnancy centers and other life-affirming organizations.  Those that are Biblically based, like Heartbeat’s HEART program, can help bring about true healing.  If you are not presently using a Biblically based program and would like to examine the HEART program, or you would like to have a Heartbeat consultant come to your center to help you start a HEART program, please call Heartbeat.  Post-abortion healing is desperately needed in a culture where over 1 million abortions have occurred yearly for nearly 30 years.  How many post-abortive men and women (and siblings of aborted children) are in your community, still using defense mechanisms to cover up their pain?  Pregnancy help organizations should be in the forefront of providing this healing.  We all need to step up to the challenge.  Copyright 2002 Heartbeat International. Used with permission. This is the third in a series on Post-Abortion Syndrome compiled and edited by Beverly J. Wilson.  A recent addition to the Heartbeat staff, Beverly is a native of Great Britain.  She has directed two pregnancy centers, one in Kaiserslautern, Germany and the other in Fort Worth, Texas.  Beverly assumes responsibility as Administrative Director of Affiliates and Director of International Affiliates.