Thomas LashleyI think taking this course has/will make me a better Hebraic leader in my neighborhood, because often I have self and societal doubts, and get somewhat disheartened. I am a part of the Pro-Life Movement I am a 40 Days for Life Coordinator, Church Pro-Life Coordinator, am on the parish council, and am the unofficial pro-life networker for much of my local area. If I didn’t believe in Providence, I would say my working in the Pro-Life movement was an accident. I was always Pro-Life, but never saw myself as a leader. Then one day I was asked to help in the Pro-Life movement and eventually to become the local 40 Days for Life Coordinator. I have organized numerous events and worked with a vast plurality of people including Pro-Life Catholics, Protestants, Jews, Mormons, Atheists, Democrats, Republicans, and even homosexuals. I literally have seen it all, whereby people will not work with each other for one reason or another. I have been called a bad Republican and a bad Catholic literally for even talking to alt pro-life groups. But I stand firm that I will work with anyone who will help me save a baby, and I have never compromised my beliefs. That being said I get dismayed sometimes, wondering if I have done any good, or worrying to much about what others think of me versus what God thinks of me. Dr. Nicholson. reminded me to not worry so much about that, because the end goal is New Jerusalem/Heaven, and I always have to be aware of the Problem of Twoness/Evil. I should be aware of it, but I just need to work around it as best as I can. I also shouldn’t underestimate myself. God doesn’t call the equipped he equips the called. I have learned so much about myself, the world, and God in working in the Pro-Life movement. That is why I did not wait for a sign whether or not I should do the pathfinder program. For so many reasons I felt a call to bring about positive Christian engagement in the Near East, and I am beginning to network with local groups in my area to do that. But all with a reinvigorated confidence and lack of hesitancy thanks to this course.
