I tend to be myopic. I see only what is right in front of me right now. Forget about peripheral vision. Forget about gazing into the distance. Forget about wondering what is beyond the horizon. And God forbid that I should ever look back.

It’s not a pretty picture
But if I were exclusively near-sighted as a pro-life Presbyterian, I would go crazy. Because what is in front of us right now is not a pretty picture. Our denomination this past summer gave license to late term abortions. Things do not look good right now.

In my healthiest moments and with my best 20/20 vision, I realize that what is right in front of me now is not all there is of reality. It was the loss of a battle, but it was not the defeat of the war. It was evil, but "God works all things out for good."

The time is now
As I grieve over the stand of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) on late term abortion (and that can change, by the way!!), I also glory over what the Lord is doing in and through Presbyterians Pro-Life. The PPL board, at their most recent meeting, made an historic decision. The Board was unanimous in seeking an Associate Director to work hand in hand with Terry Schlossberg, our Executive Director. This has been something we have been praying over and planning for over several years. But we all became convinced that now was the time.

Many historic moments
I see this historic decision as another historic moment for PPL. PPL has had a pro-life witness in Presbyterian circles for over 25 years and there have been many historic moments. Here are a few of them:

• Mid 1970s: with Roe vs. Wade came a small witness for life started with several ministers in the southern Presbyterian Church (PCUS); Presbyterians Pro-Life came into existence.
• Late 1970s and early 1980s: Presbyterians in several Presbyterian denominations had a united pro-life concern in denominations showing a reluctance to hold their historic pro-life positions. Ben Sheldon emerged as a significant leader in PPL.
• 1983: the reunion General Assembly when the northern and southern branches of mainline Presbyterianism came together and one of the actions they took was on abortion. They approved "Covenant and Creation," a radical pro-choice policy which said that, "abortion can be an act of faithfulness to God."
• 1984: With the crisis in the PC-USA, PPL makes a transition to be a pro-life witness exclusively within the PCUSA.
• 1985: PPL decides to make an annual presence at the General Assembly one of its main venues for ministry.
• 1986: Terry Schlossberg is called as the first Executive Director of PPL.
• 1984 – 1987: Overtures to the General Assembly came by the scores to change the church’s policy on abortion.
• 1987: PPL invited Mother Teresa to speak during the General Assembly and one overture asking to study the church’s position on abortion was approved.
• 1992: The new study on abortion – "Problem Pregnancy and Abortion" – changed the church’s policy to a more moderate pro-choice position recognizing that there were different positions held by Presbyterians on abortion.
• Early 1990s: PPL chapters were developed throughout the denomination; the unrestricted coverage of abortion by the Board of Pensions was exposed; eventually the Board of Pensions provided a program called "relief of conscience."
• Mid 1990s: PPL expanded in many areas confronting other pro-life issues like euthanasia, sexuality, adoption, partial birth abortion, etc; and produced study guides and curricula to promote study of life issues at the congregational level.
• 1997: PPL led in the effort at the General Assembly to secure an expression of "grave moral concern" about partial birth abortion.
• Late 1990s, early 2000s: PPL joined hands with other renewal groups to work on broader issues of renewal, in particular ordination standards.
• 2002: PPL seeks an Associate Director to help with the expanding ministry of PPL.

PPL is here to stay
What does the future hold? For us in PPL we are not sure. There will be some defeats, defections, and disappointments; but we are convinced that the battle is ultimately the Lord’s. The church called Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) will continue to struggle, stagnate, and even sin; but we are committed to the Head of the Church and cry out for His mercy. The life issues will not go away, but will confront us and our society and affect our consciences and our choices. If real renewal is ahead for the PCUSA, we believe it will be evidenced in one significant way: a consistent stand for life from conception to natural death.

Therefore, PPL is here to stay. We undertake this expansion of the ministry of PPL with a certain understanding that there will be a day when we will look back and see many more historic moments where God led…..God provided…..God blessed the stand for life…..God had mercy….and God was glorified.

• Dr. Donald A. Elliott is pastor of First Presbyterian Church in Corinth, MS and President of the PPL Board of Directors