‘I Asked the Lord to Lead Me’

Lydia heard about a small, student-led pro-life group on the Moody campus that had dwindled over the 2020–21 school year during the COVID-19 pandemic. The group was called Zoe, which means “life” in Greek.

After meeting with Zoe’s only member, Lydia knew she wanted to be part of reviving and rebuilding the group. An Elementary Education major, she became the group’s president during her sophomore year. Slowly, Zoe began to welcome new members, including a new vice president, Jonah, a Children and Family Ministry major from Normal, Illinois.

“I've always been pro-life,” Jonah said. “There's an abortion clinic a half-mile from Moody! I thought, here's an opportunity for me to help do something.”

Zoe’s mission statement is three-fold: to love, to serve, and to educate. “We love in our words, actions, and prayers—never shaming, never condemning, always loving as Jesus loves,” Lydia said. “We serve by doing what we can to help local pregnancy centers. Last semester we raised almost $1,000 and bought baby items for Caris Pregnancy Counseling and Resource Center.

“We also desire to educate the wider student body on the pro-life stance and engage in conversations with those who are confused or in disagreement. We do this by hosting forums, info lectures, and training sessions.”

Educating other students, even at a Christian school, is an ongoing goal. In February 2023, Zoe hosted a forum on campus with the Student Theological Society titled “Abortion and Christianity.”

Expecting about 25 people to attend, Zoe’s leaders were stunned when 150 students showed up.

Zoe also takes a public stand to advocate for unborn children. On March 21, members of Zoe were among 22 Moody students who participated in the Illinois March for Life in Springfield. The students joined over 3,000 marchers in front of the State Capitol.

“It’s so encouraging to know that Zoe isn’t alone in this fight for the voiceless,” Lydia says. “Not only are there many students on campus who are willing to sacrifice their time to take a stand for life, but there are thousands of others in Chicago and across the US who are faithful prayer warriors and advocates for the unborn.”

Over the last few semesters, Zoe has expanded from two members to around 20 active participants, each sharing a heart for women experiencing unplanned pregnancies and a love for the unborn. But while Zoe members share a common commitment to the pro-life movement, they often bring unique and differing motivations to the group.

“Some are motivated by their disappointment that the pro-life movement doesn’t always love as Christ loves,” Lydia said. “Others are motivated by their desire to either start or work with a pregnancy center after (graduation from) Moody. Others feel called by God to be actively involved with this work during this season of their life, burdened by the prevalence of abortion in Chicago. And still others are involved because of their desire to share the gospel with the lost.”

Everything Zoe does is purposefully wrapped in and rooted in prayer.

“Working in the pro-life movement can quickly wear you down if it’s ‘left up to you.’ God must be our foundation if we are to keep going,” Lydia said. “That’s why prayer is not only our basis but the main thing we do.”

“Each Monday, Wednesday, and Friday afternoon we go for prayer walks to Planned Parenthood,” Jonah explained. “We meet in the Arch (on campus), have a short devotional, pray, and then walk down there and divide into groups.”

Outside the abortion clinic, some members of the group will try to talk with women who are entering the facility. Some share the gospel, and some hold a sign that says, “Free Prayer Because Jesus Cares.” All of the group’s interactions come from a place of genuine concern and compassion.

“As we do this,” Lydia said, “we try to come from a loving approach. We try to love the women, meet them in their most vulnerable state, and share the gospel with them. We also try to get them connected to pregnancy resource center materials.”

Reactions are mixed, both from women who are entering the abortion clinic and from people passing by on the street.

“We’ve gotten occasional pushback in front of the clinic,” Jonah said. “Once the clinic called the police, but when they arrived and saw that we weren't doing anything wrong, they let us continue. People curse at us.

One woman threw a doughnut at us, and once a woman who was entering the clinic with two friends laughed and told us we should ‘pray for the baby that’s about to die.’”

“But the Lord blesses us even in those moments,” Lydia said. “Every time we're there at least one person passing by will stop and pray with us or pray over us and tell us, ‘You're our prayer warriors.’ That's very encouraging.”

Lydia and the other members of Zoe remain hopeful as they continue to serve. They encourage believers to find practical ways to demonstrate the love of Christ and honor the value of human life.

“I don’t think the Lord calls all people to dedicate their lives to the pro-life movement,” Lydia said. “But I do think every Christian is called to be passionately pro-life. Being passionately pro-life means having your eyes open to the women in your workplace, neighborhoods, and spheres of influence who may have an unplanned pregnancy.

“It means knowing exactly where the crisis pregnancy centers are nearest to you and where women can get quick resources. It means giving money to support mothers who are alone and organizations helping pregnant women. It means praying about the unborn, and it means being educated on your pro-life beliefs.”

If all Christians were passionately pro-life, Lydia predicted “the pro-abortion movement would soon crumble because there would be no more victims paying their bills. All their prey would have already been seen, pursued, and helped by the passionate pro-life Christians around them.”