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LIFE-AFFIRMING N.Y. TIMES REPORT WILL BLOW YOUR MIND

Exclusive: Jason & David Benham on 'emotionally gripping' effort to save unborn baby

G.K. Chesterton once said, “In a time of universal deceit – telling the truth becomes a revolutionary act.”

Today, this nation needs some serious truth revolutionaries. Thankfully, one emerged last week in the New York Times (of all places).

In an article headlined “To mend a birth defect, surgeons operate on the patient within the patient,”reporter Denise Grady overwhelmingly highlighted the miracle of life in a mother’s womb. 

It was one of the most God-honoring (whether she intended it or not) and truthful articles about pre-born life we’ve read in years.

Ms. Grady obtained permission to be in the operating room at Texas Children’s Hospital in Houston as a team of surgeons performed an experimental – and extraordinary – surgery on an unborn child with spina bifida.

The article was emotionally gripping (you should read it if you have time), so we’ve summarized it below just to show you how revolutionary this story truly is, because so much of it flies directly in the face of today’s radical, pro-abortion agenda. Our comments are in italics:​

The patient, still inside his mother’s womb, came into focus on flat screens in a darkened operating room. Fingers, toes, the soles of his feet – all exquisite, all perfectly formed. 

(Right out of the gate – a little pre-born human being – perfectly formed in his mother’s womb. Notice the article also referenced “his” feet and toes – this is simply revolutionary in today’s context.)

But not so his lower back. Smooth skin gave way to an opening that should not have been there, a bare oval exposing a white rim of bone and the nerves of the spinal cord. …

The fetus, 24 weeks and two days old, less than two pounds, was about to have surgery. He had a severe form of spina bifida, in which the backbone and spinal cord do not develop properly. Children born with this condition usually cannot walk …

The surgeons had made a wide incision in the mother’s lower abdomen, gently lifted out her uterus – still attached internally – and made two tiny, 4-millimeter slits. In one, they inserted a “fetoscope,” a small telescope fitted with a camera, light and grasping tool. The second slit was for other miniature instruments.

Lit from within, the uterus glowed, red and magical in the darkened room. (What a sentence!) …

[Early in their pregnancy, after some bad news from an ultrasound, the Royer family said,] “It sounded like we were looking at brain damage, feeding tubes, a breathing tube, a wheelchair, just a bad quality of life” …

Termination was offered as an option, and Mrs. Royer felt that doctors were pushing it. But this might be their only chance to have a child. 

(The options were to terminate or operate. But terminate what? …Their perfectly formed son.) …

In early September, they went to Houston for two days of testing. The results confirmed that their son had a severe spinal defect, but still gave them hope.

“He was kicking his legs, moving all the way down to his feet,” Mrs. Royer said. “He has function down to what they call the ‘gas pedal’ movement. His ankle is flexing and pointing, a really good sign for being able to walk.” …

With more than a dozen doctors and nurses in the conference room, it was standing room only. All would be involved in the operation.

Dr. Belfort reviewed the test results, telling the group that the fetus had a “significant lesion” involving much of his lower back. But he added, “He’s able to do the gas pedal. That’s a great thing. There’s a lot of function to save.”

Addressing Mrs. Royer (before operating), [Belfort] said: “This is experimental surgery, with no guarantee. You are the person who will take the risk for another person. There is no mandate for you to do this. Nobody will think less of you if you change your mind, and you can change your mind until the last minute, until you go to sleep.”

(Risking your life for another’s is heroic – good job, Mom!) …

Every few minutes, a pediatric cardiologist called out the fetal heart rate, which held steady at a normal rate of about 150 beats a minute. …

The surgery took three hours. …

[Mrs. Royer] said, “Seeing the ultrasound and how good he’s doing, moving his ankles and feet, it’s such a happy moment.”

What an incredible story, revealing the powerful truth that a child’s life in a mother’s womb is a miracle to protect, not a mass to dissect. This revolutionary article in the New York Times simply points to truth (an undeniable reality) that God revealed to the Psalmist thousands of years ago:

“For You formed my inward parts; You wove me in my mother’s womb. I will give thanks to You, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made; wonderful are Your works, and my soul knows it very well. My frame was not hidden from You, when I was made in secret, and skillfully wrought in the depths of the earth; Your eyes have seen my unformed substance; and in Your book were all written the days that were ordained for me, when as yet there was not one of them.” – Psalms 139:13-16

Get your copy of the Benham brothers’ first book, “Whatever the Cost: Facing Your Fears, Dying to Your Dreams, and Living Powerfully,” right now!

http://www.wnd.com/2017/10/life-affirming-n-y-times-report-will-blow-your-mind/