How Coordinators announce their
Life Chain can increase attendance dramatically, by several hundred percent or
even more. Please announce your Chain through a Pastoral Letter (below),
with "Lead Pastors' signatures" (see the setup on p. 32 of the Life
Chain Manual but use the letter copy below). The Pastoral Letter
requires effort but ultimately saves much Coordinator time and greatly
increases Coordinator success and joy.
To prepare your Pastoral
Letter, simply adapt the draft below
to your locale and then recruit 7, 12, or 24 influential "Lead
Pastors" to sign the letter. Include their church names, phone numbers,
and signatures, as shown in the Life Chain Manual. Then duplicate
the letter and signatures and deliver a copy to each of the other pastors in your
area. Hand delivery tells pastors you care deeply about your Chain's mission
and that you are asking them to care deeply, also. The same Pastoral Letter may
be delivered a second and third time to reach unconfirmed clergy during the
months preceding your Chain.
Do not omit the Pastoral
Letter. Catholic Coordinators who
struggle to win Protestants will find a letter signed by Protestant pastors to
be of enormous help, and the same is true for Protestants who struggle with
Catholic attendance. "Lead Pastors" who sign the letter pledge their
participation, and they will inspire other pastors to lead their congregations
and parishes to your local sidewalks on October x. Omission of a
Pastoral Letter is a primary reason for low Life Chain attendance. Your letter
for 201X is as follows:
Dear Pastor Simms: (Adapt the letter to your local city or town)
We the undersigned pastors of Little
Rock write with eminent awareness of the tens of millions of unborn Americans
(or Canadians) slain by abortionists' cruel instruments or deadly
chemicals, and we are also aware of the accountability that bloodguilt imposes
on a community, state, and nation. God does not ignore the innocent shed blood
of voiceless victims. Both biblical and secular history confirms that.
How should we respond to the
powers sustaining America's Holocaust (or Canada's Holocaust)?
Among our resources, we believe and are confident you agree that prayer is a
vital weapon; and we respectfully ask you and your fellow worshipers to join us
on October x, from 2:00 -- 3:30 p.m., when National Life Chain Sunday 201x
calls our nation to 90 minutes of intercession and witness on local sidewalks.
Please, if you will, mark that date on your church calendar and help us build a
devout prayer vigil that God can use to change hearts and to save lives and
families in our local area.
Life Chain is not a calloused
public demonstration, with frivolous conversation and errant interaction with
motorists. To the contrary, we must first allow God to minister to us
the Church in the true spirit of 2 Chronicles 7:14, and then we must humbly ask
Him to anoint and minister through our solemn public witness. To that
end, let us as pastors prepare our church families for sincere prayer and
self-assessment during a critical period in our state and nation's history. The
attachments will be of help, and additional materials will be available for
participating churches.
Regarding our pastoral duty and
the lack of substantial reduction in abortions since their legalization, Afro-American
pastor Clenard Childress reminded us in his sturdy little book No Shepherds
Cry that "The pew cannot do what the pulpit is suppose to do."
A key for us is to look beyond the "abortion issue" to the unborn
child's humanity, where its likeness to Jewish humanity of 70 years ago speaks
forcefully to the Church in our day. The need for our leadership is urgent
because God does not see local Preborns as statistical non-persons.
Kindly direct your reply to Life
Chain Coordinator ___________________________, (address)
___________________________________ (phone) _____________ and (Email)
___________________________). The Coordinator will remain alert to our
questions, concerns, and needs. Also feel free to contact any pastor whose
signature appears below. Meanwhile, friend in Christ, we pray for God's
abundant blessing on you and your ministry.
Your fellow servants in Christ,
(Enter the Lead Pastors'
Signatures and Churches)
Before delivery, attach to
each Pastoral Letter a quality piece
of pro-life literature and "Seven Reasons Why Christians Should Attend a
Local Life Chain" (which is available at www.NationalLifeChain.org). A few days after delivery, call your local
pastors to make sure they have identified with your letter and to answer any
questions or concerns they may have. If need be, deliver to them immediately
another copy of the Pastoral Letter.
Pray for God's guidance and
favor.
For help with your Pastoral
Letter, email
Royce@NationalLifeChain.org or call 530-674-5068.
Royce Dunn, Director of Life Chain [ Here is a word processing version of the letter for you - Pastoral_Letter_by_Royce_Dunn.rtf ]
Letter
adapted from John Pinedo, Houston
Dear Pastor ___________,
We're looking forward to the year 201x [
your area ] Life Chain!
The [ your area ]
Life Chain committee believes that the people will follow their pastors.
The committee seeks about 15 key pastors to publicly go on record as
supporters. These pastors will be listed on the (your area) Life Chain
flyer and announcement letter as ministers who will attend the year 201x
Life Chain.
The task of being a
key pastor is easy but very important. Your job is to provide spiritual
leadership. Your only commitment is to attend the 201x Life Chain
yourself. The [
your area ] Life Chain committee and, to a lesser extent, your
designated lay assistant, will do most of the work.
The [ your area ] Life Chain committee
will:
1. Provide sample Life Chain
announcements to your lay assistant for your church's Sunday
bulletin.
2. Provide copies of the [ your area
] Life Chain flyer to your lay assistant for insertion into your September 2x, 2x and October x church bulletins.
3. Assign a spot for you and your congregation so that your people
can stand together as a church family. A few other churches will
also be assigned to this area to help each other increase the
numbers.
4. Sell signs at your Life Chain area that may be purchased by
members of your congregation for $1 each.
Sound easy? It is! I pray you'll
say "Yes!"
Yours for the Lord of Life,
[ Your name ]
[ your area ] Life Chain Committee
[ Your phone number ]
enc: Draft of announcement letter for the 201x [
your area ] Life Chain
Draft of the year 201x [
your area ] Life Chain flyer
Permission form
to use your name
Permission
form
The [ your area ] Life Chain committee has my permission for the use of my name on the year 201x [
your area ] Life Chain flyers and announcement letter.
signature _______________________________
[ Pastor's name ]
[ Church name ]
_______________________________
Title (pastor, assistant pastor, youth pastor)
_______________________________
Date
_______________________________
(Lay assistant's name)
Thank you for your support of
LIFE!
Return to: (Your name, address
and phone number)
Letter
#1 from Barbara Johnson, Texas
Dear Pastor ______________,
I am the ______________ in _______________
at our church. I am writing to ask you to forward this to the
appropriate persons who would be encouraged to participate in
[ your area ] Life Chain this year.
LIFE CHAIN is a peaceful and
prayerful public witness of pro-life Americans and Canadians
standing for one hour along major roadways praying for our nations
and for an end to abortion. It is a visual statement of solidarity
by the Christian community that abortion kills children and that
the Church supports the sanctity of human life from the moment
of conception.
I am working with like minded
individuals who would like to see a large turn out. I would be
happy to meet with you or anyone who may be interested.
You may access our web site at
http://LifeChain.Net. It
will provide all the necessary information our church will need
to get started.
Please call me or send an e-mail
about what level of involvement is possible for our church.
We want to rally as many like minded people of faith to stand up for life for one hour on October x from 2:00 to 3:00 p.m.
~ Life Chain is October x ~
~ 2:00 to 3:00 p.m. ~
[ modify if your local time is different ]
Thank you for
reading my special request. I have no doubt our wonderful church will
support this event. I will also talk to _____________ and
_________________.
Yours In Christ,
_______________
Life Chain Committee
Home 888/555-1212
Work 777/555-1212
Letter #2 from Barbara Johnson, Texas
Dear Pastor _______,
I am a resident of
________ writing to ask you to forward this to the appropriate persons
who may be encouraged to participate in the
[ your area ] Life Chain this year.
LIFE CHAIN is a
peaceful and prayerful public witness of pro-life Americans and
Canadians standing for one hour along major roadways praying for our
nations and for an end to abortion. It is a visual statement of
solidarity by the Christian community that abortion kills children and
that the Church supports the sanctity of human life from the moment of
conception.
I am working with
like minded individuals who would like to see a large turn out. I would
be happy to meet with you or anyone who may be interested.
You may access our web site at http://LifeChain.Net. It will provide all the necessary information your church will need to get started.
Please call me or send an e-mail about what level of involvement is possible for your church.
We want to rally as many like minded people of faith to stand up for life for one hour on October x from 2:00 p.m. to 3:00 p.m.
~ Life Chain is October x ~
~ 2:00 to 3:00 p.m. ~
[ modify if your local time is different ]
Thank you for reading my special request. I have no doubt your wonderful church will support this event.
Yours in Christ,
_______________
Life Chain Committee
Home 888/555-1212
Work 777/555-1212
Letter #3 from Barbara Johnson, Texas
Dear former Life Chain Participant,
I am a resident of
_________ working with Sharron Albertson, coordinator of Life Chains for
Texas this year. I hope you received her e-mail several weeks ago.
Please call me or
send an e-mail to let me know if you are going to work on this event
this year, and if not, to tell me who to call.
You may access our web site at http://LifeChain.Net. It will provide all the necessary information your church will need to get started.
Please call me or send an e-mail about what level of involvement is possible for your church.
We want to rally as many like minded people of faith to stand up for life for one hour on October x from 2:00 to 3:00 p.m.
~ Life Chain is October x ~
~ 2:00 to 3:00 p.m. ~
[ modify if your local time is different ]
Thank you for
reading my special request. I have no doubt your wonderful church and
like minded friends will want to support this event.
Yours in Christ,
______________
Life Chain Committee
Home 888/555-1212
Work 777/555-1212
Start a Life Chain in Your Own City. If you would like to have a Life Chain in your own community, you can get a comprehensive guide including step-by-step instructions, sample letters and brochures, and a video introduction to the life chain concept.
For additional help, send a request with your name, address, and telephone number to Royce Dunn
, National Life Chain Office, c/o Please Let Me Live, Inc., 3209 Colusa
Highway, Yuba City, California 95993. You may send an email or call at 530-671-5500. If you are in Texas, contact Sharron
Albertson, Texas Director at 972-618-0400.
Website © LifeChain.Net, Dallas, Texas, 2000-2012
Updated on July 10, 2012 at 23:55 CT