Every child has the right to be wanted.

But why would any parent not want a child?

Should a child be unwanted because the parents fear changes in their lifestyle?

Should a child be unwanted because the arrival of another person in the home will throw the family budget out of balance?

Should a child be unwanted because a birth now will violate some preset timetable?

Should a child be unwanted because, like Abraham Lincoln, he or she will have to be raised in poverty?

Should a child be unwanted because of some possible physical handicap?

Should a child be unwanted because this birth will reveal wrong conduct by the parents and shame looms larger than life?

How can any parent not want a child who is yet unseen?

How can a child be unwanted who has not yet had the opportunity to give love or receive it??¦whose cry has never been heard??¦whose arms still wait to give their first hug?

Is it fair to deny birth to a child thought to be unwanted when that child has never had a chance to convince the parent of his or her worth?

And who is this unwanted one?

One who bears the image of both parents.

But more than that, one who reaches back through generations combining all family roots in one special person.

Very special.

One so unique that this child can never be replaced.

No other person will have the same appearance.

No other person will have the same temperament.

No other person will have the same ability to solve problems that trouble us all.

No other person will have this child??™s voice.

No other eyes will carry the same expressions as these

No one will be the same mix of past and present.

So if this child is not allowed to live, we lose more than a statistic.

We lose a part of the past that is intended to be shared by this family.

We lose a family historian.

We lose one who seems to step out of old family portraits to walk among us.

We lose Grandma??™s beauty and Grandpa??™s gift to build.

We lose Great-Grandma??™s sense of humor and Great-Grandpa??™s ability to produce a bumper crop.

When a child is aborted, a family loses part of its heritage and we all lose the reward of that person??™s presence in the world.

The Psalmist said it well:

???Behold, children are a heritage from the LORD,

The fruit of the womb is His reward??? (Psalm 127:3).