Dowden participates in annual pro-life community prayer walks, and sees the ministry as a logical extension of that work.
“It certainly is easier to walk and pray and get money, and talk,” he said. “And it’s certainly easier to provide care and then send them back to their car or wherever, versus opening up a home where you’re going to care for them around the clock.”
The Haven is partnering with Obria Medical Clinics of Gwinnett, a network of accredited, non-profit and faith-based educational and humanitarian centers for women and their children, as well as fathers who wish to be involved.
Expectant mothers will be screened for admission to the home and then mentored by a live-in married house couple, will attend Bible study and weekly worship services, and will receive training in basic life skills.
“The reality is I have no idea how it’s going to turn out,” he said. “But the Lord gave us a burden and we’re trying to be diligent with our research. He knows already how He will use this ministry, and our responsibility is to be obedient. His responsibility is results.”
The church is studying the possibility of building additional homes on the 20-acre site, perhaps a transitional home to help mothers after they leave the Haven, or a home for elderly widows, thereby impacting both ends of the life spectrum.
“My hope is that there are a lot of lives that are saved,” he said, “not just the babies, but the moms, and that there’s a lot of Gospel impact beyond what we can ask or imagine. Even as we pray, that the Lord knows the little ones that He’s knitting together and the purpose that He has for them here.”
Editor’s note: Jan. 22, 2023, is Sanctity of Life Sunday in the Southern Baptist Convention.
This article originally appeared at Baptist Press.
