Home Youth Leaders Articles for Youth Leaders How Do I Talk to My Kids About Abortion?

How Do I Talk to My Kids About Abortion?

You and your wife know your children best—how sensitive they are, and how mature they are. You are the best judges of what they can handle, and what they would naturally find disturbing. Ask God for wisdom, and go slowly, speaking in generalities at first. You can always add more detail when you think they are ready, or when they show that by asking more questions.

Randy again:

Another powerful tool to teach children about the value of the unborn is intrauterine pictures (such as these) and ultrasound photographs. In years past, the biggest disadvantage to the pre-born child has always been that there’s no window to the womb. But in recent years this has radically changed.

Expecting parents often share ultrasound pictures and video on social media. As you view these with your children, you can talk about how precious and fully human the babies are, and what a miracle that we are “fearfully and wonderfully made” (Psalm 139:14).

If you know your teenager and their level of sensitivity, they may be able to handle actually seeing a picture or video of an aborted baby, warning them it’s difficult to see, but knowing there’s validity in seeing with their own eyes what an abortion does. It’s similar to responses to the Holocaust: It was just something that happened until people saw actual pictures and realized the atrocities that were committed.

Teach older children and teens to say no to premarital sex. Teenage sexual abstinence is not only psychologically healthy, it’s the only sure way to prevent teen pregnancies. (Josh McDowell’s Why True Love Waits and How to Teach Your Child to Say No to Sexual Pressures, and James Dobson’s Preparing for Adolescence are helpful resources.) We can’t overemphasize the importance and the rewards of sexual purity!

But we should also tell them that regardless of anyone’s opinion about sex outside of marriage, pregnancy is not wrong, even if the act that resulted in pregnancy was. We should never try to cover one sin by committing a greater sin—abortion. Explain to your children that we should love and support women facing unplanned pregnancies, showing them the grace and truth of Jesus.

By teaching and modeling a love for people and children of all ages (see this article for ideas for making a pro-life difference), we can pass on a pro-life worldview to our children and generations to come.

Your hands shaped me and made me. … You molded me like clay. … You gave me life and showed me kindness, and in your providence watched over my spirit. (Job 10:8, 9, 12)  

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Randy Alcorn is the founder and director of Eternal Perspective Ministries (www.epm.org), a nonprofit ministry dedicated to teaching principles of God’s Word and assisting the church in ministering to the unreached, unfed, unborn, uneducated, unreconciled, and unsupported people around the world. Before starting EPM in 1990, Randy served as a pastor for fourteen years. He is a New York Times best-selling author of over fifty books, including Heaven (over one million sold), The Treasure Principle (over two million sold), If God Is Good, Happiness, and the award-winning novel Safely Home. His books sold exceed ten million copies and have been translated into over seventy languages.