We covered how New York City Mayor-elect Zorhan Mamdani has vowed to “protect” New Yorkers from pro-life pregnancy centers. Here’s a closer look at one agency to keep in our prayers…

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Origins

CompassCare is a Christ-centered agency that originated as The Citizens for Public Morality, emerging from a Bible study in 1980 and becoming one of the first pro-life pregnancy centers in America. Now there are 4,000 centers in North America, giving alternatives to abortion.

Rev. Jim Harden came on board in 2001 to outfit CompassCare facilities with exam rooms, ultrasound and other equipment, and registered nurses. He told God he’d give Him three years in that effort and then get back to pulpit ministry. “God was laughing at me,” Rev. Harden joked, now the organization’s president and CEO. He helped CompassCare provide New York State with the first repeatable medical model, and they’ve added TeleCare, which has “cut the time it takes for a woman to engage a pro-life nurse from 24 hours to 24 seconds.”

The Showdown

Even after Planned Parenthood shut down its Margaret Sanger flagship facility in Manhattan, according to Rev. Harden, there are still 53 facilities in New York City offering abortions, not including hospitals. Rev. Harden said, “New York City is the abortion headquarters of the United States.”

CompassCare has three of the 11 pro-life pregnancy centers in New York City, in Brooklyn, the Bronx, and Staten Island.

Why are such a small number of facilities so intimidating to Mr. Mamdani?

His campaign position paper promised:

The Mamdani administration will protect New Yorkers from false or deceptive information spread by Crisis Pregnancy Centers, including lies about abortion safety and medications…

Rev. Harden said, “They’re claiming chemical abortions are safer than Tylenol. That’s the fraud.”

It seems Mr. Mamdani actually wants to “protect” New Yorkers from the real facts:

• 10% of women who have a chemical abortion need to go to the emergency room
• Chemical abortions can cause sepsis, hemorrhaging, and death
• 81% of women have a higher incidence of mental health concerns after having an abortion
• 100% of successful abortions take the life of a citizen made in the image of God

Rev. Tony Loeffler, who has visited Cuba more than 75 times over 26 years, has another theory about Mr. Mamdani: Socialists don’t want the people looking to God and His people but to a big government to give them everything they need.

Though it costs $570 to treat a patient from their first visit to their last, CompassCare doesn’t charge for its services because it’s funded by individuals and churches.

Rev. Loeffler told IFA in a recent interview:

We attempt to bring in food, medicine, other things that can help the Cuban people, and because those are pillars of the revolution, anything that entered into those areas was frowned upon because it sent a message to the local people who lived in Cuba that the government was inadequate and couldn’t meet the needs properly. That is a message they did not want the people to receive.

When it comes to babies, Mr. Mamdani wants the government to provide for their destruction. His position paper promises his administration will…

…strengthen the city’s Abortion Access Hub by doubling funding to $2M, which confidentially helps New Yorkers find abortion providers and supports people living outside of New York through the process of scheduling appointments and finding financial assistance.

Facing Challenges

Rev. Harden said New York politicians “have done everything they possibly can to promote, protect, and pay for abortion.” Now they’re trying to regulate the “abortion competition.”

In 2012, I walked across the Brooklyn Bridge with Letitia James, now New York Attorney General, as part of a successful campaign to stop Mayor Mike Bloomberg from stopping churches from meeting in public schools. Now Ms. James is suing church-supported CompassCare.

Rev. Harden said CompassCare’s lawyers are strategizing to safeguard them from Ms. James’ current and Mr. Mamdani’s future attacks. Let’s pray they overcome everything the misguided politicians throw at them.

Foes Fear Spiritual Fruit

Dana Inzeo, an Advanced Practice and lead registered nurse for CompassCare’s Bronx facility, told of women hearing their child’s heartbeat for the first time:

Some of them are so shocked. They weren’t expecting that. We hear, “I didn’t realize it was a human being.” “I didn’t know it would have a heartbeat.” We use that moment. If they’re thinking about an abortion, we give them the real facts.

It’s hard to track, but it’s estimated that 63% of abortions are by the pill. If a woman comes in who changes her mind after taking the first of two pills, nurses at CompassCare let them know the abortion pill blockers are 90% effective when taken within 72 hours of the first dose. Rev. Harden said, “To not give a woman the opportunity to reverse the effects of a chemical abortion is to force her to have an abortion she does not want.”

CompassCare staff always offer the Gospel, and, in the Bronx facility, 53% of those who hear the way to Salvation give their lives to the Lord.

Nurse Inzeo said:

The Holy Spirit shows up every time. We pray before every patient visit. Some miraculous things happen in that moment. We ask, “Where are you in your faith?” Based on where they are we go forward. I’ve seen many women break down: “I’ve been so far away from my faith. I’ve been wanting to go back.” We give them local churches as part of their resource list. We pray together. I’ve seen hearts open wide: “I’m going to surrender this to Him.” “I was praying for a sign, and here’s my sign.”

Join Us on a Tour

Rev. Dr. William Devlin (www.WidowsAndOrphans.info) saw that Mr. Mamdani has his “cross hairs” on CompassCare, so Rev. Devlin arranged tours of CompassCare centers in NYC.

Before entering the facility in the Bronx, you can see bars on its windows. Rev. Harden said, “They’re to stop Molotov  cocktails.” We’ve covered the firebombing that they’ve faced since Roe v. Wade was abolished.

Rev. Harden and the nurses of CompassCare gave us an unforgettable tour of the facility. Please join us:

Though the legislative and legal battles are important, Rev. Harden emphasized that it’s important for pastors to address this important issue. He encouraged them to preach the Gospel in such a way that parishioners see the importance of redemption from the moment of conception. He said:

Abortion is a symptom of a misunderstanding of what it means to be human under God. Our dignity comes from God, not from government. Stand with pregnancy centers that are in your area. Reach out to politicians. The people of God know how to serve. The people of God know how to sacrifice, because their Savior did it for them. Just turn them loose.

How to Pray

Rev. Harden drew a distinction between dealing with the government (“I’ll fight tooth and nail”) and “dealing with another human being.” He has personally inspired abortionists to repent.

Pray for more abortionists to come under conviction.

CompassCare operates at 50-70% capacity, depending on the location, but they want to operate at 100% capacity.

Rev. Harden said Ms. James wrote an open letter to Google, making it harder to find CompassCare. Let’s pray that tactic will be overwhelmed by word of mouth. And let’s continue to pray that revival eliminates the need for abortions as our culture rejects sexual immorality.

I asked Rev. Harden how else we can pray for CompassCare, and he said, “Pray that God gives us wisdom. Pray that Satan and his minions attempting to seek and destroy the crown of creation through abortion are foiled.”

Post your prayers in agreement below.

Rich Swingle has presented in 42 nations on six continents, mostly with his own one-man plays. Rich and his bride Joyce Swingle have 41 screen children. They have developed a “singing play” about the Welsh and Asbury Revivals. The Swingles live in New York City. www.RichDrama.com. Photo Credit: Rich Swingle.