Author: jsjacobs

Posted on

Remove Your Name from the Petition

We’ve gotten some questions from people who signed the dangerous petition to legalize abortion in error. “How can I remove my name from the petition?” they ask. You must act NOW and swiftly to have your name removed. You can only have your name removed BEFORE signatures are turned in.

This initiative petition would enshrine dangerous and egregious practices into our state constitution. It removes all parental notifications, enabling pedophiles to hide their crimes from a girl’s parents if they get her pregnant. If an abortionist harms the mother (we already know they harm the child) it destroys any recourse the woman may have, eliminating medical malpractice suits. Abortion facilities would no longer be subject to health inspections or the need for medical licensing. There are many more dangerous and problematic consequences of this initiative petition.

Any voter who has signed an initiative petition may withdraw his/her signature from that petition by submitting to the Missouri Secretary of State (SOS), before the petition is filed with the SOS, a sworn statement requesting that his/her signature be withdrawn and affirming the name of the petition signed, the name the voter used when signing the petition, the address of the voter and the county of residence. It is a class A misdemeanor to knowingly file a false withdrawal statement with the SOS. (RSMo 116.110)

The Process to Withdraw Your Signature

  1. Download the Word document here and replace any [text in brackets] with your information.
  2. Print the document and take the document (unsigned) to your bank or anywhere with a notary and sign it in front of that notary, getting it notarized.
  3. Send the sworn statement to the Missouri Secretary of State. You can mail it or deliver it in person. Include your contact information so they can verify your identity.
    Send/Deliver to: Missouri Secretary of State 600 West Main Street Jefferson City, MO 65101

Your letter must be received by the Secretary of State by May 4th, 2024, but earlier than that date is preferred. Please send the letter ASAP.

If you have questions or need further assistance, reach out to the Secretary of State’s office directly: 573-751-4936 or info@sos.mo.gov.

Posted on

::URGENT::Prayer Need

—Copy of Email Sent 9/16/2017—

We wanted to send a quick e-mail to let you know of an urgent prayer need happening this week in our city.  In our last e-mail we gave some details of a recent victory at the 8th circuit court in a case out of Arkansas.   Praise God for that!  Since we sent that out it has come to our attention that there is a current case in the court from our state.  This case will be heard this week! Wednesday September 20, a three judge panel made up of Judges, Michael Melloy, Roger Wollman, and Raymond Gruender will hear a case being brought against the state by the satanic temple.

The satanic temple claims that Missouri’s 72 hour waiting period, and informed consent laws prior to obtaining an abortion violate their religious beliefs.  It comes as no surprise that those who worship satan would partner with planned parenthood and advocate for abortion.  We will be praying this week while this case is heard in our court.  A small company will be going to the court to pray.  If you are interested in joining in prayer at the court I suggest you get there early and plan to park at either a meter or in the parking garage across the street from the courthouse.  This case is the second case scheduled for the day, the judges begin hearing cases at 9am.

Please join us in praying this week.  Even if you can’t join us at the court, you can pray along with us.  Let’s contend for life to be proclaimed from our court.  I encourage you to learn the judges names and pray for them by name in the days leading up to Wednesday.  And stay tuned for more.  There is another case coming to the 8th circuit.  We don’t know yet when it will be heard, but we will join to pray when that case is heard as well.

Posted on

It’s Going to Be Worth it All

If I step back in my mind’s eye and look at what we’re doing, it doesn’t make any sense. Then again, flipping through scripture reveals that being used by God often takes on a form that makes no sense to men. Ezekiel lays on his side for for over a year and eats food cooked over dung, Jesus smears mud on a man’s face, and if I went on, the list of strange behavior in the bible would take too much space for this format. We’ve been standing with “LIFE” written on red tape and placed on our mouths since May of 2013 in front of a courthouse. The strategy laid out by heaven may draw the consternation of men, but I care not. I am resolved to employ the plan of God and ride with Him to victory.

“For What” you may ask, “are we seeking victory? And why a courthouse?”. In May of 2013, Arkansas and North Dakota passed laws restricting abortion at 12 and 6 weeks respectively. These are the most restrictive laws on abortion in our nation and a direct frontal attack to Roe v Wade. The ban in North Dakota would put a stop to 90% of the abortions in that state. As always in these situations, the legal battles over these laws commenced. These are likely the most significant cases on abortion in the 42 years since Roe v Wade, and we knew that St. Louis would once again be integral in determining if an entire people group will be recognized as human.

The Eight Circuit Court in St. Louis sits one step below the supreme court and our court system was the starting point of the Dredd Scott case which made it’s way to the US Supreme Court. This case tragically decided that black people were less than human. Judge Harry Blackmun was promoted from the 8th Circuit to the US Supreme Court where he authored Roe v Wade, deciding that the pre-born are less than human.

Our stand in prayer was labeled “The Gaddite Stand” after the warrior tribe of Gad who in Numbers 32 agreed to fight for the inheritance of the other tribes before receiving their own inheritance. We would war in prayer and prepare the ground for these cases to arrive in St. Louis on behalf of Arkansas and North Dakota, believing that our own inheritance of LIFE giving laws would be released in Missouri. A small band of prayer warriors stood regularly through wind, heat, soaking rain, snow, and pleasant sunny days. In August of 2014 several people were given words independently indicating that the ground of the courthouse on which we had been standing had been given to us, that the court belonged to us. With increased expectation of what God was doing we pressed in prayer, anticipating the arrival of the cases.

In December 2014 we received word that the cases would finally be heard in St. Louis on the 13th of January, 2015. Praying that day, I could feel the satisfaction of the Lord, that we had been faithful with the Gaddite Stand. In conversation with some of the lawyers in the cases, it became apparent how important our prayers had been through the process. The attorney defending the Arkansas law relayed how he was the only pro-life attorney in the office under a pro-choice attorney general and had to prepare for this case alone. He told how miraculous it was that the attorney general even allowed the law to be challenged up to the 8th circuit court. We spent time in prayer during this season in early 2014 praying for that attorney general by name.

Our assignment is not over. It has been a pleasure to partner with the Lord in prayer and see how our prayers were used to shape history, but these cases are not finished. The three judges (Benton, Shepherd, & Smith) are deliberating their decision now and we expect a decision to be released sometime in the next six months. We must continue to pray for them as they consider these cases.  As strange as we may look at times when we follow the Lord’s direction, it is going to be worth it all!

Posted on

From Runners to Forerunners: The Gaddite Stand

In case you haven’t noticed, the ground is shaking here in St. Louis. The time for intercessors to arise in our region is NOW. The time for the warring tribe of Gad to take their place on the front lines has arrived.

More than once in our region’s history we’ve avoided the difficult battles. In 1820 while trying to maintain a “balance” the Missouri Compromise was minted. At a Jordan River moment in our nation’s history, we looked and saw that the giants were too frightening to battle with. Again in the 1960’s, while most other major metropolitan areas had race riots, St. Louis was one of only a handful that had none. After wandering a while longer, we find ourselves again facing a Jordan River crossing in history and we must fearlessly face down the giants of the land. We are presented once again in our region an opportunity to fight for justice, what will we do?

In Numbers 32 the leaders of the tribe of Gad and Ruben have a meeting with Moses and ask him to allow them to have the land on the near side of the Jordan River. Moses, remembering the last time they were ready to cross the Jordan 40 years prior, and not wanting to wander in the wilderness for another 40 years confronts them saying in verses 7-9:

“Now why will you discourage the heard of the children of Israel from going over in the land which the Lord has given them? Thus your fathers did when I sent them away from Kadesh Barnea to see the land. For when they went up to the Valley of Eshcol and saw the land, they discouraged the heart of the children of Israel, so that they did not go into the land which the Lord had given them.” (NKJV)

Recognizing their previous cowardice and lack of faith in the promises of the Lord, the two tribes vow to lead the charge in battle and fight on the front lines for the land designated for the other tribes before returning to receive their own land inheritance, saying in verses 17-18:

“but we ourselves will be armed, ready to go before the children of Israel until we have brought them to their place; and our little ones will dwell in the fortified cities because of the inhabitants of the land. We will not return to our homes until every one of the children of Israel has received his inheritance.”

After conquering the Promised Land, the tribe of Gad became well known as a tribe of fearless warriors.

On January 13 the cases for Arkansas’ 12 week abortion ban and North Dakota’s 6 week abortion ban will be before the Eight Circuit Court here in St. Louis. Some legal experts have labeled these as the most significant cases on abortion since Roe v Wade itself. So here we are again at the banks of the Jordan River, are we willing to war in prayer for justice to be established in our nation or will we declare the “the timing isn’t right”, or “the Supreme Court isn’t stacked right”, or other giants are just too formidable? It is the time for the tribe of Gad to arise and fight. We will war in prayer for the inheritance of our sister states Arkansas and North Dakota on the front lines at the eighth circuit court here in St. Louis.

We will be holding a Silent Siege from 9:00 AM to 11:00 AM on January 13 outside of the Eighth Circuit Court building at 111 10th St. while the cases are heard inside. We are asking all who can join us, to come join our Gaddite Stand as we fight for the inheritance of our sister states.

Posted on

Our Stomping Ground

*Originally published on Bound4LIFE.com

Sieges/ Rumbles
Regular Silent Siege is always the 3rd Saturday of the Month from 9-11 am. Extra sieges are added occasionally, including April 5th from 7am-7pm when we are joining with 40 Days for Life. Check our facebook page for more information about the location and how to sign up. Right now we siege the 8th circuit Court House at 111 10th street in St. Louis. We also siege a Planned Parenthood facility and another abortion facility in metro Illinois (The Hope Clinic). Rumble Every second Tuesday of the Month from 8-10pm at the Gateway House of Prayer.

Chapter Leaders
Jeremy and Melissa Jacobs

Our Journey
Being pro-life intercessors has been quite a journey with the Lord for Melissa and Jeremy. Melissa has always LOVED children but for many years felt that abortion was necessary in some circumstances. As the Lord blessed Melissa and Jeremy with children, He was also slowly and gently transforming their hearts to see children the way He sees them.

Melissa and Jeremy attended The Call Nashville on 07-07-07 and it was a turning point in their family and marriage and ignited a fire of intercession in their hearts. They left that gathering with a burning desire to see the ending of abortion in America and to join a Silent Siege in St. Louis. They felt sure that someone in their hometown was leading Bound4LIFE and conducting sieges. When they got home and discovered there was not an organized chapter they felt the Lord nudging them to be the leaders. They now feel they have been given a mandate from the Lord to pray and that they will see the ending of abortion in their lifetime.

Why join Bound4LIFE?
Bound4LIFE is one of the easiest ways to make a difference in the pro-life movement. It may not seem like it because we don’t do some of the community activism that is so visible. We attack the culture of death right at it’s source. We are not fighting a battle against flesh and blood but against the very spirit of death that has taken hold of our nation. The fight for life, is a spiritual battle and the only way to defeat it is through prayer. We love and support what other pro-life ministries are doing and believe they are serving a vital aspect of reaching those in crisis, however if you are nervous about talking to people about abortion or not sure you would know what to say, Bound4LIFE is a perfect fit. You don’t have to talk to anyone if you don’t feel lead, you just pray. If you love babies and you love Jesus, Bound4LIFE is a perfect way to step into the pro-life movement! Join us in prayer! It’s easy.

Bound4LIFE Testimonies
We were praying outside the Planned Parenthood clinic one Saturday a few years ago at about 10:30am. All the sidewalk counselors had left for the day because most of the abortions are scheduled for early in the morning. I don’t usually talk to the ladies when we siege the clinic, but this time was different. I saw a woman sitting in an SUV right in front of where I was standing. My heart was drawn to her and I felt the Lord nudging me to go talk to her. She was sitting in her car crying and talking on the phone, her door was slightly open and she looked as if she was conflicted about if she should get out or not.

I didn’t know what to say and to this day I can’t remember exactly what I said, as I took the tape off my mouth and walked toward the fence I prayed and asked God to give me the words to speak. I called out to her told her I understood how she felt as I’ve had several unexpected pregnancies myself. I stood there and I waited. Eventually the woman came to the fence I told her she didn’t have to go through with it and that God has a plan for her baby. I told her we could get her help and handed her a brochure I had from a local crisis pregnancy center. She told me she just couldn’t do it, she couldn’t go through with it. I asked her if I could pray with her. We prayed I gave her my phone number and told her to call me anytime if she needed anything. She thanked us for being there got in her SUV and left the clinic parking lot.

That is one life saved from death. This is not a typical occurrence at sieges, though. Mostly when we siege the abortion facility there are many sidewalk counselors calling out to the women and we don’t want to get in their way. In the 6 years that Bound4LIFE St. Louis has been sieging there have only been a handful of times like this where someone from our group has taken the tape off to talk to a woman considering abortion. However I know there have been many times when lives have been saved just by our presence. The sidewalk counselors have told us on several occasions when they talked with a woman who left the clinic and canceled her abortion that when they spoke with her all she could say was, “I just couldn’t get the image of those people with the tape on their mouth out of my mind.”

The Final Word
Tape may not seem like much, but it’s the weak things that God uses to make a big difference. It’s the humble stand of the few who are silent, but speak volumes in the Heavenlies. God is the creator of life and He says children are a gift, a treasure, arrows, and a heritage. Praying for life is so easy to do because we know beyond a shadow of a doubt that when we pray we are partnering with God’s heart.

Posted on

Every Life is Beautiful

*Originally published on Bound4LIFE.com

Today I got to hold two babies. One of them was so tiny she looked like one of my daughter’s baby dolls. She has the sweetest nose, and she kept cracking these little smiles. Her twin brother was equally adorable. These babies are even more remarkable because one was given a deadly diagnosis in utero. The sweet baby girl was diagnosed with Trisomy 18. A selective abortion was presented to the parents. Many babies with Trisomy 18 don’t live long. In this case the parents chose life.

I went to the store to pick up a gift for the babies and it was the hardest baby gift I have ever bought. How do you give a gift to the parents of a tiny baby when no one is sure how long she will be here on this earth? What kind of gift is appropriate in this situation? How do you honor her life and her brother’s without seeming like one is more valuable than the other?  I searched the baby section at the store and prayed that God would lead me to the gift that would bring comfort to the parents. I also thought, “What would I want as a gift if I were in this situation?”

My husband and I talked before I went to the store and he made a remark that really stuck with me as I searched. He said, “I guess we don’t really want to give them an outfit.” I get why he said it, he was thinking of the parents and didn’t want to give them something that would bring pain if she didn’t live long. As I stood there I thought if I had a baby and no one was sure how long he/she would live, I actually would want something to remember them by. I would want an outfit or a little hat, something that I could set aside and look back on to touch and remember that life, and how beautiful it was even though it was short.

A few years ago I went through a pretty difficult miscarriage. The hardest part for me even after the emotional and physical healing was the absence of a reminder. The ultrasound screen was turned away from me; I didn’t even get to see my child.  It’s hard to explain in words the emptiness my arms experienced after that. Now three years later I still remember that precious child in my heart, but have nothing tangible to remind me that I am a mother of seven children, not six. I long for something, a picture or a footprint, anything to remind me of that life.

We went to the hospital to bring comfort to the parents but also to love on the precious babies. I wasn’t sure what to expect. We had been told she would be born with some physical deformities so I was prepared for that. What I was not prepared for was just how beautiful she is. I fell in love with that sweet baby girl. Even her little cry and her squeaks and grunts were like music. The fact that she survived after birth and she is able to suck formula from a bottle is more than anyone was expecting. Even at 2 days old she has outlived any expectations doctors had for her.  Can you imagine?  To be only 2 days old and already have exceeded everything that your parents and doctors thought you would be able to accomplish.  What a great life to have the privilege of living.

I cannot imagine this world without these children, the ones with physical limitations, or mental limitations. Are they the easiest children to care for? Probably not, but the reward for welcoming them is huge! Jesus said to welcome the little children and to let them come to Him. I don’t believe he was referring only to those born in perfect health. Every life is wonderfully and fearfully made. God does not make mistakes. If I know anything it’s that welcoming those who are created differently only enriches our own lives and makes our society better.  They are gifts that so many would say should just be aborted. Statistically 90% of all babies diagnosed with Down syndrome prenatally are aborted; some estimates say it’s even higher for babies diagnosed with trisomy 18. This is a tragedy! What could we learn about pure love if our culture shifted to embrace these special children?

Every life has value and a purpose. The length of a life lived is NOT what determines its value.