Olympians & Abortion

Welcome to God First, a program committed to encouraging you to put God first while viewing life through the window of the Bible. Now, in honor of the one and only true God, the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, please join us for today's episode. Welcome to the program. My name is Brian Thomas and it is always a joy and honor and a privilege to join you each week.

And I want to thank you for tuning in. Well, the Olympic games are underway and it is a time of great excitement in which athletes have trained for a number of years for this moment. It is a time in which people who rarely, if ever watched sports will tune in to see what's going on.

It is a time in which enemy nations will put their differences aside to come together for friendly competition. And so it's a time of, of again, great intrigue and excitement. And a lot of people are tuned in to the Olympic games, but there is also a very dark side to the Olympics that I want to talk with you about today. And that is the topic of abortion. And I know some out there may be saying, why are you always talking about those types of topics?

Why not talk about things to make us feel good? And well, in all honesty, I think there's enough feel good messages out there. You know, those messages that the Bible says would come in the last days of tickling itching ears.

And matter of fact, I think there's too much of that out there to make people feel good things that they want to hear. God has called me to be a watchman. And I will argue that God has called all Christians to be a watchman, to declare that if we do not turn from sin, that there will be grave consequences. And so I want to talk about this topic today. And the voice that you heard in the opening was that of Sonya Richards Ross. And she was speaking on an abortion that she had prior to the 2008 Olympics. I'm going to begin by sharing some excerpts from a New York times article that was published on July the 1st, 2021. It is titled an abortion, a mist drug test and altered records add up to trouble. It begins Brianna McNeil, the 2016 Olympic champion in the 100 meter hurdles had qualified last month for her second U S Olympic team. After qualifying in the Olympic trials last month, she stated quote, I want to cry right now. You guys don't understand how much I've been going through this year.

I'm just very emotional end quote. Well, it has been revealed that Brianna McNeil recently had an abortion and she had no intentions of ever making this public, but she stated she felt compelled to divulge the personal information in order to fight a doping ban and to clear her name. It turns out that Brianna McNeil, who's 29 years old was suspended for five years for tampering within the results management process in connection with her missing a doping test. Two days after she had the abortion, the report States that anti-doping officials arrived at her home January the 12th, 2020, and no one answered the door or her phone.

She claimed she did not hear them because she was in bed recovering from the abortion. The court of arbitration for sport in Switzerland uphill her five-year ban, meaning that McNeil will not have the chance to defend her Olympic title and will miss the next two summer games of the decision. She stated quote, right now I feel excommunicated from the sport itself and stigmatized. And to me, it is unfair. I just don't believe that this was warranted as a suspension at all, much less a five-year suspension just for a technicality and honest mistake during a very emotional time. They say they are protecting athletes that are clean, but I don't feel protected at all. I just feel like I'm being judged for this very big decision I made that really affected my life end quote. Now let me state folks that it is not against the rules to have an abortion in the sport.

I wish that it were, but that is not against the rules. But Brianna McNeil received a five-year suspension because she had received a year long ban four years ago for missing three drug tests in a 12 month period. Now on two occasions, she claimed she forgot to update her whereabouts in the system that tracks athletes for testing.

On the third occasion, she claimed she made a mistake of entering the time she would be available. So we see that there is a history of non-compliance when it comes to drug tests and this young lady. She decided to reveal the abortion so people would know that it was not drugs as to why she was suspended. So she explained to investigators that she had undergone what she describes as a surprise medical procedure that left her medicated and in bed.

She had requested a doctor's note from the abortion clinic confirming an unnamed medical procedure. So according to McNeil, she mistakenly thought that the clinic got the date of the procedure wrong. So she changed the date from January the 10th, 2020 two days after her missed drug test to January 11th. The athletics integrity unit noticed the change and asked for further documentation. McNeil submitted two more notes from the same doctor changing the date on both of them.

Investigators noticed those changes as well. And after pressing her, she revealed she had had an abortion at the clinic surrounding the dates in question. So in its case against her, world athletics said it didn't believe she was so traumatized by the abortion that she got the date of the procedure wrong. After all the organization said she continued to post on social media and compete in the weeks afterward. She talked of suffering from depression after the abortion and that world athletics have not been compassionate at all. So the reason that she was disqualified from the Olympics was for falsification of records and missing a drug test after having already been suspended four years earlier for missing tests. Breonna McNeil stated in an interview that as a Christian, she felt guilt about the abortion, which she underwent so she could compete in the 2020 games. She said she was even more crushed when the gains were postponed until 2021 because the delay meant she could have had the baby after all. I'll tell you folks, this, this tears my heart apart.

I've seen this statement numerous times in preparing for this show. And every time I see it, it is just, there are no words that can describe how it makes me feel because she sacrificed her baby in order to compete in a sport. Abortion breaks my heart under all circumstances. And here she's saying that she sacrificed her baby at the altar of track and field. She sacrificed her baby at the altar of the Olympics for the sake of winning a medal or maybe winning an endorsement deal and making extra money.

It just, it just rips your heart, heart out. I admit that when I first heard about this incident, I assumed that this was a single young woman who was living a lifestyle of a fornication, but it turns out she's been married since 2017. So here's a case in which this baby would have been born to a home with a father. And we talk so much about babies being born in fatherless homes, especially in the black community where I think now is over 75% are born outside of intact parenting outside of a mother and father who are wed. And so here's a case in which the baby would have been, but yet she decided to abort the child for the reason of being able to compete in the Olympics.

It just breaks your heart. And she claimed that she had been so shaken and disoriented by the abortion that it didn't occur to her that changing the date would be a bad thing. That was from the New York times. Another angle from Yahoo that was published on July the 4th of 2021 is titled Olympic champion. Brianna McNeil isn't eligible for Tokyo Olympics after missing drug tests due to abortion.

It begins another black woman will not be eligible to compete in the upcoming Tokyo games. So you see right off the bat is coming with the race card. It goes on to say in a lengthy Instagram posts, McNeil expressed feeling invalidated throughout the appeal process by the fully male board over the case.

Her Instagram posts reads quotes. I sat through two hearings Hill, April, 2021 in July, 2021, and listen to white European me and tell me how my experience doesn't match with their perspective. Let me pause right there. So you see right off the bat, this is what happens.

Folks. When a culture is driven by woke ism and critical race theory, because there's not responsibility here. There's not accountability for her actions. Instead she's playing the race card. She's blaming white European men. This is really sad.

It goes on to state. They criticize me and overly judge my decision-making completely ignored the fact that I was under physical and mental trauma after undergoing an abortion and that I was not in the right mental capacity when making certain decisions, they never express sympathy with my situation. At my second hearing, they even brought in a clinical psychiatrist to undermine my mental health. I watched them try to discredit my doctor. We used to testify about abortion stigma. I couldn't stop thinking to myself, how could these men tell me what type of experience I should have had?

How can these men who would never in a million years be in my shoes, tell me anything I should be going through. So instead of being met with some sort of compassion and understanding, I was being interrogated and stigmatized. You see the victim hood mentality. She's not owning up to her wrongdoing, missing drug tests, falsifying records.

She instead is blaming others. And in this case, she's putting race into it. And the article starts out with race and it ends by stating that Sha'Carri Richardson was disqualified for testing positive for marijuana use, who is another black woman. Well, marijuana use is against the rules.

You break the rules, you pay the consequences, but we are in a society now where people feel like they should be able to do what they want to do and no consequences should follow. But I don't want to focus on the race aspect of this. I want to focus on again, the sin of abortion and how this is happening.

And as we're going to hear, not a lot of people are talking about it. And so that is why I am bringing this to you, because we need to talk about it because I want to bring healing to this situation so that we will live lives that are pleasing to our Lord. So don't go away. We're going to come and talk about it more on the other side of the break.

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Box 266, Knightdale, North Carolina 27545 for more information. Now, let's return to the conclusion of today's program. Welcome back to the God First program as today we are discussing the topic of Olympics and abortion. And when I heard about this story, it made me think about how common is this? How common is this among female athletes? And I had wondered about it even in the past, and this really, really brought it even more to light for me. And so it didn't take long for me to do a little digging. And I found Sonya Richards Ross, who you heard from in the opening, who is a an Olympic track and field gold medalist.

She stated in an interview that this is very common in clip one. One of the gold medals that you won in a relay was 2008. And you reveal in this book that you had an abortion two weeks before that Olympic Games.

Why did you want to reveal that very personal moment in the book? The truth is, it's an issue that's not really talked about, especially in sports. And a lot of young women have experienced this. Like, I literally don't know another female track and field athlete who hasn't had an abortion. And that's sad.

And so for me, I'm hoping that this will open up some discussions to helping, especially a lot of young women who were in my situation, not experience what I did. So you heard her say there that she does not know of a female track and field athlete that has not had an abortion. And she said, it's sad. And it is sad. It's heartbreaking. And she says, a lot of people don't talk about it.

And again, folks, that is why I am talking about it, because we need to, to make people aware of what is taking place. It, it really breaks your heart. It just really breaks your heart as to how common this is. And she had an abortion prior to the Olympics in 2008. And again, this is very common and it's hard for me now not to sit down and watch track and field as I watched these women perform. And I think to myself, she likely had an abortion because this woman, Sonya Richards Ross, she knows a lot of track and field athletes. She's still very involved in the sports. She's a commentator and she's saying that she does not know of one that has not had an abortion. And so chances are, when we are watching these women compete, all of these women that we see on the screen have had an abortion and folks is really sad. So in the interview, she answers the question as to why this is so pervasive in clip two. Why do you think it's so pervasive?

You said you do not know another female track athlete who hasn't had one. I think because at that time in your life, when you're in college, you know, you don't feel comfortable talking to your mom. And so a lot of the information you get are from your peers. And I mean, it's going to sound silly to some people, but you know, like in our community, people don't want to take the pill because you put water weight on.

And of course, as an athlete, you want to be able to stay as fit and as healthy as possible. And then people tell you, well, when you're, when you're extremely fit, you can't get pregnant because our cycles are shorter. So there's a lot of miseducation that happens to young women in college because we're educating ourselves. And so I didn't know all of my options. And I had been fortunate up until that point, my husband and I had been dating for five years. I was engaged to him.

I had no, no mishaps prior. And so I was just put in a really, really, really tough situation. So she's saying these young women in college, they're, they're basically teaching themselves because people are not talking about it. And that's why we need to talk about these issues to prevent this from happening because she's saying she does not know of a single female track athlete who has not had an abortion. And there's great suffering that comes with it folks is, and I'm not talking about just physical suffering, I'm talking about mentally emotional pain.

And she speaks to that in clip three. But it was more for me about the spiritual and emotional part of the experience that I wanted to share because it wasn't until even I started this journey that I uncovered some of the hurt that was still there and, you know, and really trying to forgive myself. I knew that God had forgiven me for it, but really forgiving myself for that choice and really moving on.

And now that I'm going to be a mother, and now that God has blessed me again, I felt like I needed to kind of purge myself of that and hopefully help others do the same. So she's speaking about the suffering, the spiritual, psychological suffering that comes from this, but yet the world says it's a woman's choice. It is a woman's right to choose, but yet there's great suffering that comes with it. And it's not just from the woman because in order to get pregnant, a man has to be involved, but law states that a woman, if she wants to get rid of the baby, that it took a man to help her become impregnated with, she can do it regardless of what the man says. And there are a lot of men who have been against the woman having an abortion and they've suffered mentally, emotionally as a result of it. And then there's some men that have gone along with the woman in agreement with the abortion, even in some cases, pressuring the woman in the abortion. And so they also are suffering through psychological and emotional pain.

And so Sonya, we're Richards Rawls. She speaks to this as to her then fiance and now husband as to how he was affected by their decision in clip four. I could feel the hurt in his voice. And I mean, he was there for me as much as he could be, but it was something that we kind of never talked about.

It was almost like if we don't talk about it, it didn't happen. And so my mom came with me and I'm also talking about it now, but you know, but for so much of my relationship, I felt like I experienced it by myself. And so when Ross and I finally like dealt with it, you know, I, I was able to see his hurt, you know, and he thought for a long time, maybe we were being punished because we didn't, hadn't gotten pregnant again.

And you know, a lot of times, sometimes you believe those lies when you, you know, make poor choices and you want to live your life for a certain way. And so it was really freeing for both of us when we said, you know what, God, we really want you to take this away from us. And we are sorry for making this poor choice and it brought us closer together. But there was definitely something always kind of underlying that we needed to address.

And I'm really grateful that we did. I wonder to myself for women who make this decision to have an abortion so that they can compete in the Olympics. And let's say they go on and win a medal. If it ever crosses their mind that 20 years from now, as they are sitting in their home and maybe they look over at their wall, their trophy case, and they see a medal hanging there, do they ever think that, well, if I had made a different decision, rather than looking over there and seeing a medal, I could be looking over there at my child right now, my daughter or my son, rather than looking over there and seeing a medal, I could be watching my child walk across the podium to receive their graduation diploma, rather than looking at a medal.

I could be watching my child go down the aisle to get married. I wonder, do these kinds of things go through their minds? Do they, do they play this over their head as the years goes by, as to the consequences of their decisions.

And it's not to make anyone feel bad. It's to prevent these kinds of things from happening in the future. And another thing that I came across as I was researching this topic is what's known as abortion doping. And now this does not relate to either of these two women, Sonya Richards Ross or Brianna McNeil, but I'm, I'm pointing it out because it is a practice of purposely inducing pregnancy for athletic performance for enhancing benefits with the intent of aborting the baby. So these women are intentionally getting pregnant because when you get pregnant, your, your hormones increase for the sake of nurturing a baby. And then they abort the baby.

So the whole thing is planned to give themselves a physical edge folks. This is dark. I mean, this is wicked.

And you say, how, how do we get here and how much further will this go? If we do not repent and turn to our Lord, seeing produces more seeing you tell one lie, then you have to tell another to cover it up in the whole, just keeps getting deeper and deeper. Just look at King David in which he committed adultery with Bathsheba and the resulting pregnancy. Then he had her husband killed. So he began as an adultery continued on to be a murderer. And as a result of that, David suffered greatly for the rest of his life, great consequences for his sins, but King David did repent. So we see the progression of sin like King David, Brianna McNeil committed one sin and then tried to cover it with another sin, which led to the consequence of not being able to compete in the Olympics, the very thing which she was trying to attain from the outset, but also like King David, who, although suffering great consequences, he found favor with God by repenting. And she too can find redemption through the shed blood of Jesus Christ.

And that is my motive here in sharing this topic. It's not to trash this woman, Brianna McNeil, but it's to call her to repentance. It's to call all of us to repentance that have sinned because we all have skeletons in our closets.

No, I'm a man. So of course I've never had an abortion, but I have committed sins in my life. We've all committed sins that if they were all broadcast to the world, we would all be so ashamed.

We would wish we could crawl in a hole and never come out. God hates the shedding of innocent blood. The Bible tells us that very clearly in Proverbs 6, 17, but here's the good news folks. The blood of Jesus Christ can redeem all sin and it can redeem Brianna McNeil and anyone else that has had an abortion and anyone that has committed any sin. And so that is my cry today is to repent and turn to Jesus Christ because his shed blood can make you well, it can make you whole. His shed blood will give you eternal life.

But the world says it is a woman's right to choose. But if that is true, why has Brianna McNeil and Sonya Richards Ross, why have they suffered by their own confessions, such great depression and guilt and trauma over their abortions? It is because Satan is the great liar.

He's a great deceiver and he is destroying so many lies with his deception. And so my prayer today is that we turn to Jesus Christ, give it to him. When he went to the cross, he had Brianna McNeil in mind. When he went to the cross, he had Sonya Richards Ross in mind. When he went to the cross, he had me in mind, you in mind, all of us. And he paid the price for our sins.

And we can be forgiven of our sins if we simply turn to him. And so I'm grateful that Sonya Richards Ross has repented and she's now advocating that other women not make the same bad decision. And so I commend her for that. And I want to pray that Brianna McNeil will do the same and not blame this on white men and not blame it on race. But I want her to take responsibility for her actions and to turn from her sin and use this as a way to save other babies and to save other women the trauma from doing the same thing. So let us take a moment to pray.

And I want to ask everyone listening to touch an agreement. We can't touch physically, but let's touch in spirit right now for Brianna McNeil. Heavenly Father, we lift up this young lady to you right now, Lord, you know her heart, you know what she's going through. And I ask, Lord, that you would prick her heart, that she would repent of this sin, Lord, and let her know that through your shed blood, she can be redeemed. And if she's never truly born and become born again, if she's never truly accepted you as Lord and savior, I ask that you would touch her right now, Lord, and show her that you are the way, the truth and the life.

No one comes to the father, but through you. And so it is my prayer, Lord, not only for Brianna McNeil, but for anyone else out there who's committed abortions or any other sins that all would come to know you as Lord and savior and receive eternal life. May it be Lord for your honor. May it be for your glory in your name, Jesus, we pray.

Amen. Folks, we must have accountability. It's rampant in our society to not be accountable for our sins because seeing in darkness will be brought to light. Luke 8 17 says, for nothing is secret that will not be revealed nor anything hidden that will not be known and come to light.

If you think about deadly mold, it thrives in darkness, but it dies under the light. And that is why it's so important that we confess our sins and repent. I want to leave you on a positive note. A young lady by the name of Sydney McLaughlin, she broke the 400 meter hurdle just a couple of weeks ago. And after doing so, she wrote this on Instagram quote, I am no longer running for self-recognition, but to reflect his perfect wheel that is already set in stone. I don't deserve anything, but by grace through faith, Jesus Christ has given me everything records come and go. The glory of God is eternal. I say a loud amen to this young lady folks, metals come and go. They're not going with you into eternity.

If you win an endorsement deal as a result of winning in the Olympics, that money, that deal is not going with you into eternity, but the glory of God is eternal. And so I want to challenge women out there and men who also are going along with it to have abortions and able to, in order to enable you to compete in sports, to repent, turn to the Lord Jesus Christ and let's repent for the immoral, immoral laws of our land that allow these kinds of things to legally take place in the eyes of man. Pastors, we need you to address these issues.

Our local assembly, we talk about these matters, but as you heard, Sonya Richards Ross states, people don't talk about it. And pastors, we need you not just in one-on-one counseling, but we need you from the pulpit. When you have your, your greatest audience, we need you to talk about these sins so that we can prevent this great destruction that is taking place in our society.

Well, folks, we are all out of time. I want to thank you for tuning in with me this week and please come back next week as we continue to encourage you to put God first while viewing life through the window of the Bible. Until then, remember to pray for the peace of Jerusalem, bless God's great nation of Israel and to the only wise God, be glory through Jesus Christ forever. Amen. Thank you for tuning into the God First program. Please come back and join us next week as we continue to encourage you to put God first while viewing life through the window of the Bible. Until next time, remember to pray for the peace of Jerusalem, bless God's great nation of Israel and seek first the kingdom of God.