Welcome to The Vine, where every week I strive to bring you updates from around the pro-life community to help you keep up with the ever constant battle to save lives. If you aren’t plugged-in, it is my sincere hope that The Vine will allow you to get familiar with those on the front lines and find your place among them.

As we enter the last week of 40 Days For Life, there is so much to celebrate. Fantastic stories from volunteers have been reported from around the country, with a total of 409 lives saved so far. God has been so present during this campaign, even speaking to one abortion-minded woman through her car battery dying. If you haven’t had the chance to participate yet and/or would like to help push the last week over the top, there’s still time! If you have been involved, please share your stories!

With the current 40 Days For Life campaign soon coming to a close, members of the pro-life community will now be looking ahead to the March For Life. Every year on January 22, thousands of pro-lifers descend on the National Mall in Washington, DC to take a stand for life. This year’s theme is “Every Life is a Gift,” due to the high incidence of abortion when a preborn baby receives a “poor prenatal diagnosis.”  Writes Jeanne Monahan at The Hill:

An increasing number of physicians are advising families to abort babies diagnosed with what has become known collectively as a “poor prenatal diagnosis.” Such conditions include Down Syndrome, Trisomy 18, Trisomy 13, Anencephaly, Spina Bifida, and others. A number of studies have shown that preborn babies with disabilities are aborted at rates from 60 percent to as high as 90 percent.

Doctors recommending mothers kill their children instead of educating on how to care for them is a crime that has become an epidemic; especially given that often times doctors turn out to be wrong in their diagnosis. For those interested in learning more about this year’s March For Life, the organization is hosting a Google Hangout tomorrow evening and is offering a free, downloadable trip planner to get participants started.

In the meantime, all eyes are on the mid-term elections in which Republicans are being favored to win. Pro-abortion groups such as Planned Parenthood and Emily’s List have spent millions in their efforts to elect radical pro-abortion candidates, particularly in North Carolina. Despite their best efforts to prop up pro-abortion [mc_name name=”Sen. Kay Hagan (D-NC)” chamber=”senate” mcid=”H001049″ ], her failure to even show up for the last debate speaks louder than any of the money they’ve spent against pro-life candidate Thom Tillis.

The pro-abortion machine has also spent a considerable amount attempting to smear pro-life Republican Joni Ernst in Iowa, hoping voters will stick with [mc_name name=”Rep. Bruce Braley (D-IA)” chamber=”house” mcid=”B001259″ ] who, according to Susan B. Anthony List President Marjorie Dannenfelser, “has been a rubber stamp for the abortion industry.”

In Colorado, extreme abortion supporter [mc_name name=”Sen. Mark Udall (D-CO)” chamber=”senate” mcid=”U000038″ ], who doesn’t flinch at the idea of gendercide and late-term abortion, makes [mc_name name=”Rep. Cory Gardner (R-CO)” chamber=”house” mcid=”G000562″ ] the obvious choice.

Meanwhile in Arizona, pro-abortion candidate, Fred DuVal, sent a loud message when he admitted he would have no problem with a 14-year old girl receiving an abortion without parental consent. As explained at Life Site News, with 71% of Americans supporting parental consent, pro-life candidate Doug Ducey is definitely more in line with voters.

In Wisconsin’s race for Attorney General, pro-abortion Democrat Susan Happ actually admitted she wouldn’t defend a law in the state that “requires abortion doctors to have hospital admitting privileges within 30 miles of their clinics.”

And then there’s Wendy Davis, aka Abortion Barbie, in Texas who was the pride and joy of the abortion industry until her campaign imploded to an embarrassing, then laughable degree. So bad has her run been against State Attorney General Greg Abbott, many are speculating she is hurting Democrats in other races.

The truth, however, is that the Democrats are hurting themselves. They’ve finally come out and admitted just how rabidly pro-abortion they really are, which sets them at odds with the majority of Americans. When they lose the mid-terms it won’t be because of Abortion Barbie, it will be because they’ve finally told the truth. And the truth will set us free.

To follow-up on what is sure to be an exciting night across the nation, RedState’s Erick Erickson will be hosting a conference call November 5th at 9am to wrap up the mid-term elections and highlight what we have to look forward to as we move on to 2016. I hope you’ll grab your cup of coffee and join us on the call!

Until next week, I pray blessings for you and for all committed to life in The Vine. Please feel free to email or tweet me with any stories you’d like to see covered or any organizations you’d like to see as the Branch For Life. And don’t forget to check out The Vine’s list on Twitter to stay up-to-date on current news in the pro-life movement!