By Bill ShulerPastor, Capital Life Church, Arlington, Virginia

As President Obama speaks at Notre Dame Universtiy and prepares to nominate a new Justice for the Supreme Court our nation stands divided on the subject of abortion rights. No issue seems to evoke such passionate discourse. It is a debate in which everyone is talking but few are listening. The following is a list of questions upon which we should be able to come together:

1. Can we agree that the number of abortions needs to be reduced?

2. Can we border on caution when it comes to the question of when life begins?

3. Can we agree that inconvenience is not a proper reason for an abortion?

4. Can we speak to those of an opposite viewpoint without using hate speech?

5. Can we choose to promote a culture of life?

6. Can we encourage adoption, recognizing the many parents who would love and cherish a baby?

7. Can we help teens see that abstinence is the best option and clearest way to avoid STDs, regret and abortions?

8. Can we agree that there is no greater gift than life?

9. Can we agree that this is ultimately an issue that transcends politics?

10. Can we agree that you and I wouldn't be able to have an opinion on this issue if we had been aborted?

There is no higher standard that a nation can adopt than to value and protect life. The Bible says, in Jeremiah 1:5: "Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, before you were born I set you apart." It is within our means to bring healing and hope by the choices that we make and the actions that we take.