Have you ever been in one of those situations when what you were planning doesn’t quite work out, so you have to pivot and go to Plan B? Maybe it was the perfect outfit you planned for the day being doused by a cup of coffee–and not just a Tall, but a Venti!–so you have to go to Plan B and find something else to wear. Or when the weatherman promised a gorgeous day of sun, sun, and more sun for the outdoor event you planned, but instead you get rain and lots of it. You need a new plan–Plan B.
What happens though when the unexpected situation is not just the need for a new clothing ensemble or even a new indoor event strategy? What happens when the unexpected twist could result in an unwanted pregnancy? The original plan didn’t include failed contraception or unprotected sex, but that is what happened, and now there is a lot more at stake. What do you do then? No need to worry, there is still a Plan B.
In 1999, “Plan B,” an emergency contraception pill, was approved for prescription use here in the United States. Fourteen years later, in 2013, its access was expanded to over-the-counter use with no age restrictions. Also known as the “morning-after pill,” Plan B is intended to be a backup method to birth control. When the contraceptive method of choice doesn’t work, or one isn’t used at all, Plan B steps in to attempt to prevent pregnancy. It’s a great insurance policy for a hyper-sexual culture, with its popularity and use increasingly growing every year. Current reports state that 3 in 10 women have used Plan B.
What is the message, however, for young people when there is a “get out of jail free card” for unprotected sex? Emergency contraception was something that was once intended for exactly what its name states–an emergency. In fact, its first intent was for rape victims. But now, the morning after pill can be accessed at any drug store, by any person, at any age. It has even been made available in vending machines on a number of college campuses across the country. The message is that young people don’t have to worry about facing the consequences of their decisions. If things don’t work out the way they hoped, there’s a little pill that is as easy to get as a candy bar that will fix it for them. Don’t worry, you can get Plan B.
But then what happens when Plan B doesn’t work? There is still no reason to fear because now there is Plan C! That’s right! You may not have heard about it just yet, but I promise you will. I am sure you have heard of what Plan C actually is, but the branding of its new, catchy name is just getting out of the gate…and it is growing.
Plan C is the new, clever way that the abortion industry has decided to refer to the Abortion Pill. If you search “Plan C” on Google, ads like this come up:
Missed period? There’s Plan C – Abortion Pills in the Mail
There is a Plan C. Get safe, effective, FDA-approved abortion pills. Plan C is a safe, effective, FDA-approved way to get an abortion. Confidential. Multiple Languages. Private Mailing Address.
Especially after Roe v. Wade was overturned in June 2022, and many states have since restricted abortion access, the abortion industry is fighting back by making the abortion pill available any way it can. Not only is it being offered by mail, but there are mobile medical clinics popping up in different areas of the country to expand access to Plan C.
The same message that Plan B promotes is taken a step further with Plan C. So even if a young woman faces the unintended and unwanted consequence of having sex and is now pregnant, she still has a way out. There is a pill that can take care of that. She can go online, place an order like she probably does for countless other products, and a solution comes to her door–Plan C. Just a couple of pills over a couple of days and her problem will go away. If only it were that simple.
The problem with both of these “plans” is that they don’t account for the unseen consequences of sexual activity or the termination of a pregnancy. Neither Plan B, nor Plan C, undo the damage that is done to the heart, mind, or soul by sex before marriage or by abortion. They don’t protect girls from harm, they cause harm by creating a false sense of security when they are anything but safe. Ultimately, the greatest problem with both is that they completely disregard Plan A, as if it never existed.
There is a Plan A for our young people. There cannot be a B and a C, if there were not an A first. So what is Plan A? It is God’s plan–for sex, marriage, family, and for the health and well-being of His children. When God created this world and added people to it, He had a perfect plan in place. In the Bible, in Jeremiah 29:11, it says, “For I know the plans I have for you, says the Lord, plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you a hope and a future.” This scripture may not define the beautiful gift of sexual intimacy that God created for husbands and wives and the boundaries that came with it, but it makes clear the heart of all of God’s plans for His children–to prosper and to give hope for the future. Another scripture in the New Testament describes it like this in John 10:10 when Jesus says, “The enemy comes to kill, steal and destroy, but I have come that you may have life and life abundantly.” Both verses offer a contrast–one side is apart from God, and the other is with Him. Apart from Him is harm, death, and destruction; but with God is hope, future, and abundant life. This is true for all of God’s plans, which include the sexual health of His children.
Plan A is a plan of purity, wholeness, safety, and wellness. Plans B and C pretend to exist for the well-being of young people, but they do not. They promote behavior that leads to harm and then offer solutions that perpetuate a cycle that spirals downward in loss, pain, and regret. Ultimately, Plan B and Plan C are liars–wolves in sheep’s clothing, and the saddest part is that the young people in our culture and our world are buying it hook, line and sinker…and they are paying the price. But all hope is not lost because Plan A still exists, and its message can still be spread. Best of all, the message of Plan A is even still available for those who have succumbed to the lies of B and C. Even that far down the road, they can come back to Plan A.
That is God’s way. He is a God of redemption and hope. He always makes a way to come back to His Plan A.