When Pam Tebow delivered her “miracle baby,” she asked family and friends to pray that he would grow big and strong.

Little did she know that the child would develop into a hulking quarterback at the University of Florida who would win the Heisman Trophy and two national championships. The baby who entered this world against all odds has achieved several accolades, winning an NFL playoff game, playing minor league baseball for a few seasons, and working as an acclaimed sports commentator.

Tim Tebow was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame on December 4, 2023, but his greatest accomplishments may come off the playing field. He has used his near-legendary status to be a voice for the most vulnerable in our society, fighting human trafficking, advocating for the special needs community, and speaking on behalf of the pro-life cause.

Pam Tebow recently shared her amazing testimony when she was the keynote speaker at Choices of the Heart Pregnancy Center’s fundraising dinner at Statesboro (Georgia) First Baptist Church. Choices of the Heart is one of the approximately 1,200 pregnancy centers in Care Net’s network.

In 1985, Tebow chose life for her unborn baby, against the advice of a physician who advised her to abort due to complications from amoebic dysentery and the lack of advanced medical care in the remote village in the Philippines where the Tebows were serving as missionaries.

Her life was in danger, but the family trusted in the promises of God.

Previously, her husband, Bob Tebow, had been praying and weeping over the babies aborted back in his homeland, the United States. The couple vowed to have a fifth child, and if it was another son, that baby would one day become a preacher.

“We had to trust the Lord,” she said. “It was a difficult pregnancy.”

The drugs used to treat amoebic dysentery resulted in severe placental abruption, where the placenta detaches from the uterine wall. That condition can deprive the fetus of oxygen and nutrition.

On August 14, 1987, Timothy Richard Tebow was born in Makati in the Philippines. The doctor was amazed that the baby survived under such adverse conditions, saying the birth was miraculous.

"God preserved that little baby inside me,” said Pam Tebow, according to the Statesboro Herald.

A 2010 Super Bowl commercial featuring Pam and Tim Tebow invited viewers to go to the Focus on the Family website to hear the whole story about mom’s pregnancy. According to a Barna survey, that commercial resulted in 5.5 million people “having cause to rethink their stand on abortion.” 

When she spoke at a pregnancy center banquet a few years later, Pam Tebow met one of those viewers.

“I didn’t abort my baby because you didn’t abort your baby,” the woman thankfully said.

These kinds of anecdotes reinforce Pam Tebow’s belief that all life is precious and valuable.

“We need to value all the babies God creates,” she said. “God never makes a mistake.”

Although Pam Tebow’s fifth child did not become a preacher in the traditional sense, he has impacted millions of people across the world through the gospel and social justice work.

As a Florida Gator, Tim Tebow wore eye black for nationally televised games, first inscribed with Philippians 4:13 and later with John 3:16. Following the 2009 national championship game, John 3:16 was Googled 94 million times, according to a media report. When he played quarterback for the Denver Broncos and led the team to several come-from-behind victories, Tebowing, or kneeling for God in prayer on field, became a national obsession.

Today, the Tim Tebow Foundation seeks “To bring Faith, Hope and Love to those needing a brighter day in their darkest hour of need.” The foundation is active in four main areas: orphan care, medical provision, special needs ministry, and anti-human trafficking.

Tim Tebow’s Night to Shine has grown into a worldwide movement. Every February, thousands of churches host a prom night experience, centered on God’s love, for people with special needs, ages 14 and older.

At the 2021 March for Life, Tim Tebow was a keynote speaker. He thanked his mom for her willingness to choose life and exhorted attendees to do the same.

“I'm so grateful that my mom gave me a chance at life,” he said. “She could have made the choice to do something different. But because of her pro-life story, I now get to share my story... Every single life matters to God.”