I have started this in my head, on paper, writing it out several times. I just don’t know what to say. I sometimes do know what to feel. This is hard. Period. Working at the border, seeing what goes on every day, seeing the suffering, it absolutely breaks my heart. I hear their stories, hear their pleading to cross the border, and I can do nothing. I am discouraged, no matter what I do, it’s never enough.
Until I see three kids. We run around playing tag, their laughter filling the sky. Filling my heart. We play a game with uneaten bread, words no longer needed. This simple connection is what God had for me. God knew I needed a smile. A smile from 3 children.
You see I just spent a couple hours being pulled in different directions. Figuratively and literally sometimes. Lunch, a small hoagie sandwich and water, was being served. The line, one by one, stretched with hundreds of people. Red and white tape was held by some volunteers, some refugees, trying to keep people from jumping in line. Many succeeded, which then came to my job. I had to pull, and I mean a handful of jacket, and pull them from the line. I heard many ‘It’s ok, they are my family/friends’ to ‘Who me? I was here’ or my favorite, when I see them eating the food they just received, and now they are standing in line again. Lies to which led me to frustration. I saw people hungry, heard complaints from people about not getting food. And yet consideration never crossed the people’s minds who sneak into line.
And yeah, I let the frustration consume my thoughts. Until I saw those children. The boys with their sandwich is one hand, smiling at me. Their innocence hit me in a way that I could see things like Christ. These people don’t know any different. And I am like them. I sin, I do things I know isn’t right. And yet, I’m not perfect, I still sin. These refugees are lost, running from something. Just like millions of people in this world. But what some don’t realize is that they need to be running to Christ. Their sufferings at the border is nothing like what Jesus endured on the cross.
We all are refugees. We all run from something, running to something. What we all need to realize is that if we run into Jesus’s arms, we spend eternal life in the best place, Heaven. We need to run from our sin, run from the lies that the world tells us, what satan is telling us. We need to run from all these things, and keep running to Christ. He suffered more than anyone can comprehend. For us. If we run to Christ, we will always be accepted into his arms, accepted into something greater than the next ‘best’ thing. Accept Christ as your Lord and Savior, talk with Him about what you are running from. Tell God what you want to run to, and He will give you something far greater.
