Beyond the headline

I sit here staring at an empty screen, fingers hovering above the keys hoping the words will come. I close my eyes as the images I’ve seen this past week fill my brain and churn my gut. The scenes coming to us from the other side of the world are heartbreaking, with Afghan citizens so desperate to flee to safety they will literally do anything and risk everything for the chance to escape. What can I even say? The fear, oppression, and devastation those people are facing is unimaginable. Last week, I wrote a post called Around and Around, in which I challenged myself, and the reader, to look past the headlines to see the humanity within the story. As I’ve attempted to do just that with the stories coming out of Afghanistan, my heart weeps for the people living there in uncertainty and chaos and I wonder what I would say to them if given the opportunity.

Come. Come, all you who are weary, come. If you’re tired and thirsty, come and be filled. Come and find rest. Experience the freedom and respect you deserve as one made in the image of God. Come and know that you are loved. You who were once without a home, you are welcome here. All who have been ravaged by war, tattered and worn by the hell of this fallen world, come find safety and refuge.

Unfortunately I can’t say that. We don’t have the ability even to extend that invitation due to complex immigration policy and red tape, but I think there’s something deeper than politics. Just like culture, politics is just people. Without people, there is no culture and there are no politics. So we can’t just blame nebulous politics. The deeper issue lies in the heart of humanity that has become calloused toward our neighbor, and we’ve forgotten how to love. True sacrificial love can’t be only for those who look, speak, and believe the same as us. It blows apart anything that stands in it’s way. Nothing can separate when love is the driving force of our lives. If I desire to live a life of love, kindness, and peace with my neighbors and the world around me, I have to lay aside any political ideology that says “me first”, and lean into the suffering to offer healing and hope, freedom and joy. How do we do that? Honestly I have no idea. I just know that we get up every day and look for the opportunities that come our way to spread joy, to fight for the oppressed, and give love the best we can. Beyond that, I’d love to hear your ideas of how you’re reaching out to love those around you. Drop a comment or message me on the Contact page.