Come, Let us Reason Together

“Come now, and let us reason together,” says the LORD, Isaiah 1:18a

  I am an empath. I feel things others feel, deeply. I have learned to use this gift from God to connect with people and I have had to learn how to create healthy boundaries around myself to keep myself safe and sane. Often this has come in the form of avoiding the news, and sometimes social media, especially during election cycles. I feel intensely the things that are spoken by others, and it affects me in more ways that you could imagine. 

 With the change in administration on January 20th, there has been a flood of news. On the first day of his term alone, President Trump signed 26 executive orders that significantly affect our country. I didn't want to read 26 executive orders. I didn't want to puzzle through their meaning or the implications they might have on the future of our country. I wanted to hide in a hole. I wanted my husband to filter things for me and just tell me what I needed to know. I subscribe to a newsletter called the Pour Over* which presents the news from a *mostly* unbiased perspective along with encouragement from God's Word and church teachings. This was the closest I could get to hearing about what was happening, but even this grieved my heart over and over.

 Then during my Zoom Bible Study a week ago, I was surprised to encounter thinking different from mine. I quickly backtracked and set about softening what I was saying in an effort to "people please" and not make waves. I was convicted about this and reached out to my friend that I was speaking to at the time to confess and ask forgiveness. She responded kindly and openly asked for an intelligent discourse on the subject, one without hostility or personal attacks that involved sharing sources for what we talked about. I appreciated that she emphasized our love for one another and unity in Christ above the discussion of political differences. So, I dove into the waters of politics in order to share my heart with my friend.

 What was the discussion on? Illegal immigrants and their situations in America. As I sought to respond to my friend's questions, I worked to make sure to go back as close as I could to the original source to avoid he said/she said confusions. I was heartbroken by some of the stories I read and the videos I saw. As I said before, I am an empath and I feel, to some degree, the pain of the people I read about. This certainly influences my perspectives and so I am trying to be very careful to stick to the facts as much as possible. That said, I'm human and I'm sure my personal feelings will be communicated whether I intend to or not!

 I didn't want to put all the information here as it would make for a HUGE post. Instead, I'll be breaking it up into four posts that I'll share over the next week (or so). The subjects covered will be: are illegal immigrants (mostly) criminals?, why don't immigrants just come in legally?, they should ask for asylum when they get here, and is legal immigrants' status here safe? If this is not your thing, or you too are trying to avoid the news, I totally respect that. Just avoid opening posts with the title "Immigration 101." 

Here's the thing: As much as I'd like to avoid the complicated, messy parts of life, sometimes we have to face them. Sometimes God wants them to break our hearts. Sometimes they should bring us to our knees.

* This is a referral link that will give me credit if you sign up through it.