Okay, The Syrian Refugee Crisis.
I don’t write a lot of politically-charged things because, quite frankly, I do not care for the arguing. There is far too much of it and it does little good. I’m all for letting your voice be heard—hence the blog and my entire profession—but it is a means to an end, not the end.
Which brings me to the issue at hand. The Syrian Refugee Crisis. It’s not news to you there is a tug of war between the right and the left, and another between politics and faith. Everyone has a different opinion and I’m sure you’ve clicked on convincing articles for every angle. I’ve clicked on a few. I’ve posted none. Until now.
Admittedly, I still do not have a strong opinion on this, so if you’re looking for a black-and-white, one way or the other in this post, you won’t find one. Sorry. (Not sorry.) But here is what I have come to:
Of the voicing of opinions there is no end. Welcome to the world, where there are as many opinions as there are people. And that’s okay. We’ve all been made in the image of God, which includes intellect and reasoning. We are allowed to use our minds, and we are allowed to come to different conclusions. Don’t hate others because they have come to their solid conclusions; don’t hate me because I haven’t.
This is not Heaven. As much as we want to live in an ideal world with ideal leaders and ideal everything, we don’t. It’s coming, friends, to be sure. But we are not there yet. We live in a war-torn, dismal place with only glints of beauty and flickers of what’s to come. It cannot be perfect. We cannot be perfect. Someday, we will. But today is not that day.
Sometimes we can’t stop things from happening. The President still has veto power, and as much as we may love it or hate it, there are some things we can’t stop. Yes, sometimes making our voices heard is effective, but sometimes it’s not. Sometimes it doesn’t matter how many blogs, how many signatures, how many filibusters accrue. At the end of the day, we trust God. Because…
God knows. God—and only God—knows all. He sees the refugees, the terrorists, the governments of all countries. God is not blind. Nor has He been demoted or shoved off His throne. He sees every detail of the Syrian Refugee Crisis. (We don’t.) He knows. And while that may sound glib or trite, it is true nonetheless. It doesn’t erase, but instead welcomes our questions, our pain, our confusion. God sees. He knows. Take comfort in His sovereignty.
Prayer is our best activity. While we cannot have all the answers for everything, including the Syrian Refugee Crisis, what we can and must do is pray. Pray for the refugees. Pray for their salvation; pray for their protection, whether that’s here or there or somewhere else; pray for God’s comfort for them; pray for the defeat of evil and the glory of God to be displayed; pray maranatha—come, Lord Jesus!
As much as we want world peace, we don’t (and won’t) have it yet. But we’re coming into a season when we are reminded where our hope truly lies: in a wooden box made for animal feed, on a wooden tree made for gruesome death, in an empty hollowed-out rock. Jesus is our hope. That’s my opinion on the Syrian Refugee Crisis, and it’s my opinion on just about everything else…just so we’re clear.
Altogether, now: Maranatha—Come, Lord Jesus!
Emily Gehman | Storytelling Coach 
I mean no disrespect, truly, but it seems to me that prayer is only an “activity” if it is followed up with action. I seem to recall a passage in the book of James that teaches us that seeing a brother or sister in need, and simply wishing upon them warmth and a good meal is meaningless. Faith without works is dead. Prayer without action is passing the buck. By all means, pray if prayer is important to you, but that’s hardly the Christian’s “only” recourse here…
Thanks for your response. Prayer is our only sure response since we’re surrounded by such differing opinions, and an inability to understand the details of the situation. It’s easy to make definitive judgments on what to do politically and/or religiously, but when it’s not yet clear how it will play out as far as boots-on-the-ground, prayer is what we must be engaged in. And I hesitate to call prayer a passive act. It is more of an activity than we like to give it credit for. When we’re sure, pray. When we’re not sure, pray. Pray when there’s everything left to do and nothing left to do. Pray.