Border Crisis: Christian Works VS Blanket Compassion

Yesterday, Governor John Kasich went on a tirade on CNN about compassion and how we need to place ourselves in the shoes of those marching their way across Mexico to come into the United States. “We’re born in America. You know how lucky we are to be born in America and not be born in Guatemala where they would say to your daughter, ‘if you don’t do what we want, we will rape your daughter or kill your son if he he’s not a drug mule.’ Now, they’re marching north, and it could have easily been all of us.”

Now, I do believe that I am fortunate to be born in the USA, but I’m particularly fortunate to be born here in 1989 and not 1839 or even half a century ago. Frederick Douglas fled to England in actual fear for his life, but imagine if he hadn’t come back to continue the change America desperately needed? The dream of America was always great, but the nation didn’t always live up to those expectations, and many are of the opinion that it still has a long way to go. I assume the Angel parents that lost their children at the hands of illegal aliens probably feel our nation has failed to protect their family. But as an elected official, I don’t expect Governor Kasich to throw his hands up and harp about how we should all be nicer. I expect him to dig his heels into a helpful solution that respects our laws or a plan to change them.

A large issue I had with Governor Kasich during the 2016 election was that he talked largely in blanket hypothetical optimism that often ignored the reality of current affairs. When I got into arguments with my sister as a child, I hated when mom would just demand both parties to stop. I much rather preferred when my dad would listen to each party and come to a rational decision based on the given information and dispense a fair ruling.

Governor Kasich would dodge large issues and try to sound like the adult in the room with something that sounded like, “Why can’t we all just get along?” You have ears, sir. If you thought critically, you’d have an answer to your question. Being compassionate sounds great, but what are we actually supposed to do about the thousands of people marching to our border right now?

Now, my father has been to Guatemala, because he does missionary work. Kasich went on to say that we should reach out and stop putting up walls around ourselves. My question would be…when is Governor Kasich hitting the mission field? I don’t know if he’s gone before, but he’s always welcome to do more. God calls his children to go into all the world to preach the gospel (Mark 16:15). I hear many Christians advocating open borders or excusing illegal immigration, and it sounds like an excuse to let the government do your duty instead of having the courage and moral conviction to do it on their own. If you’re unable, you can support a ministry. Not having a lot of means isn’t an acceptable excuse. You can do your part. God will respect your sacrifice.

President Trump once pointed out, Heaven has borders and extreme vetting. And if you don’t get into Heaven, those stakes are a lot tougher than having to live in Guatemala.

In my sophomore year of high school, I went to the Philippines. This was during a dangerous time when the State Department said it wasn’t safe, but we felt in our heart that we had to go. There were people of great poverty there, kids selling random stuff on the streets and banging their hands against our windows. You can’t even give them loose change, because you’ll be swarmed. There are plenty people that want to get into our country. They go to college. They learn English. Some of them even volunteer at the State Department. One of the natives was even following us with a satellite phone and reporting to the US government to make sure we were safe. Let’s be fair to them and encourage legal immigration by being tough on illegal immigration.

My father is a huge Trump guy, but he has spent a lot of time in Mexico, even at the height of the 2016 election, to minister to the people, because he has a love for them. He first left right after nearly dying of heart failure, and that is no exaggeration. If God hadn’t healed his heart, he’d be dead. His doctor said as much.

If you have compassion for people, love them. Help them. Go to them. Don’t wave your finger at the rest of the nation for protecting our borders.