Attach Confidence to Your Compassion
Ladies, you’ve got questions, we’ve got thoughtful and thorough answers. Lean in and get a free education about immigrants and refugees from a host of subject matter experts, trusted authors, and faith leaders. Gather your small group and learn together or watch at your own pace.
Hosted by our Director, Bri Stensrud, our new Equipping Series is designed to attach confidence to your compassion. Hear from Dr. Russell Moore, Jenny Yang, Jamie Ivey, Shannan Martin, and others as we dive into the whole of scripture to equip the Church to speak up and love well.
We promise you’ll be encouraged.
Pick a subject and keep going.
This series was made for you and for the flourishing of others.
We’re all on this journey together.
Building a Framework
“What is Christ-like welcome?” we asked our friend, speaker and author Shannan Martin. Shannan lives as a grateful neighbor in Goshen, IN. Be challenged and encouraged by her look through the Gospels and the lessons they have for us.
Jenny Yang is the Senior Vice President of Advocacy and Policy at World Relief. When we asked her what the Bible has to say about immigration, she guided us from Genesis through the New Testament. She shows us how God uses migration to carry out his missional purposes throughout the whole of Scripture.
When you start talking about caring for immigrants, particularly those without status in the U.S., you may get questions about Romans 13, which urges Christians to submit to governing authorities. Dr. Russell Moore, theologian and director of Christianity Today’s Theology Policy Project, helps us understand why Romans 13 exists, what the purpose of the law is, and how we live with our neighbors who have broken immigration laws.
Common Concerns
With all the needs of American citizens, shouldn’t we prioritize helping with these needs before helping those outside our own country? Bri Stensrud’s teaching helps us think about our neighbors—inside and outside of our own borders—as God thinks about them..
Some are concerned that immigrants will negatively change American culture. Dr. Russell Moore challenges us to separate our response as Americans from our response as Christians, and shares some encouraging opportunities for the Church.
Are our borders secure? What security measures are actually in place? Is a border wall the safest way to secure the border? Matthew Soerens, U.S. Director of Church Mobilization for World Relief, answers these questions and teaches us that secure borders and welcome for immigrants are not opposing ideas.
Have you heard that immigrants increase crime in U.S. communities? That they take jobs away from Americans? That they don’t pay taxes? Kathryn Freeman, an advocate, writer, and lawyer, dispels these myths and more in this informative video.
We believe it’s incredibly important to help others in their own country. How can we participate in creating stability, peace, and opportunity abroad so that people can stay home if they desire? Jo Ann Van Engen, co-founder and Creative Development lead of ASJ, is a brave Christian doing justice in Honduras. She explains the major push factors that cause people to leave Honduras, and tells us how we can help make good investments in Central America.
Policies and History
Immigration is fundamentally tied together with race, economics, and national security. Jenny Yang walks us through the history of U.S. immigration policy and explains the current legal immigration pathways. If you’ve wondered about the last time the U.S. had major immigration reform, or what kind of injustices are baked into our immigration system, you’re going to learn a lot in this video!
The United States has an asylum policy that was created so that people who have a credible fear of persecution aren’t sent into life threatening situations. Matthew Soerens guides us through the steps of the asylum process, what is working well, and what isn’t. You’ll learn the difference between a refugee and asylum seeker, what our vetting processes are, and how the Church can serve refugees and asylum seekers.
One of our earliest immigration laws, the Naturalization Act of 1790, restricted citizenship to “any alien being a free white person” who had been in the U.S. for two years. In this video, Kathryn Freeman teaches us about how race has historically intersected with the U.S. immigration system.
Connecting the Dots
As Christians, we have a pro-life ethic. Bri Stensrud calls us to a holistic view that connects the dots from the unborn to immigrants and refugees. Spend time in the Scriptures and be encouraged and challenged by this video!
You can’t get far into immigration conversations without hearing about DACA and Dreamers. Are those the same thing? What does DACA stand for? Matthew Soerens teaches us about these different titles and programs for people who were brought to the U.S. as children.
Jesus spent his time with those on the lower rung of popularity and power. Shannan Martin challenges us to practice walking away from our own comfort and into tension. She gives us practical steps on how to start getting in closer proximity to immigrants and refugees.
Using Your Voice
What’s Next?
Use Your Voice
Start to Advocate
Our commitment to show Christ-like welcome includes understanding policies that affect our neighbors. Our civic engagement and advocacy must go beyond the voting booth. It must not be limited to one vote every four years. If we remain in this type of habit, we keep distant from the very people we’re called to love and our neighbors undoubtedly suffer.
Calling our lawmakers is one way to stay engaged and hold accountable the people in office who have made a commitment to serve their constituencies. This might feel like an intimidating task, but we assure you your leadership needs to hear from you in order for change to happen. It’s much less scary than you imagine, we promise.
New to this type of advocacy? Here are some step by step guides to help.
Hard conversations are important, but they are, well—hard! Our friend Jamie Ivey, author and podcast host, will help you combat lies you might believe about using your voice. She guides us in thinking about when the right time is to have a hard conversation with someone, and how to engage people well online. Settle in for this important conversation!
Scripture tells us that the words we say flow from what is in our hearts. Our Community Engagement Director Sarah Quezada teaches us dignified alternatives to words like “illegal” and “alien” when referring to immigrants, and defines some common terms for us.
We know that an important way to advocate for our immigrant brothers and sisters is by engaging our elected officials, but how do we do it? Sarah Quezada teaches us three easy steps to make your first phone call.
You can use your voice to advocate for others! Not sure how to advocate well? Don’t worry, we’ve got a resource for that!
Continue Learning
Your learning doesn’t have to stop here! We have many more videos and resources for you to check out as you continue to learn about immigrants and refugees