By Danny Minton

“The New Colossus”
Not like the brazen giant of Greek fame
With conquering limbs astride from land to land;
Here at our sea-washed, sunset gates shall stand
A mighty woman with a torch, whose flame
Is the imprisoned lightning, and her name
Mother of Exiles. From her beacon-hand
Glows world-wide welcome; her mild eyes command
The air-bridged harbor that twin cities frame,
“Keep, ancient lands, your storied pomp!” cries she
With silent lips. “Give me your tired, your poor,
Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free,
The wretched refuse of your teeming shore,
Send these, the homeless, tempest-tossed to me,
I lift my lamp beside the golden door!”

The above poem by Emily Lazarus was the first entry read at the 1883 exhibition to raise money for the pedestal of the Statue of Liberty. Emily was Jewish and concerned with the plight of her fellow Jews and their leaving Russia and Eastern Europe to escape the antisemitism they faced. Emily died in 1887, one year after the completion and dedication of the statue. In 1903, a plaque with her poem was placed inside the statue on the pedestal wall. The words have come to represent the hope and opportunity for those who immigrate to the United States. It proclaims a feeling of compassion for people rejected by the world.

One of the most controversial topics of today is the influx of migrants making their way into the United States illegally. There is a concern, and rightfully so, with drug dealers, human traffickers, and criminals making their way across the borders. The situation has become a significant point discussed between politicians and lawmakers. Americans are divided on how it should be handled and are angry at those making the decisions. 

However, I can’t help but feel compassion for those men, women, and children seeking a better life. Many are trying to leave the poverty of their home country because they simply want a better life. They see America through the eyes of the media. Magazines, movies, television, and what they hear about life in our country make them yearn for a better life for their families. They walk because they can’t afford a car, while they see us with two or more worth more than they make in five years. They see our fancy houses with even the lowest wage earners in homes nicer than they can afford. They see the nice clothes and furnishings in our homes. When they see the United States, they see rich people everywhere and want to be a part of it.

We should all step back and examine our lives through the eyes of those who are desperately trying to be part of our way of life. We are the rich who the Bible speaks of when Jesus expresses how hard it is for a rich man to enter heaven. The reason is not what we possess but that so many think more of their possessions and what they have in this life instead of the need for Christ to live within us. I once saw the comment of a multi-millionaire saying, “I don’t need God; I can have anything I want.” If we are not careful, we can find ourselves so caught up in the things and ways of the world that we forget to see others and ourselves through the eyes of Jesus.

When it comes to life, we are all immigrants in this world. We get caught up in problems and struggles. We do everything we can to survive the obstacles that we face. There are times when we feel there is nowhere to turn. We seek relief from stress and disappointments, hoping and praying for something better. It’s then that we should heed the words inviting us with compassion to a way of hope and opportunity. However, these are not on a plaque hidden on an obscure wall. They are words printed in a book almost all of us possess. We can open it up and read, “Come to Me, all who are weary and heavy-laden, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and YOU WILL FIND REST FOR YOUR SOULS.”  Matthew 11:28-29 (NASB)

I do not have a solution for the influx of so many at our borders. I believe we should treat them all with the kindness and compassion of Jesus. In our lives, living among the many things we’ve been blessed with, let’s not forget Jesus. God will not judge us for what we possess or don’t possess physically but how we use or don’t use how His son teaches us to live our lives.

Danny Minton is a former Elder and minister at Southern Hills Church of Christ