I have always believed that the only way to deal with
illegal immigration was to ship all the illegal immigrants back where they came
from and bar new illegal aliens from entering the United States until they
could follow the rules and enter legally. There are consequences to disobeying
the laws of the land and coming into this country illegally should bring stiff
consequences.
If someone tried to enter a country like Israel, Iran, Egypt,
Russia illegally, they would likely be shot dead before their feet got 25 yards
inside the border. I’m not sure that is the answer, although it would probably
be a huge deterrent to illegal aliens entering the US.
I still believe that disobeying the laws of the US by coming
into the country illegally should bring consequences, however, recently this
issue went from one that had vague, unknown faces associated with it to one
that had a clear name and face.
I had a chance to chat recently with a person who is married
to an illegal alien. This person loves
their spouse and they have children together. The spouse who is an illegal
alien has lived in the US for nearly 20 years, yet still cannot drive legally
because you cannot obtain a valid driver’s license without proof of
citizenship. The person with whom I was talking told me of the struggle they
have had trying to obtain citizenship status for the spouse. They have spent
hundreds of dollars, been told dates and deadlines that gave them hope of
citizenship, only to have the dates and deadlines changed with no refunding of
their money. Currently, if this illegal alien were to jump through all the
hoops to obtain citizenship, he/she would have to go back to their country of
origin, leaving their spouse and children, for at least 10 years. For this family,
being apart for 10 years is not acceptable.
So, the family lives on the edge, constantly looking over their shoulder.
I went into my Lifeway Bible study tools online program and
researched the word ‘alien’ in God’s Word (HCSB). What I found convicted and
challenged me. Consider a few verses from the HCSB where the word ‘foreigner’
is used in place of ‘alien’.
Exodus 22: 21: “You must not exploit a foreign resident or oppress him, since you were foreigners in the land of Egypt.”
Deuteronomy 10:18: “He executes justice for the fatherless and the widow, and loves the foreigner, giving him food and clothing.”
Psalm 146:9: “The Lord protects foreigners and helps the fatherless and the widow, but He frustrates the ways of the wicked.”
Jeremiah 22:3: “This is what the Lord says: Administer justice and righteousness. Rescue the victim of robbery from the hand of his oppressor. Don’t exploit or brutalize the foreigner, the fatherless, or the widow. Don’t shed innocent blood in this place.”
Zechariah 7:10 “Do not oppress the widow or the fatherless, the foreigner or the poor, and do not plot evil in your hearts against one another.”
So, where does this leave us? Obviously the United States
has a HUGE illegal immigration problem. There are millions of illegal aliens
within our borders, working in jobs that US citizens desperately need,
utilizing healthcare dollars that the nation does not have to give. We have
allowed illegal aliens to cross our borders without consequence; in fact, we
have rewarded many with free healthcare and a nod to incorporating their
language into our very system of life. “Press 1 for English, Press 2 for Spanish”.
NOTE: I fully recognize that there are illegal aliens other than those who
speak Spanish.
I wish I had the answer to this Mount Everest-sized problem,
but I don’t. What I do know, after my chat with someone married to an illegal
alien, is that most of the aliens living in the US are ordinary people…human
beings with families, feelings and a desire for a better life. God put a face
on this problem for me and in doing so gave me an opportunity to change my
perspective a bit. There still must be consequences for entering the US
illegally but, for crying out loud, must they include separating families.
Don’t we have enough of that going on with all the divorce in our country?
The joke among my friends is that I was elsewhere when God
gave out mercy. Pardon me, I think I have come down a case of mercy.
