Illegal Border Crossings

Every time I interact with immigrants and hear their stories of traveling thousands of miles in search of better opportunities, I’m honestly humbled. The determination it takes to leave their country and face the overwhelming challenge of surviving with little more than their ability to improvise, is just remarkable. It’s amazing that the only thing it takes to spur millions of people to walk thousands of miles, face countless dangers, and constantly feel weak and confused in a land not their own, is the hope of a better life.

I find it sad that sometimes people criticize immigrants for “invading their country,” and look down on them with disdain – all while complaining that the restaurants they go to don’t have enough workers to serve them their food a little faster… you know? …I remember writing about the immigrant phenomenon in the States a while back, and one Christian friend agreed with me on the economic benefits of having illegal Latin Americans working in the US, but questioned how I could endorse it, if going against the law is clearly un-Christian... In his opinion, our interests should not lie in the potential economic benefits of welcoming illegal immigrants, but in our willingness to submit to the God given authorities of our land, for better or for worse. His logic was consistent, but I was still unconvinced. “Who cares about the government – my only job is to welcome them like I would want to be welcomed myself,” I thought.

And that’s where I find myself now. How do I want to be welcomed into a country that I cross into illegally? …Basically, without extortion or threats of imprisonment… Am I suggesting that I’m wanting to cross into a country illegally? Yes. I am, and I’m pretty scared about it. I’ve done stuff like that before, yet it’s one thing for me to do it on my own, and it’s certainly another to do so with my beautiful wife Alejandra.

God gave me the command to make disciples of all nations, and when I’m reluctant to do so because the country that I’m trying to get into doesn’t accept American or Colombian citizens – does my reluctance stem from my neglect towards God’s command of making disciples of all nations, or from my respect for the leaders of the foreign government that is standing in my way? …Honestly, I don’t respect the present dictator of Venezuela too much, and so I feel like it would be a cop-out to say I’m not going in just because I can’t get my passport stamped… It’s like, “really?” there are millions of people who cross borders illegally all the time because they need to make more money, but there are so few Christians who cross borders illegally to share the gospel, even though the gospel is more important than money… Why is that? …As sad as it is to say, and as self-condemning it is for me to acknowledge in my own life – maybe it’s because unbelievers’ love for money is greater than Christians’ love for sharing the gospel.

…In fact, this crazy scenario isn’t even a realistic conundrum for most people to even bother with… Most Christians are still too conflicted over the issue that there are too many immigrants in their own country (and that they’re illegal for goodness’ sake!) – that they would never even dream of going into another country illegally themselves, even if it were to share the gospel… No, half the time, and to our own shame, we’re too freaked out just to share the gospel in our own country (even though it’s completely legal), to even start thinking about sharing it somewhere else… …I know of a Venezuelan immigrant who has a lot more guts than I do, and I invited him once to join me on a road trip in Colombia. There was another Venezuelan with us as well, and he had his papers in order, but my fearless friend did not.

Anyway, we were in the middle of the pandemic, and we were driving along the highway, and all of a sudden, we got stopped by some policemen at a road block. There were certain restrictions at the time for traveling between cities, but I was legally considered an exception because I’m involved in religious/humanitarian work. My properly documented Venezuelan friend was listed on the permit I obtained to drive my car that day, but my improperly documented friend was not. My license and insurance and emissions papers were all in order, but since one of the passengers in my car was an improperly documented Venezuelan, the policeman decided to impound my vehicle.

The whole situation was really grim because it was raining, and I was going to have to pay a bunch of money, and my friends and I were all going to be stranded in the middle of nowhere for a while. I wasn’t going to be able to get my car back from the tow yard for another 2 days (and in 5 days I was getting married!), and I just felt really frustrated about the whole situation, and towards the policeman specifically, for not cutting me some slack. Well, as my car was being chained and lifted up onto the tow truck, my improperly documented Venezuelan friend told the harsh policeman about Jesus and asked him if he wanted to pray to ask God to forgive him of his sins. The policeman complied, and I was stunned! 10 minutes beforehand I was tempted to try and bribe the policeman, but luckily, I didn’t. Next thing I knew, my illegal immigrant friend of all people, was the one leading the stern policeman to Christ. Halleluiah!

That guy is insane. I first met him at a refugee camp where he was sharing the gospel, and then I started joining him for a Bible study in a random restaurant that he walked into once, where he convinced the owners to let him live. When we were wandering around in the streets he would suddenly start preaching in the open air, and every once in a while, he would hide away in the mountains to fast and pray.

His name is Victor, and for a while we both put on a weekly open-air church meeting. At times he would stand up to preach and have everyone laughing their heads off for one second, and then seriously thinking about their sin and repenting of it in in the next… He would share the gospel to prostitutes and drug addicts and emerald dealers alike, and convince whole groups of people to join him for a Bible study right on the spot.

Last I heard from him he travelled to the North of Colombia and crossed into Panama illegally, followed by Nicaragua, Costa Rica, and Honduras. Next, he made it into Guatemala and started living on an old woman’s farm, much like Elijah, and decided to start a church there, along with a few teenagers he met on the street. Before you know it, he’ll probably be sneaking into Mexico and the US, just wandering around wherever the Spirit leads, and telling others about Jesus however he can. You can’t bridle that guy, or trip him up with legalities. You want to take him to prison? He’ll probably see it as the Lord’s provision, and start a church with his cell mates and the guards (Genesis 39:19-23; Acts 16:25-34). You want to take him before a judge because he’s illegal? …I think he cares more about The Ultimate Judge who can destroy both body and soul in hell (Matt. 10:28). You want to deport him? He’ll probably just wipe the dust off his feet and thank you for the free ride home (Matt. 10:14). He’s the kind of guy that is poor, yet is making many rich. The kind of guy that has nothing, and yet possesses everything (2 Cor. 6:18).

What I mean is that there are certain situations that Christians can get themselves into that can be pretty gnarly, but the way you remain faithful to God in the midst of those situations can make a big impact. Think of Daniel and his friends for instance. The Jews could have criticized them of reading Babylonian literature and serving in the enemy’s palace, and the Babylonians could have criticized them of not eating the royal food or bowing down to their gods… Either way, they could have succumbed to external pressure, but they were confident in who they were. They knew that their identity rested in the One they worshipped, and they were confident that God would show them how to maneuver around any obstacle that was thrown their way. Even if they were to die, they said, they would not serve false gods or worship the image of gold that Nebuchadnezzar had set up (Dan. 3:18). …What I want to say is this: There is nothing safe about following Jesus, just like there is nothing safe about leaving your home country. Regardless, millions of immigrants leave behind their home countries all the time, because they believe there is something better to be gained somewhere else… The question is – do we as Christians believe there is something better to be gained also, whether that’s at home or abroad, by simply following Christ? If you’re reading this post right now, it’s because I sent it from my cell phone a few minutes before crossing into Venezuela… if you could pray for Alejandra and I right now, that we would be faithful to God and tactful as we interact with Venezuelans and point them to Christ – we would greatly appreciate it. Thanks.