Our Church recently tried to obtain the physical addresses of Syrian refugees who have moved into Dallas in order to assist them in any way we could. The authorities said that in order to protect the safety of the Syrians information as to their whereabouts could not be released. Why? They are in danger. This is a hostile place for refugees. Not everyone is hostile, but millions are. So probably wise to keep their identities undisclosed. Yet I couldn’t remember why exactly we are scared of Syrians who have run for their lives. I know of no Syrian refugee committing an act of terror in the United States. I do know that five hundred thousand Syrians have died in the war inside their country. I do know that the children of Aleppo are trapped inside a genocidal horror.
I heard a Christian Syrian refugee speak of his fear of coming to the U.S. After he arrived he was not invited into an American home for six years. That’s strange for a guy who came from a very hospitable culture. At the same meeting middle eastern Christians, now living in the U.S. , whispered to me about their literal terror of anglo Christians in U.S. churches. Fear was on their faces. Muslim refugees from East Jerusalem speak to us of their young son being harassed and bullied by anglo children in Dallas public schools. The Lebanese family down the street from our house in Ft. Worth moved in and promptly built a very high fence and put two German shepherds in the front yard. Cannot say I blame them.
Christians have told me that I should not read the Koran. That the devil will get me. I went ahead and am experiencing no unusual demonic side effects. I am also told that public discussions I had in 2005 with Dr. Kavakci , the former Iman of the Richardson mosque, exposed the church to demonic activity, strongly implying Dr. Kavakci and his Muslim brothers and sisters, were infested with a specially lethal demonic presence. No wonder it is reported by numerous people working with refugees in Dallas that the churches often do not want refugees or Muslim seekers coming to their churches.
All of this reminds me of panic attacks I started having a dozen years ago. I was on a trip separated from my wife and I was overcome by a panic producing conviction “I will never see Donna again.“ The overwhelming power of panic physically disabled me for a couple of hours. I was focusing on a “worst case scenario” that had little or no basis in reality. But because I could not stop focusing on the “threat” I was doubled up with psychic pain. I discovered that out of control fear-panic is brutally narcissistic-riveted on taking care of me at all costs.
Panic has disabled and crippled me at times. It took a while but I learned to pray in the middle of a panic attack, cry out for help to God and the body of Christ and fill my mind with who and what is real and not what might happen.
Fear disables love by withdrawing, segregating, stereotyping, pre-judging wildly and without discernment. Fear either never starts or stops having conversations with the “stranger.” We lose the ability to take the risks of love. In so doing we are disconnecting from the crucified Jesus. Our church fellowships are too often utterly predictable– same ethnic background, social class, political allegiances and on and on.
It takes no grace or courage to do church or life that way. Whatever these utterly predictable church fellowships are they often do not announce the Kingdom of God to the nations.
Hope, “the confident expectation that the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ is going to complete what he has begun,” releases us from whatever scares us. We then go and begin personally extending the Hospitality of God to the nations who have come to find refuge in the “land of the free and the home of the brave.” The risks of loving in Jesus’ name make a comeback in the middle of the Church. Panic runs away!