Bethany Anderson
Her face says it all. She is terrified, untrusting, confused, hungry and dirty. Her cheeks are sunken in and her lips as dry as the desert she just came from.
She couldn’t be more than 17. She’s a cute girl with straight, long, dark hair. I really know nothing about her, other than she’s from Central America and was just picked up with her 19 year old brother.
Why did she come? Where are her parents? What happened to her while she traveled here? How long did she go without food and water? Does she know she’s safe now? I know I can’t ask her any of these questions right now, so I just smile at her. I can assume there is one question her mind is focused on. “Where is my brother?”
My heart breaks as I imagine and assume the hardships this young women has faced. Clearly, a desperateness must have driven her and her brother to make the long and dangerous journey here. Maybe they were trying to find their parents. Maybe they were escaping gangs or poverty. Perhaps they were hoping for the American Dream. No matter what the reason, the reality is that she is here now. She is alone, scared, most definitely hurting and vulnerable. The question for us is how will we respond to her?
Matthew 25:40
“Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.”
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