After President Trump signed the travel ban impacting refugees, I met with my student leaders. Together, we decided to postpone our previously scheduled discussion in order to insert a week into our teaching calendar about refugees. As Christians,...
We were out with friends on Saturday and as it often does in a group of readers, the conversation turned to books. One of my friends admitted how important fiction has become to her in the last few weeks as a means of escape from what feels like...
Days before Christmas, mere miles from my home in the western suburbs of Chicago, my youth ministry and I delivered a Welcome Pack containing the basic supplies needed to begin life in America to a refugee family from Sudan.
They'd fled Sudan...
Less than 24-hours into our Peacemaking Trip, a student told me, “We've met ONE immigrant and I'm already changing my mind about this issue!”
Before our trip began, this student was in favor of Trump's campaign promise to build a bigger wall....
What the book's about: Assimilate or Go Home is a memoir about Mayfield's experience with refugees. It's a story about how her faith grew and changed when she befriended people whose faith looked nothing like hers.
Why I read this book: I...
On the night of the 2016 election, I sat glued to my television, watching the Presidential returns come in. As the night wore on and Donald Trump’s lead grew, my heart sank.
That’s when my phone began dinging.
I received text after text from the...
What I'm Reading:
Fiction:
If there's one thing summer is NOT for me, it's relaxing. Summer is the season of mission trips... Which means life is chaotic and full. Nevertheless, I read 9 fiction books during the last two months.
...
What I'm Reading:
Fiction:
April was an INSANE month. Nevertheless, I still got some reading in.
Best mystery: What She Knew by Gilly Macmillan
Perfect beach read: Summer at Little Beach Street Bakery by Jenny...
In this never-ending election cycle, immigration has been a source of constant debate amongst our candidates. As a long-time refugee champion, I have some definite feelings about refugee policies & quotas. Yet, I'll be the first to admit that...
What the book's about: I Am Malala is Malala Yousafzai's account of her life in the Swat Valley in Pakistan, her desire to see ALL people, especially girls, have access to education, and her fight for her own life after being shot by the Taliban...