Refugees... "Bring the Sky"

I'm a stranger in a strange land. I came by time machine to the 21st Century and made what feels like a quick adjustment with the strong help of some locals. But I learned some things today that shocked me.  Many refugees in this country start their time here with a 6-9 month detention experience (translate that: "jail").

For the people who have no time or ability to take the regular "visa" route to enter the U.S. (many of them are fleeing for their lives) they come to these borders hoping for help and many end up in temporary detention as the first step. Lots of war zones in the world that produce lots of refugees.

Some sobering facts: 34,000 refugees are in detention on any given day; that adds up to more than 300,000 individuals per year.  The average length of stay in detention is about 30 days (that represents two distinct groups: 1) the refugees that will be sent back for a variety of reasons and they stay typically less than the 30 days; and 2) the ones with legitimate asylum claims who end up taking 6 to 9 months to work through the system, much of that time spent in detention while they wait.)

Lutheran Immigration and Refugee Service (LIRS) received a grant from Wheat Ridge to provide a ministry of visitation to these refugees in the detention centers.  LIRS provides a five module "Bring the Sky" visitation kit to organizations that engage volunteers willing to provide visitation. The name "Bring the Sky" comes from a refugee who was in detention and was not able to be outside much. He would always ask his visitors to describe the sky and the weather.

Perhaps your church is willing to look into this kind of ministry. People need your presence as the hands and feet of Christ! There is likely a detention center near you. I can't imagine how different it would have been if my stay here in the 21st Century would have started with 6 months of detention...