Border wall, Sonora Desert–Mexico side.

When I was in Phoenix this summer for our national Mennonite Church USA convention, I had the privilege of going on a border trip with Borderlinks. I learned about the good work of organizations like Southside Worker Center and Scholarships A-Z. I witnessed a Streamline trial and learned a little bit about the devastating effects of our immigration policies on people and the environment.

This Sunday, I will have a chance to share some of my experience during worship. Here is the call to worship we will use–taken in part from a previously-posted immigration prayer.

We have come from different places and gathered here, today.
We have gathered to worship our God, who led Abraham and Sarah to a new land;
The One who led the people across the Egyptian border to freedom;
The One who sent Joseph and Mary and Jesus to a foreign country, because their homeland was not safe.
We come to worship our God, who loves the outcast, the foreigner, the displaced;
The God who calls us to love and care for the strangers among us.
The strangers who have come to this country fleeing danger and despair.
The strangers who have come to this country seeking family, freedom, and work.
The strangers who may not look like us or speak like us, but are, like us, created in the Divine image.
May our worship create a space of love and hospitality for all.