Through vivid news reports and video clips, we are all witnessing the refugee crisis that is currently facing the world. How pitiful to behold great masses of people, young and old, fleeing their home countries in search of a safe place to live. Dramatic photos of capsized boats that contained too many occupants, or a young child’s body washed up on shore, tear at our heart strings. Conditions in refugee camps are often deplorable.

The crisis is indeed overwhelming. How should we as Christians view it? Matthew in his gospel records that our Lord, in carrying out his ministry of proclaiming the kingdom of God and healing every disease, when he saw the crowds “… had compassion for them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd.” We may not be able to understand the ultimate reasons for the catastrophe that is unfolding before our eyes, but ought we not view this, in part, as an opportunity set before us by divine providence to do what we can to minister to these refugees, especially fellow believers who are being persecuted for their faith?

Refugee Ministry Articles

series taken from the S.T.O.R.M. Report

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  Refugee Ministry Part 4: A Step by Step Guide to Beginning Refugee Ministry

  So, you want to start helping refugees. You have been listening to the news and have seen those from Afghanistan in need of mercy. You have seen the pictures of people, babies, young girls, old men, pregnant women, suffering as they fled their country, their homes. Your heart has broken
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  Refugee Ministry Part 3:What Will We Lose by Inviting Refugees to our Dinner Table?

    by Chris CashenPastor, Trinity Reformed OPC, Lanham, Maryland andChairman of the Refugee Ministry Subcommittee Ministering to refugees is an eye and heart opening experience, because the work is very personal. Consider the hospitality practices of those who have […]
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  Refugee Ministry Part 2: The Case of the Strang Ers

    by Rev. Chris Cashen, Pastor, Trinity Reformed OPC, Lanham, MD Imagine the following scenario being presented at your next diaconal meeting: Mr. and Mrs. Strang Er just arrived at the bus station in your city. They have two […]
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  Refugee Ministry Part 1: Is it Safe for Christians to Refuse to Welcome the Stranger?

  by Rev. Chris CashenPastor, Trinity Reformed Church in Lanham, Maryland andChairman of the Refugee Ministry Subcommittee A little over two weeks ago, on May 3, 2021, President Biden raised the 2021 cap on refugee resettlements in the United States […]

Redeemer Mercy Ministry Clarkston

Find out more about Redeemer Mercy Ministry Clarkston. Redeemer Mercy Ministry Clarkston assists the refugee community in nearby Clarkston, Georgia, in a variety of ways:
– assist families with basic food needs
– help individuals learn English
– provide counseling services
– help refugees navigate immigration and other administrative processes, such as getting a driver’s license or applying for a green card

Most important, we share the gospel of Jesus Christ.

Refugee Ministry Subcommittee

After years of the Lord’s blessing on the ministry in Clarkston, Georgia, the Committee on Diaconal Ministries appointed a new Refugee Ministry Subcommittee dedicated to furthering this ministry in the local church throughout the United States. The subcommittee members include:

• Rev. Chris Cashen, pastor, Trinity Reformed Church, Lanham, Maryland
• Mr. John J. Voss Jr., deacon, Covenant OPC, Orland Park, Illinois
• Rev. Richard Dickinson, Retired Chaplain, Pilgrim OPC, Bangor, Maine