Refugee Work

Each year,  Americans welcome an average of 20,000 refugees to the U.S.  No matter where in the world they come from, all refugees share a similar journey. Jesus was a refugee, as his family fled to Egypt when Herod planned to kill all children under two years old. God has a huge heart for the "aliens" and "foreigners" living among us, and He commands that we show compassion to refugees in their need.


Refugees differ from internally displaced persons (IDPs) in that they do not have the choice to remain in their home countries. Refugees flee their country to save their lives.  They run because of religious, ethnic, social, or political persecution, often losing beloved family members along the way. Many refugees spend years and sometimes decades in refugee camps.  Over 35 million refugees live in the world today. Around 115,000 (far less than 1%) per year receive the opportunity to leave a camp and resettle into a sponsoring nation. Many are born, live, and die without a "home."


The  United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees screens each refugee several times to verify their story, health, and priority to be relocated  before placing them into a lottery system. Once a refugee “hits the jackpot,” they are resettled in a country that receives refugees. Those sent to America are passed along to one of about 11 refugee resettlement agencies, such as World Relief, where they are assigned a case worker who is responsible for them during their first 90 days in the US. An amount of $900 is given to each refugee to help pay for food, clothing, rent, utilities, and other start-up costs as they begin the process of building a new life in America.

UNHCR Article about Refugees in Clarkston, GA

Global Frontier Missions works with refugee resettlement agencies to recruit volunteers for a variety of programs intended to ensure that refugees become self-sufficient, contributing members of our society.


The focus of these programs:

  • Help refugees meet their immediate needs upon arrival. This includes helping refugee families find and furnish an apartment, learn the public transportation system, get their children into school, find a doctor, learn some English, and secure a job. Refugees are expected to become self-sufficient within their first year of arrival to the U.S.
  • Aid refugees to overcome trauma and grief and help them develop new support systems in America. Our goal is to connect every refugee family with a local church, small group, or Christian family.
  • Prepare refugees for long-term success. This includes everything from managing money and understanding credit, to training for a new career or re-establishing professional credentials in the U.S.

 

GFM considers  working with refugees a strategic initiative for fulfilling the Great Commission. Many refugees arrive from countries where it is difficult to obtain a visa to serve as a missionary. While the majority of them will never return to their native countries, most have family and other channels through which the gospel may flow back to their homeland.


Our desire is to make disciples that can return and make disciples of their own people. Along with refugees, we also connect with  immigrants and international students. Check out the work we are doing in  Clarkston, GA,  which some call the most diverse square mile in America!


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