Finding unexpected common ground with my immigrant neighbors

This summer, I gathered some friends from church, and we participated in the Common Ground Cup, a soccer tournament hosted by World Relief.

The goal was to raise funds, bring awareness, and foster connections with local refugees and residents in Greenville.

The unique twist? Our tournament team included seven refugees.

As the day neared, I felt anxious.

I’m not the best soccer player, and as team captain, I carried extra communication responsibilities — I feared the language barrier might make it hard to engage with the refugees.

I worried I couldn’t show them I cared or welcome them as I would a neighbor who spoke my language. I wanted them to feel accepted and connected, and to enjoy playing soccer with us.

I hoped Jesus’ love would shine through me. Though welcoming strangers is something we are called to do as Christians, I was uncertain about how it would feel to welcome those I believed I had little in common with.

Ah, hence the name of the tournament: The Common Ground Cup.

As things got underway, it didn’t take long for me to see that I was totally overthinking what God was asking me to do. He wanted me to trust Him, and trust that the Holy Spirit would do the work that I couldn’t do. He wanted me to faithfully show up, smile, laugh, be kind, be curious, and encourage.

It wasn’t about what I could or couldn’t say to my teammates. It was about being a vessel of Christ’s love.

A passion for soccer gave us common ground, and God gave us opportunities for small, meaningful interactions. God shared His love through me that day, and He also shared His love for me through my new teammates, as they smiled, laughed, showed interest, and encouraged me.

Looking back on how quickly my fear melted away, I’ve been thinking about what has fueled so much of it in the first place.

With the amount of political rhetoric around immigration and resettlement, I can become paralyzed and feel helpless about having meaningful conversations or getting involved at all.

I can start to see gray as black and white, and I can see polarized sides where there should be community.

Loving your neighbor through a soccer tournament doesn’t make a viral headline, but as Christians, sharing the love of Jesus with strangers and neighbors alike should be the big story.

We give our fears over to God, and we jump in.

I feel strongly that, as believers, we have to ask for courage and compassion that come from Jesus Himself and seek to obey His commands to “do good, be rich in good deeds, and be generous and willing to share” (1 Timothy 6:17-19).

I believe He is calling us to move toward people in our community so that they may experience the love of Jesus.

He is calling us beyond the media narratives and asking us to walk boldly in our own neighborhoods, lift our heads, look one another in the eyes, and love as He does.

Maybe you have a neighbor you should invite over for dinner or set up a play date for your kids. Maybe through smiling and waving to your neighbor, you will start to get to know them and learn of a need they have that you can fill in a practical way — helping them with groceries, understanding school papers for their children, or navigating doctor’s visits or appointments at the Department of Motor Vehicles.

I don’t believe we should be reckless where caution is truly warranted, and there is certainly a great need for meaningful policy changes.

However, I have a new fear: that our rhetoric would stifle our ability and willingness to be the hands and feet of Jesus to our neighbors living around us.

So, I ask you the questions I have started asking myself: Am I willing to go where Jesus leads, even if it makes me uncomfortable or costs me something? Am I willing to lay down my desires and place the needs of someone else above my own? Am I willing to extend a hand to my neighbor and go out of my way to make someone feel seen, heard, and cared for?

On that summer day, as my new friends and I leaned into the messiness of cross-cultural friendship — and the chaos of a soccer tournament — I gained as much or more than I brought to the table.

I came to bless but was blessed in return.

I hope that others will join me in the joyful unexpectedness that comes when we step out of our comfort zone and seek out friendship with someone whose story and life experiences are so totally different from our own.

Who will you meet today?