Millions of people have fled their homes in Ukraine, and I, like so many others, have been fervently praying.

I’ve been turning to the Bible, which has so many stories about people fleeing. Joseph and Mary fled with the baby Jesus when they feared for his life; Moses fled to hide after he killed a slave driver; Jacob fled when he stole his brother’s birthright; others fled droughts and famine or were driven out by wars. 

Whether for political, environmental, safety, or religious reasons—or even if simply in search of a better life—the loss of one’s home can be frustrating and frightening, and when such displacement happens on a large scale, it can present destabilizing factors, shape-shifting nations worldwide.