How can I pray for people in desperate straits?
Q: I always see homeless people in my city and want to help. I feel like I should pray but don’t really know how. Any ideas?
A: My university had an open campus and was located in a highly economically diverse area of the city. So each day when I used public transportation, I might encounter anyone from fellow students to the homeless or drug users.
As a Christian Scientist, I’d learned that the way we see others can have an impact, and that it’s important to hold ourselves accountable for the way we’re thinking when we’re interacting with someone. Are we reacting to an individual’s appearance or behavior, or are we seeing past the surface? Through my study of the Bible and of Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures by Mary Baker Eddy, I’ve discovered that there’s a more helpful way of viewing those we meet. We can take a more elevated perspective by understanding each individual as the creation of God, good. We can see each person who crosses our path as forever in God’s kingdom, where each one of us is whole and fully loved. I knew that the surface-level view leaves a person stuck in their problems, while a God-inspired and conscientious view can bring more of that individual’s true nature to light.
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