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How are you praying for Afghanistan?
An occasional column sharing how readers are praying about current needs in the world.
Like many others, I have been praying in recent days about the challenging situation in Afghanistan. The task of safely evacuating thousands of people seemed overwhelming to me. But as I earnestly prayed, the twenty-third Psalm suddenly came to thought in a totally new way, strengthening and comforting me. It begins, “The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want” (verse 1). In the Christian Science textbook, Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures, Mary Baker Eddy presents a spiritual interpretation of this line. She writes: “[Divine love ] is my shepherd; I shall not want” (p. 578).
At that moment, I saw divine Love, God, as the all-embracing, all-powerful, ever-tender, and disciplined Shepherd of every individual needing to leave Afghanistan. There are many diligent, heartfelt efforts being made by governments and others to evacuate individuals, and yet, no matter what means are or aren’t available humanly, I began to gain a higher view of trusting in and depending on the all-knowing divine Mind and its infinitely effective and original means of taking its children to safety. In fact, the power of God, divine Mind, is universal and all-loving, and is therefore a power that all can put their trust in. Turning earnestly to divine Mind brings to light ideas that may previously have been unseen. As written in the book of Job, “There is a path which no fowl knoweth, and which the vulture’s eye hath not seen” (28:7).
I was reminded of the children of Israel and their escape from Egypt—how divine Love shepherded them along every step of the way, right to the shore of the Red Sea, and then opened a path through the Red Sea, making what seemed totally impossible to the material senses suddenly completely possible. And all of the children of Israel escaped safely. In fact, when the Egyptians tried to follow them, the path simply closed up.
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