We’ve all seen the pictures of pandemonium at the Kabul airport as an insurgent force stormed the capital city of Afghanistan last weekend.
We’ve heard the stories of these Taliban fighters hunting down those they consider threats to Islam and Sharia law, including those who assisted foreign militaries in the past two decades and those who have professed faith in Jesus Christ.
We’ve wrestled with anger as we’ve learned that these men are stealing women and young girls from their homes to abuse them, in some cases for personal gratification or forced marriages but often in retaliation for the freedoms these women have gained in education and society in the past 20 years.
We’ve felt at a loss for what we could possibly do for these people, many of whom are trying and failing to flee a land-locked country that is surrounded by enemy forces. Already hungry, cut off from supply chains, and facing a growing health crisis as COVID ravages the country, they have been forced into hiding or to confront fighters surrounding the only feasible exit from the country — the airport in Kabul.
Some of us will be able to financially and practically support refugee work as there are many excellent relief agencies to support and possibly refugees coming to Oregon, but all of us can have a spiritual impact through prayer. We can bring all our sorrow and outrage to God through the practice of lament as we process what we see and hear. We can all spend time with the God of the universe who controls everything, trusting that He will continue to be with us.
An American missionary, who has spent many years ministering to refugees overseas, has shared with us specific ways to pray for the people of Afghanistan. She has also shared a translated list of prayer points from Afghan believers now living as refugees in Europe. Because of their close links with current work happening in Europe and Asia, we are protecting the identity of our sources by not sharing their names.
Please join our American friend and her family in praying specifically for Taliban members to have dreams about Jesus and to forsake the emmptiness of Islam and Sharia law. Ask God to comfort the Afghan people by showing them that He has not forsaken them, that He is available to them through Christ, that they are not abandoned or forgotten. They matter to God.
Please pray with our refugee friends for…
- national peace in Afghanistan
- the war to stop
- the liberation of Afghanistan from the devil
- the security and peace of all the people of Afghanistan
- those displaced by war
- women and girls who are in the hands of the Taliban as sex slaves
- bereaved families
- softening of the hearts of the Taliban and the militants and their reform
- all the people of Afghanistan
- those who defend Afghanistan
- the reconciliation of Afghanistan with Christ
Our hearts are also breaking for the people of Haiti as they have faced ongoing devastation because of COVID, the assination of a president, an earthquake, and a tropical storm. Cailyn Prewitt, our UFC outreach team intern and an employee with Chances for Children (C4C) in Haiti, has shared these updated prayer points with us this week. Please pray for…
- peace and comfort for the Haitian people, especially those who lost loved ones in the earthquake
- restoration of hearts and minds, especially as trauma resurfaces from the 2010 earthquake
- search and rescue efforts
- healing of the wounded
- protection and wisdom for the doctors and rescue crews
Tropical Storm Grace hit Haiti two days after the earthquake, hindering rescue efforts and causing further destruction. The storm also washed out all of the crops C4C had recently planted in two of our villages in the south and took out many of the livestock. C4C is devastated that a solid food source has been swept away. Please pray for
- reconstruction
- seeds and fertilizers to replant
- a release of anxiety and fear in the midst of the trauma and uncertainty
- a peace to trust the One who is in control and is aware of every person’s needs.