Abdul's Escape from Afghanistan

The explosion at the Kabul airport last summer, while a sea of Afghans were trying to escape, separated Abdul* from his family. Not knowing if the other survived, he and his wife kept searching until they found each other. Not long after that, a miracle transpired. They escaped Afghanistan. Why am I sharing this?
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Abdul is one of 38 people who escaped last summer who is specifically connected to us through a friend. Those who escaped were all marked by those bent on doing evil to them, which is why my friend reached out for my help. While I was not on the ground doing the actual rescue work, my role was no less significant. Why? Because I knew how to connect my friend to those on the ground. As a result, Abdul and his family are now in the USA. He and his family are safe, adjusting to their new life, and actively searching for work so he can provide for his wife and children.

Less than two weeks ago, I finally met Abdul in person and I learned something exciting. While his story is definitely hair-raising, he shared something I didn’t expect. His experience with Christ followers in the US is the first time his family has felt ‘LOVE’ by a community. Sure, they miss their extended family severely. But, the love they are experiencing here is new and refreshing to them.

They remain Muslims but I can see how God is working around them. There is no shortage of Gospel witnesses caring for them. For that, I am ever so grateful and hopeful that God will open their eyes to His truth and draw them to Christ, something they may have never experienced in Afghanistan had they not escaped.

I share all this, not to boost in what I did, but to show that we can all play a role in global missions. It doesn’t matter if you’re in a vocational ministry job or secular, whether you’re serving at the grass roots level or behind the scenes. God is using His entire Body to serve the world. All I did was leverage the network God gifted me with that my friend needed access to.

I was not the one managing the safe houses, ordering evacuation planes or dealing with governments to get them to the US. That responsibility lied on others. But if I had looked at my circumstances and thought, “I have nothing to give” then Abdul and the other 37 might have never made it out. And being marked by those bent on evil, I would hate to imagine what their outcome would have been. So I encourage to examine how God has created you, the skills He has gifted you with, and the experiences he has provided you and use them to advance God’s Kingdom globally.

Maybe your involvement will never cross paths with someone like Abdul or the countless Afghans trying to flee. But, your involvement in global missions will cross paths with someone and the Gospel will be proclaimed to more Gospel-Deprived peoples as a result.

Like Rob Schneider said in the movie The Waterboy, “You can do it!”.