The Philippine Star

LEANING INTO GOD

- JAMES BANKS

Harriet Tubman couldn’t read or write. As an adolescent, she suffered a head injury at the hands of a cruel slave master. That injury caused her to have seizures and lapses of consciousn­ess for the rest of her life. But once she escaped slavery, God used her to rescue as many as three hundred others.

Nicknamed “Moses” by those she freed, Harriet bravely made nineteen trips back to the pre-Civil War South to rescue others. She continued even when there was a price on her head and her life was in constant danger. A devoted believer in Jesus, she carried a hymnal and a Bible on every trip and had others read her verses, which she committed to memory and quoted often. “I prayed all the time,” she said, “about my work, everywhere; I was always talking to the Lord.” She also gave God credit for the smallest successes. Her life was a powerful expression of the apostle Paul’s instructio­n to the earliest Christians: “Rejoice always, pray continuall­y, give thanks in all circumstan­ces; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus” (1 Thessaloni­ans 5:16–18).

When we lean into God in the moment and live dependentl­y in prayer, praising Him despite our difficulti­es, He gives us the strength to accomplish even the most challengin­g tasks. Our Savior is greater than anything we face, and He will lead us as we look to Him. How does spending time in God’s presence make you stronger?

In what ways will you “lean into Him” today? Loving and Almighty God, please help me to live every moment with You today and to receive the strength You alone can give.

BIBLE IN A YEAR LEVITICUS 26–27; MARK 2 Follow us on social media: ourdailybr­eadpilipin­as, web: odb.org and filipino-odb.org,

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