Harriet: Casting Cares on Freedom's God - Black Church (1 Peter 5:7)

Imagine, if you will, the dense, humid air of the 19th-century Southern landscape, where the sweet scent of magnolias mingles with the stifling weight of fear. Harriet Tubman, a woman of indomitable spirit, stands at the edge of the woods, her heart racing like the rapid beats of a drum echoing in the silence of twilight. She knows that behind every rustling leaf and crackling twig could be the sound of pursuers—men who would drag her back into the abyss of slavery. The weight of her mission is heavy, cradling not just her own life but the lives of others—fellow souls yearning for freedom.

As she clutches the map etched in her mind, she breathes in the promise of liberation, a promise whispered by the God she has learned to trust. In that moment of agony and hope, she recalls the powerful words of 1 Peter 5:7: “Cast all your anxiety on Him, because He cares for you.” Here in this perilous crossing, she releases her fears into the hands of the Almighty, believing that the God who liberated the Israelites from Egypt is still at work, still listening, still caring.

With every step she takes through the dark, thick brush, she carries her anxiety—about recapture, about the anguish of lynching, about the fragile threads of survival—casting each burden into the arms of the “caring God,” the God of shalom (peace). Harriet’s casting was not mere resignation; it was a bold act of faith, a declaration that she would not bear the weight of despair alone.

In our lives today, we too can stand at the edge of our own woods, burdened by worries that claw at our spirits. Just as Harriet did, we can cast what we cannot carry onto the shoulders of Him who promises to sustain us. Let us lean into the hope that the God who walked with Harriet is still our freedom’s God, ready to lift our burdens and lead us into the light of His deliverance.