Harriet Tubman was born in 1822 in Maryland with the name Araminta Ross. She recalled working as a housemaid at the tender age of five and by the time she became a teenager – she had suffered whippings, starvation and back breaking work.
When plantation owners in Maryland began to switch their crops from tobacco to wheat – they required less labor. This led to the selling of unnecessary slaves and separated families. Harriet said goodbye to two sisters and lived in the fear of being taken from her family.
When she was 22, she married a free man named John Tubman and took her mother’s first name. This didn’t protect her from being sold on what were known as the “chain gangs” where slaves were chained together and sold at auctions.
With the help of people on the Underground Railroad – a network of people helping slaves escape – she made the 90 mile journey to freedom in Philadelphia. There she began working with an abolitionist named William Still and made over a dozen trips back to Maryland to help other slaves escape.
She depended on God’s voice to guide her as she led between 60-80 people to freedom and was nicknamed “Moses” because she led her people to freedom. She became known as the most famous conductor on the Underground Railroad because she never lost a passenger.
Tubman said she would listen carefully to the voice of God as she led slaves north, and she would only go where she felt God was leading her. In later years she spoke at abolitionist rallies and was the only woman to lead men in combat during the Civil War.
She died at the age of 90 – still advocating for freedom. Her deep faith in God spurred her to listen for His voice and boldly respond to the call.
The same Holy Spirit that led Harriet Tubman lives in us who follow Jesus today. In John 16, Jesus told us that the Holy Spirit would come and do four incredible things for us:
- Convict us of sin.
- Guide us into all truth.
- Show us the future.
- Remind us of what Jesus said.
If you would like to experience more of the Holy Spirit that Harriet spoke about – you can pray right now for the Holy Spirit to do in your life what Jesus promised He would do!