Romans 8:1-11

For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has set you free from
the law of sin and of death. (8:2)

Traumatized and sobbing, the 13-year-old girl from Guatemala
began her story. “In Tijuana they took me to a house where they sold
me to men. They warned me not to try to escape because of the
dogs guarding the house. If I stayed, the abuse would continue, and
if I tried to escape, the dogs could attack me.

“I turned the doorknob and the dogs began to growl. I prayed to God
for help. The dogs held still and let me pass.

“God was with me. But I can’t sleep,” she cried. As I stroked her
hair I said, “The same God who led you out of that house is with you
every night, holding you in His love.”

—Mary Moreno Richardson