As he begins to move into the next phase of combatting the coronavirus in his state, Texas Gov. Greg Abbott (R) is encouraging residents to turn to faith.
More specifically, he said during a Zoom interview Sunday with Prestonwood Baptist Church Pastor Jack Graham, Abbott told viewers they have support you can lean on that will always be there for you, and that’s Jesus Christ.”
Graham, based in Plano, then pivoted, asking the conservative governor about the personal crisis that prepared him to handle an ordeal of pandemic proportions.
Abbott went on to tell the pastor about the injury that left him paralyzed and wheelchair-bound at just 26 years old. That personal tragedy, the 62-year-old governor said, tested his faith and left him asking: “Why would God allow something like this to happen?”
“But,” he continued, “very importantly, I found in the aftermath, that I continued to reach out to God. I found God reach back out to me. And my relationship with God and Jesus Christ grew even closer after that accident.”
The governor reminded Prestonwood congregants watching his interview that God “never promised us a life free of storms.” Instead, He guaranteed “a pathway through those storms,” Abbott said.
“That’s what I’ve seen in my own life, and that’s what I’m seeing in Texas,” he added.
Abbott said the slow of the spread of the coronavirus is a direct result of action and prayers on the part of Christians. The Republican leader said he can see “God’s hand … working through the scientists across this great nation by coming out with fast, innovative drugs that would lead to therapeutic remedies.”
Both Graham and Abbott agreed it will be God who ultimately carries Texans — and the rest of the United States — through this pandemic.
This week, at the governor’s behest, Texas is beginning to reopen following weeks of sheltering in place and intense social distancing measures.
According to KEYE-TV, the Lone Star state began the process of returning to normalcy on Monday morning by reopening the state’s parks. All visitors will be required to wear face masks and maintain social distancing guidelines with no families of larger than five members allowed onto the grounds.
The state will also loosen restrictions on non-essential surgeries beginning Wednesday, and on Friday, retailers of all kinds will be permitted to offer to-go services to customers who purchased items beforehand.