You just never know what to expect in ministry: but I feel that inconsistency can be more of a gift than a hindrance. After all, life itself, is not scheduled. There is an ebb and flow to nature/life that must be approached with humility and respect.
Speaking of that ebb and flow…as a part of African Heritage Month, I have been sharing slave spirituals with my congregation here in Newfoundland. My Papa was African Baptist, he learned slave spirituals and passed them onto my mother who passed them onto me. I explained to them (as I will to you) that these songs gave them a sense of freedom, liberation, and hope….when the world could not. They are not restricted to notes or words on a page…but are preserved in a an oral tradition of the Spirit: one that moves the soul into the song. Slavery isn’t what defines African and Black history but is an important aspect of its roots. The tradition of song which arose is a gift. It is moving to hear these mournful but hopeful songs lifted because, in them you are deeply connected to this eternal family of the spirit that these songs seek to liberate you into. Reminding us…that we are born into a physical life….but even when that traps us or even when that passes away…we are always born with a divine spirit which never ceases and is always a safe home for us wherever we roam.
I tried to attach a recording of me singing “sometimes.” It didn’t work out but no worries. Perhaps your homework might be looking up some slave/negro spirituals on youtube (they go by both names). Here is one example:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yHmUPqI6w9g.
What I invite you to do is listen to these and, after getting lost in them….ask yourself…in what aspects of your life do you feel tension…in what areas do you yourself need liberation/freedom…in what ways do you need to live more for the Spirit and less for the self?
Dear God,
We thank you for the voices of the past. We recognize that we are an eternal family in the spirit and what a gift that is. We thank you for these spirituals that came out of slavery – that in them there is a message of liberation that runs far deeper than the physical side. Help us to liberate ourselves into the Spirit…so that in being liberated we may also invite others to do the same….so that we might develop a vision which helps us liberate and advocate for others who are in need…and so that we might not consider liberation work…but a gift and a calling. In Jesus name we pray – the one who loves and forgives…the true liver in the ways of the Spirit, Amen.
