Black History Month and Image Bearers

Well, here we go, again. Sleepless nights, and O'Henry's Coffee are the perfect concoction for my mind to wander and wonder. The latest?? Cultures, and Black History Month. The older I get, the more I love cultures, and what each and every culture brings to the table. 

Two people (women) of color that I've always been fascinated with: Harriet Tubman and Sojourner Truth.

One question I've always wanted to ask ole Harriet: "When you had to say, 'Proceed, or die' (while proceeding through the Underground Railroad, holding a pistol to them), did you ever have to shoot any of your friends/family? Because, that's some seriously heavy crap. 

I also wonder if all of that she went through made her heart hard. I've not been through a fraction of anything Harriet went through, yet life experiences can make any heart hard. For myself, #thestruggleisreal. The hashtag is trite, yet so true. Some things are just way too big to brush off, and I know for myself, personally, I am so very dependent on the Lord intervening, and removing hate, resentment, and any and all things that are not of the Lord. 

In all the years in school, learning about slavery, Harriet Tubman, and the Underground Railroad, I never really heard anything pertaining to spirituality, but, "Wade In The Water" supposedly came from/was inspired by that. (Side note regarding Wade In The Water, Ramsey Lewis has a jazzy rendition, and as kids, my brother and I would sing "Tee-tee in the water," and we thought it was hilarious. Potty humor. I guess you never really outgrow it. 

So, Sojourner Truth's "Ain't I A Woman?" Has been a favorite speech of mine since first hearing/reading it in seventh grade. You can hear/feel her heartbreak as she struggles with, and is telling others she is an image bearer, just as much as any (white) person.

 Seriously, how shittastic and hard it must've been so long ago to have hope in a Gospel and a God (in whose image you were made) when you lived in a world where you were constantly made to feel less than. 

I'm so thankful for a God who loves us whether our faith is deep-rooted and unshaken, or whether we're wavering, and not even sure if He hears our cries and pleads. I find comfort in knowing The Lord not only knows every tear that is shed, but he cries with us. 

Blessed assurance: We aren't alone in our struggles. We aren't forgotten. We are image bearers, we are LOVED.