The Journey from Trial to Triumph

WEEKLY DEVOTIONAL BY PATRICE TSAGUE

Was there a redemptive purpose to slavery? 
Have you had trials in your own journey? 
How has God worked it together for your good?

The Journey from Trial to Triumph

Black History Month is a time of year set aside in America since 1976 to celebrate and remember the important people and events that have occurred in the history of African Americans.  For me, it is also a time to reflect on how this history has been impacted by the Author of history, our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.  

I am a redeemed African who resides in America, and my ancestors were the ones who sold their fellow brothers and sisters into slavery. As I reflect on the history of African Americans within the context of a Biblical worldview, I see the hands of God in this great sin that was motivated by greed, and a refusal to be one’s brother’s keeper.

Regardless of your political orientation, you must agree that the two-term election of the first African American president in America is evidence that Martin Luther King Jr.’s dream has come to pass. Also, no one can deny that the words “we hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal…” are true in America.  This is a testament to America’s greatness and uniqueness among all nations of the world.

As we celebrate Black History Month, let us reflect on the journey of African Americans from Africa to America through the eyes of Joseph. Like Joseph, blacks in America were not the victims of an evil act that was too powerful for God’s might. Nor were they victims of the strength of men’s will, but rather they were part of God’s eternal plan to realize His ultimate will. In other words, what the devil meant for evil, God used for good (Genesis 50:20).

I refuse to believe that for one time in history, God was not on the throne or did not have complete command over the affairs of men. God’s overarching will for humanity shall be done, in spite of the temporary will of man. 

God had an eternal will that occurred in spite of the sin of slavery and the evil of segregation. If African Americans are to tap into that eternal will, they must be able to see the redemptive aspect of their experience and have the courage to learn from their history, confront their hurts, forgive those who offended them (Africans and whites) and move on to fulfill the destiny that the Lord has for them. 

Like Joseph, God sent them ahead to preserve a remnant in the earth and to save lives through a great deliverance. So it was not men who sent them to America, but God.

Today, Africa comprises 54 nations. Sadly, it is the most impoverished continent in the world, with disease, corruption, and immorality instilled in the fiber of its society. America is the most powerful nation in the world with the most educated, influential, and prosperous blacks in the world.

If Africa is to be healed from its economic, spiritual and social ills, it will take the interventions of African Americans who have been healed by the blood of Jesus. It will take these redeemed African Americans who recognize the ultimate purpose that God had in mind when he allowed groups of Africans to be brought to America through slavery early in its history. 

To help us understand the journey of African Americans from Africa to America and to move beyond its pains to its redemptive purpose, I developed a lecture series titled ‘The Journey’ which is based on seven themes that parallel the life of Joseph.  

These themes include;

1. The Dream
   A time of innocence, opportunity, hope, and pride (Genesis 37:5).

2. The Betrayal
   A period where the desires and weakness of the flesh cause us to deceive our own (Genesis 37:19-20).

3. The Struggle
   A period of trial, test, and challenges as a result of the betrayal (Genesis 38:24).

4. The Rise to Greatness
   A period of elevation out of a state of despair (Genesis 41:40).

5. Forgiveness
   A period of repentance and reconciliation (Genesis 45:5a).

6. Destiny
   A revelation of the ultimate purpose that the Lord has for us (Genesis 45:5b).

7. Legacy
   The passing of the baton to the next generation (Genesis 50:25).

These seven themes are essential to bringing not only healing to those who are still bound by the sins of the past but reconciliation to those who have allowed the past to create a wall of division.  

Unfortunately, this wall is hindering the Church of the Lord Jesus Christ from living up to the prayer that Jesus prayed to the Father – “that they all may be one, as You, Father, are in Me, and I in You; that they also may be one in Us, that the world may believe that You sent Me” (John 17:21).

Why is this unity among the sons and daughters of slave masters, the sons and daughters of ex-slaves, and the sons and daughters of slave traders important? It is important because, through our unity, the world will know that our God is God.  

It is important because it is the only way to ensure that the maximum number of lives are brought into the Kingdom of God, since each time a person believes that Jesus was sent, they are one step closer to accepting Him as Lord and Savior. This is the Great Commission!  

Division is one of the key weapons that the enemy uses to steal, kill, and destroy, and to rob the blessings of God from His people. Unity is important because Jesus Christ came so that we may have life and have it more abundantly (John 10:10). 

We cannot have abundant life when we live out of a place of division and mistrust. True abundant life is only found when  God’s people are united as one, and when true unity is achieved, the commanded blessing of God is poured out (Psalm 133:1-3).

My prayer for you today is that God will grant you the grace and humility to recognize, as you reflect upon your own journey, that in the midst of your trials and challenges, God is and always has been there – so that you may fulfill His ultimate purpose for your life without any hindrance.