I’m a firm believer that God leaves memorials throughout history in the form of people to point to him and his goodness. God did this within African American history. Although, God did not ordain the sinful acts against African Americans; he worked within the framework of things that happened to help African Americans experience freedom creating a memorial for generations to come reminding us that he loves us and is with us.
God spoke to Joshua sharing that he needed to take 12 men from the tribes of Israel. Each man would need to carry a stone to create a memorial forever (Joshua 12:2-7.) This memorial was to be reflective of a similar miracle God had done previously through Moses when he split the Red Sea. Well, at this point, Moses was dead.
God was revealing himself to Joshua in similar ways he’d revealed himself to Moses. God had caused the Jordan river to be dried up for the children of Israel to pass over it (Joshua 3:12-17.) This was to be a memorial to the next generations to come. This memorial was to remind each generation that God would be with them and for them as he’d been with Moses, Joshua, and so on.
Likewise, we have similar memorials of God being with us within African American history. Africans who tell stories to preserve our history and culture are called Griots in parts of Africa. This is reflective of what the Israelites had as they passed down the stories of deliverance out of Egypt to their children. These memorials reflect the gospel of Jesus Christ and they remind us that God isn’t a partial God that excludes us, but he is also for us.
