February is Black History Month. It is a time for African-Americans to reflect on the multitude of accomplishments that have been made over the time of conception of our great country, which are many. African-Americans have greatly contributed to our society, but having received limited credit for the same. This is all changing with the times. Our children will bask in a greater pride about the Black race than any other generation of Black Americans because of this ever evolving plethora of information that continues to stream to the forefront of our society. Let me pen a few.

The elevator that takes you to the top of those never-ending skyscrapers that seem to hang down from the clouds is credited to African-American Alexander Mils. That gear that you shift in your car is there due to the efforts of Richard Spikes, the inventor of the automatic gearshift. Don't crash that red light! You'll be fined, thanks to the efforts of Garrett A. Morgan, the inventor of the traffic signals. Taking the rapid transit today? Well, Elbert R. Robinson, the inventor of the electric trolley, is to be thanked for giving us the precursor of what we enjoy today. And, of course, the street that you live on should forever be kept neat and clean, free of litter, because of the street sweeper, invented by Charles Brooks. Your lawns, well, they too should be extremely manicured due to the inventions of Joseph Smith, the inventor of the lawn sprinkler and John Burr, the inventor of the lawn mower. There's John Love, the inventor of the pencil sharpener, William Purvis who invented the fountain pen. And then there is the postmarking and canceling machine, the hand stamp, the letter drop, the air conditioner, the heating furnace, the ironing board, the electric lamp, the automatic cut off switch, the dust pan, the comb, the clothes dryer, all invented by persons of color. Oh my, the list just goes on and on and on. Yes, proud the Man of Color can truly be.

However, there is another understanding of this minority race that helps us to be filled with more than just pride, but praise and thanksgiving to God, the Creator of us all. There is the mentioning of "Cush" right up front in the Bible. It is not tucked away or hidden in the pages of Micah or Malachi, but the truth about the Black man is immediately mentioned in connection with the Garden of Eden, its rivers, and the gold that surrounds it. This also must be riveted into the memory of the minority race(s) of people that there is nothing that we "need" to fight for. God has already given us all things freely to enjoy. And if society endeavors to keep us away from what is rightfully due, God assures us that "whatever is right, He will pay!" "No good thing will He withhold from them who walk uprightly." This certainly does provide a tremendous rest. Not only rest in knowing that God will get what He has for me to me, but more so the understanding that I am a person of purpose, destiny, power and ultimate strength. I matter to God. I am totally confident in this truth that "He who began a good work in me will perform it! My ultimate destiny and purpose is not left in the hands of another class of people, but firmly in the hands of Him who made me. I can look to Him for injustices to be made right and the mending of wounds that may run ever so deep.

As is known, I am not a spokesman for the Black race, but rather a voice for the cause of Kingdom. And in being so, I cannot help but to gather into this space the Hispanics as well as the Caucasian families with whom I have worshipped for the last three decades. In doing so, let me conclude with excerpts from my book entitled, "The Heritage of the Black Believer."

"God loves diversity. (It is amazing) to see man's nearsightedness and prejudice, when it is clear that God purposely made men of nearly every skin hue, body type, and personality. He made every grain of sand different from every other grain that has ever existed, and it is the same with every snowflake and blade of grass. They look similar in general, and they can even be grouped by their similarities, but a close look always reveals the diversity of God."

"Black believers in America often enter the race with heavy chains of prejudice and tradition around their necks." But God has a very clear plan for those heavily weighed and encumbered by such. "It is God's will for us to succeed, he has not made us to fail, no matter what hardships or obstacles seem to block your path."

This is a month in which we are remembering our chains but simultaneously celebrating our freedom. However, "no man can give you freedom or make you free. Only the truth can make you free indeed. Freedom is not a commodity that can be distributed at will by some government body or legislated by some committee. Real freedom can be experienced only by embracing the truth. The truth can be found only in the Source of all things. Therefore, the truth about you must be and only be discovered in the mind and heart of the One who created and produced you, the magnificent Creator, the Lord Jesus Christ, by whom and for whom all things were made."

"If we don't know God, we won't know Him as Creator or as Lord, and we won't know His grace or the truth about His creation. Racial or ethnic ranking systems are not God's idea-man gets all the 'credit' for them." But as we listen to God Himself, we come to clearly understand His thoughts on the matter. Listen!

From one man he created all races of mankind and made them live throughout the whole earth. He himself fixed beforehand the exact times and the limits of the places where they would live. He did this so that they would look for him, and perhaps find him as they felt around for him. Yet God is actually not far from any one of us; as someone has said, 'In him we live and move and exist.' It is as some of your poets have said, 'We too are (all) his children.'

Bishop Luther Blackwell, Jr.