Timothy J. Clarke - The Power of One: Decision

I want to talk today about one decision. One decision I mentioned, uh, beloved, on this past Wednesday night, uh, while preaching at Tried Stone. Let me thank each of you—so many of you came out on Wednesday night, our music ministry, and others of you who attended. Those of you who prayed, let me express my appreciation to you for that. I mentioned on Wednesday night at Tried Stone that the Monday, two days before that evening, uh, our nation observed for the second time a new federal holiday that is known as Juneteenth. And, uh, Juneteenth, as many of you know, amen, you can applaud for that! Amen. Juneteenth, as many of you know, is also known as Freedom Day, and the historical event that centers around Juneteenth marks the day, some two years after—now I want you to hear what I’m saying—some two years after the signing of the Emancipation Proclamation, that slaves in Texas learned that they had already been set free.

Now, there’s so much, Larry, about this particular event that boggles my mind, and much of that whole experience of slavery defies logic. Among them is the fact that in many cases, and for many years—I’m talking post-Emancipation Proclamation—for many years and for many people, years after Abraham Lincoln signed that document, many of them were not free at all. In fact, history records that many «ex-slaves» stayed on, quote-unquote, in the employ of their former masters, and many of them were often not paid. Many of them, even involved in what we now call sharecropping, were often treated unfairly and inhumanely. Coupled with that is the sad reality that having been legally and politically set free, many slaves had no options, and many did not know what to do with this newfound status and freedom. As a result, many of them stayed where they were, having become accustomed to their lifestyle and unable to handle the psychological and sociological demands of freedom.

Beloved, here’s my premise: I know y’all are saying, «I didn’t come here for a history lesson.» Here’s my premise: freedom is not always easy. I’ll try that one more time. Freedom is not always easy, and freedom does not come without a price. We see that, Sister Kelly, in the story of Israel as they come out of Egypt. What we discover, Mary, when you read the opening pages of the book of Exodus, is the sojourn, the pilgrimage of God’s people out of Egyptian bondage, out of slavery, into a place of freedom. We know this: at the very first sign of struggle, those Israelites who prayed for freedom turned to Moses and said, «We would have been better off staying in Egypt.» Y’all are not helping me! Sometimes we pray for things but don’t realize the burden, the weight, the responsibility that goes along with it. The first sign of struggle, the first sign of a problem, the first challenge that came their way, the ancient Israelites said to Moses, «You should have left us where we were! At least we had onions, garlic, and leeks. At least we knew where we were going to sleep at night!» They realized that sometimes you get tempted to go back to Egypt, even if only in your heart.

But beloved, we don’t just see that in the history of Israel; we see it in our own history as well. It is said that Harriet Tubman often remarked, speaking of her trips on the Underground Railroad, «I could have freed more if I could have convinced them that they were slaves.» Part of the burden of freedom is that we have responsibilities, and one of them is the responsibility of choices. Some of us—I know not many of you, but some of us, me included—have had people in our families whose, how shall I say it, um, were guests of the government. Someone say, «Translate that.» Uh, they spent time in prison. And some of us saw friends or cousins who spent so much time in prison that, when they got out, they didn’t know how to act no longer in prison. Because, come on, stay with me, they had become accustomed to being told when to go to bed, when to wake up, when to eat, when to exercise— their lives were mapped out for them. But once they were put out on the street, they did not have someone, a corrections officer, saying, «Get up, go to the shower, go to the mess hall, go out in the yard.» Here, here it is: now that they are free, they have the responsibility of making choices. Freedom isn’t always easy, y’all, and sometimes one of the hardest things about freedom is the freedom to make choices. In fact, you’d be surprised that Almighty God did not make us puppets, robots, machines, or automatons. He made us with free will and volition. God help me here—God made us with the freedom of choice to make decisions, and even though He is God—see, now this is where some of y’all aren’t going to like me—He does not make decisions for us. He gives us the freedom to make our own decisions. I’m waiting on God while you’re waiting on God. God’s waiting on you! Now, as soon as the Lord tells me what to do, God says, «No, I didn’t make you a robot. I didn’t make you a puppet. I made you a man, a woman, an intellectual being with free will and volition. You have the right to choose. You have, are you ready for this, the options of decisions.»