Celebrating Black History: Lucy Farrow

Let’s meet another one of God’s warriors as we continue to celebrate Black History Month…

Lucy F. Farrow

Lucy Farrow, niece of renowned black abolitionist Frederick Douglass, was serving as pastor of a holiness church in Houston in 1905 when Charles Parham engaged her to work as a governess in his home. She received the baptism of the Holy Spirit while working for his family. Farrow carried the Pentecostal embers back to Texas, on to Virginia, and later to Liberia. No evidence survives to tell us that she was a good preacher or a sound biblical expositor or even a caring pastor. But her aptitude for igniting the supernatural gifts among others was evident at a 1906 camp meeting near Houston when some 25 seekers stood lined up in a row in front of her. When Farrow “laid hands upon them…many began to speak in tongues at once.”

Celebrating Black History: Amanda Berry Smith

“The color line was washed away in the Blood.” – Frank Bartleman

Without a doubt, the United States has been the birthplace of the modern Pentecostal movement. As we continue our celebration of Black History month, it is important to note that our history, the history of the Church, has been shaped by the contributions of Black believers.

Amanda Berry Smith

Born a slave in Maryland in 1837, Amanda Berry was the daughter of a slave who was able to buy his freedom and that of his wife and five children. The Berry family moved to Pennsylvania where their home became a station on the Underground Railroad. After her first husband was killed while serving in the African Regiments in the Civil War, Amanda remarried and moved to Philadelphia. There, she was born again, joined the African Methodist Episcopal Church, and received her call to preach. In 1869, she began preaching in churches and at Holiness camp meetings in New York and New Jersey, becoming a popular speaker to both black and white audiences. By the end of the decade, she was known as far north as Maine and as far south as Tennessee. Although she was not ordained or financially supported by the AME Church or any other organization, she became the first black woman to work as an international evangelist in 1878. She served for twelve years in England, Ireland, Scotland, India, and various African countries. She emerged as one of the A.M.E. Church’s most effective missionaries and one of the most remarkable preachers of the age. In the process, she opened the way for more black women to preach in the A.M.E. church.

Movers and Shakers

From Biblical times, Black believers have been instrumental in proclaiming, establishing, and defending the Kingdom of God.  Today, when thousands of Black Americans are turning to Islam, it’s critical that we lift up and magnify Black voices in the Church. These present-day movers and shakers are tearing down walls that divide races and are proclaiming the Truth of God’s Word to a new generation of Kingdom Believers.

John Eckhardt

(Retrieved from http://www.impactnetwork.net)

Apostle and Overseer of Crusaders Church Chicago with close to 4,000 in attendance weekly in several locations, John Eckhardt is gifted with a strong apostolic call and has ministered throughout the United States and overseas in more than 70 nations.  He is an apostolic reformer called to perfect the saints by imparting biblical truths, including deliverance and spiritual warfare, and activating the gifts of the Spirit in order to raise up strong ministries in the body of Christ.

Apostle Eckhardt founded the IMPACT Network (International Ministries of Prophetic and Apostolic Churches Together) in 1995.  Since that time, hundreds of churches, ministries and leaders in over 40 nations have affiliated with this network that God is raising up as a vehicle for global apostolic reformation.  As part of his calling as an Apostle of Jesus Christ, he is activating, commissioning and ordaining apostles and prophets around the world to facilitate this current reformation, along with conducting powerful apostolic breakthrough conferences in many nations.

Along with his apostolic responsibilities, John Eckhardt is a much sought after international conference speaker, has authored more than 35 books, produces a daily radio broadcast, and his television program “This Week with John Eckhardt” is seen throughout the United States on the WORD Network and Jones Broadcasting.  He is also founder of the Apostolic Institute of Ministry (AIM), dedicated to teaching present truth, and training leaders in apostolic and prophetic ministry, currently through workshops and seminars, but with a future vision for both and online school, and full and part time facilities to be established in many nations.

 

Frederick K. C. Price

When you think about boldness in proclaiming the Word of God, you must think about Fred Price. On the frontlines of the Word of Faith movement for more than 30 years, Fred Price has transformed the world’s image of what it means to be Black and Christian.

An unabashed Faith preacher, Price boldly proclaims that being Black is not an excuse to stay poor, uneducated, and downtrodden. He inspires Christians of all races to present a unified front in a skeptical and critical world. His most recent publications, a three volume series entitled Race, Religion & Racism, challenges Believers to tear down walls of racial segregation built over the centuries by vain religious traditions of men.

Desiring to reach Black America and the inner cities, Dr. Price founded the Fellowship of Inner City Word of Faith Ministries (FICWFM) in 1990 to provide teaching, support, and discipleship for inner city congregations around the world. Always a pioneer, he became the first Black pastor to speak at Town Hall Los Angeles in the year 2000. In 1998, he received the prestigious Horatio Alger Award, honoring those who exemplify inspirational success. He has also received The Kelly Miller Smith Interfaith Award presented by the Southern Christian Leadership Conference, honoring clergy who have made the most significant contribution through religious expression affecting the nation and world.

These men, along with many others, are voices on the rooftops crying out to the world, “You do not have to live in bondage to the things of the past.” Their message of abundant life in Christ is reaching around the world. We celebrate their diligence in proclaiming the truth of God’s word to all who will hear. We celebrate the stand they are making for the cause of Christ. We celebrate them and honor them as our brothers and co-laborers in the Kingdom.

 

~Linda Frederick

Celebrating Black History: George Washington Carver

Dr. George Washington Carver

George Washington Carver was born the son of a slave during the Civil War. By the time of his death on January 5, 1943, this orphaned boy had become an internationally renowned chemist who discovered over 300 uses for the peanut in addition to hundreds of uses for many other southern crops. Many historians credit Carver for helping turn southern agriculture around after the Civil War. Through the Tuskegee Institute, Carver educated southern farmers about the need to grow plants like peanuts and sweet potatoes to help restore vital nutrients to the soil, which had been lost through years of cotton growth. In the 1930s, the dreaded disease of polio was crippling and paralyzing America. Dr. Carver developed a massage therapy using peanut oil, which proved to help many people suffering from polio recover the use of their legs. Carver was truly a gifted scientist and educator. What you may not know about George Washington Carver is that he was also a born-again believer who credited his Creator for all of his discoveries and successes.

In the book, George Washington Carver: His Life and Faith in His Own Words, by William J. Federer, Carver recalls:

Years ago I went into my laboratory and said, “Dear Mr. Creator, please tell me what the universe was made for?” The Great Creator answered, ‘”You want to know too much for that little mind of yours. Ask for something more your size, little man.” Then I asked, “Please, Mr. Creator, tell me what man was made for.” Again the Great Creator replied, “You are still asking too much. Cut down on the extent and improve the intent.” So then I asked, “Please, Mr. Creator, will you tell me why the peanut was made?” “What do you want to know about the peanut?” And then the Great Creator taught me to take the peanut apart and put it together again.

Standing before the U.S. House Ways and Means Committee in Washington D.C., in 1921, the Committee Chairman asked, “Dr. Carver, how did you learn all of these things?” Carver answered, “From an old book.” “What book?” asked the Chairman. Carver replied, “The Bible.” The Chairman inquired, “Does the Bible tell about peanuts?” “No, Sir,” Dr. Carver replied, “but it tells about the God who made the peanut. I asked Him to show me what to do with the peanut, and He did.’”

George Washington Carver is an inspiration to every believer. He was a man who walked humbly before both God and man and who allowed himself to be used mightily for God’s Kingdom. We thank God for providing us with such godly examples of Kingdom believers who changed the world forever with the help of our God!