BVOV Magazine 2013 - present

in West Africa—specifically in the colony of Liberia. The group transported about 12,000 Black people to Liberia over the course of its existence. In addition to researching the subject, Venessa also talked to Liberians in her church. Among other things she learned, Venessa was told that once they were in Liberia, the freed slaves did to others what had happened to them. "Although they didn't enslave people, they took away their land," Venessa said. "They destroyed their government. They created such havoc that it resulted in a civil war that killed 200,000 people. The Liberians called those people Americos. "Lord, why are You showing me this?" You've got to fix it. Wait. What? "I'm just one woman. I don't have a government or a huge organization behind me. How am I supposed to fix Liberia?" The Apology Years later, in 2012, sun glinted off the window of the airplane as it made a lazy turn to approach the runway in Liberia. Venessa had scheduled an appointment with the first female president of Liberia. However, she was pulled away. Instead, she had meetings with the president pro tempore, the speaker of the house, the House of Representatives and some church groups. In each meeting she was asked, "Why have you come to us?" Kneeling before them, she said, "I've come to apologize. My bloodline is with the Americos. I've come to apologize for what my people did to yours." As she repented, people wept. One man said, "This is the most beautiful thing I've seen in my life." The response was so profound that the government officials asked her to come back to do the same thing in a stadium filled with people. She agreed to return. "What I learned in Liberia is that if the God of the universe sends you anywhere, you have all the backup you need," says Venessa. "There is no bigger government. No more powerful organization. I believe that my obedience to that assignment set me up for more revelation from God. "Back in the U.S., I attended a meeting B V O V : 1 7 where I heard the most incredible thing," she recalled. "In 2 Samuel 6, King David was moving the Ark of the Covenant when Uzzah touched it and died. Unwilling to take the Ark into Jerusalem, King David sent it to Obed- Edom. This man, the speaker, said that Obed- Edom was African. Most African Americans have never seen themselves having an identity in the Bible. "Obed-Edom wasn't Jewish. He was a Gittite, a converted Philistine. Earlier, when the Ark was in the hands of the Philistines, God brought great judgment on them. They returned it to Israel. But here was another Philistine who had a different experience. Instead of judgment, he and his entire household were blessed. This man knew how to worship and be blessed in the presence of the Lord. "Later, in 1 Chronicles, the Levites were established over the temple. Except for one family. Obed-Edom and 68 of his family members were given positions as gatekeepers in the service of the temple. They weren't Levites or Israelites. They loved the presence of God." Keturah's Story Venessa phoned a friend who was a rabbi. "Did you know that Obed-Edom was African?" she asked. "Yes," he replied. "If you're driving, pull over and stop." Venessa stopped her car. "Open your Bible to Genesis 25. Read where it says that Abraham again took a wife, and her name was Keturah. Now listen, Keturah was an African woman." Something broke in Venessa as those words dropped into her spirit. African American people have felt that our only identity was as slaves. Now we read that the father of our faith married an African woman and had six sons."

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