On the Shoulders of GiantsSample

Celebrate Freedom

Those who go out weeping, carrying seed to sow, will return with songs of joy, carrying sheaves with them. -Psalm 126:6

At 89 years old, Opal Lee passionately pursued the goal of making Juneteenth a national holiday. Opal wanted the nation to celebrate June 19, 1865, when Union General Gordon Granger announced freedom to those still enslaved in Texas.

Though the Union proclaimed emancipation in 1863, hundreds of thousands of slaves remained captive. Final Civil War skirmishes occurred into 1865, and many slaveholders escaped to Texas, illegally keeping their slaves. To secure the annual celebration of the day the Union Army ordered the emancipation of those who had remained in bondage, Ms. Lee spoke around the nation and gained signatures on petitions.

After five years of petitioning, on June 17, 2021, Opal Lee stood at the table as President Biden signed and declared Juneteenth a national holiday, commemorating African Americans’ freedom from captivity. Scripture commemorates when the Jewish exiles returned from captivity in Babylon, ascending to Jerusalem “with songs of joy,” proclaiming God’s faithfulness in their deliverance (Psalm 126:6).

When the slaves in Texas learned they were no longer captives, they likewise remembered their sorrows and rejoiced in their liberation, praising God. Continued Juneteenth observances remind us of hard-fought battles, and the freedom God declares. Scripture announces to all people of all generations that God sent Jesus “to proclaim freedom for the captives and release from darkness for the prisoners” (Isaiah 61:1). The more we understand our freedom through Christ, the more we can praise God for delivering us.

Victoria Saunders McAfee

Our declaration of freedom through Christ is a daily celebration.

Lord, help Your children to celebrate our spiritual freedom each day.