For nearly two and a quarter centuries, from 1619 to 1835, Americans of African descent were transported to the United States of America and the Caribbean to perform the manual labor that developed the New World. These Africans were subjected to inhumane working and living conditions. They were mentally, psychologically, emotionally, and physically dehumanized (Jones, 2004). Throughout the centuries, generations of African Americans were born into, lived, and died in slavery. But their corporate faith in God, as seen in the songs they sang, gave them the assurance of one day being liberated just as the Israelites were liberated from the Egyptians. The Bible is replete with accounts of God's steadfastness and loyalty to His chosen people. The Pentateuch in particular contains several accounts where the Israelites walked away from God, even though God never walked away from the Israelites. In the midst of their work in a strange land, these slaves developed unique spiritual songs that sustained them in their times of sorrow, loneliness, and hardships. These songs came to be known as Negro Spirituals. They also became a source of strength. As well, these songs formed the bedrock of the Uplift ideology, a unique theory in black leadership ideology with particular meaning for liberating thought and values. As these songs uplifted the slaves in their times of suffering, they also showed their spiritual connectedness (Gaines, 1996). Through these songs, the slaves demonstrated that they were spiritual beings capable of appealing to God directly. The faith and confidence, with which they sang these liberating songs, indicated that they understood the Bible to be the only infallible written word of God. They looked to the Bible as the final answer to all the questions they had about the inhumane condition that was slavery. In a sense, they took solace in the knowledge that the Bible contained the answers to their questions about longsuffering. They believed that it was only a matter of time before God intervened and their situations would then improve. One of their frequent songs while they waited for divine intervention was "Trouble Don't Last Always," which was instructive since they believed that God was longsuffering.
