The Love of Family: Alberta Williams King - More Seeds of Hope for Lent

Today’s story seed is The Love of Family From the Gospel of John chapter 11, verse 21 “Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died.” Without her love, the United States of America would not be the same. It still hasn’t reached the potential she prayed for, but she did her best to bring that dream forth. The struggle continues. Alberta Williams King lived a life devoted to God, to her family, her community, and her country. Her father was the pastor at Ebenezer Baptist Church in Atlanta, Georgia. She spent her 69 years of life devoted to the success of that church and the gospel message of Jesus. Extremely intelligent, she earned her B.A. from Morris Brown College. When she married Martin Luther King Sr. (at the time known as Michael King) she helped him with his studies and tutored him through college. Eventually, her husband became the pastor of her father’s church. They had three children—Christine, Martin, and Alfred. She used her teaching skills to guide them through school. After completing his schooling, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. joined his father as co-pastor of Ebenezer Church. He wrote that his mother “was behind the scenes setting forth those motherly cares, the lack of which leaves a missing link in life.” Her daughter, Christine King Farris wrote in her memoir Through It All, “…I have to chuckle as I realize there are people who actually believe ML just appeared… ready to change the world…Take it from his big sister, that’s simply not the case.” A woman of faith and service, Momma King, as she became known, started the church choir and taught hundreds of singers and instrumentalists. She was the church’s organist from 1932 until 1972. She was active in a long list of community and national organizations. When her son was assassinated, she continued with her church duties, volunteering, and community work. It was said that a question she often asked was: “Why should we be spared from a difficult time?” The following year, her other son died in a tragic drowning accident. Momma King and her husband continued to devote their lives to their church ministry. Five years later, on a day her husband was away, she was at the organ about to play the Lord’s Prayer. A gunman came into the church and fatally shot her in the head, and killed another man as well. The assassin said he did it “because all Christians are my enemies.” Although his lawyers plead insanity for him, he was sentenced to death. That ruling was appealed and overturned to life in prison, at least in part because the surviving King family was against the death penalty. We are all going to face death, and many of us already have seen our loved ones go. Death, it comes for us all. And in our scripture today, Martha says, “Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died.” A question that lots of us ask is: “How could you let this happen?” One thing is for sure. It’s going to happen. We are going to die. Before long, we will be reading about Jesus’ crucifixion. The message of Jesus, and that of Alberta Williams King is not about death. It’s about life. It’s about the way, the truth, and the resurrection. It is about giving your life to what you believe in. It is about following the example of those who showed us how to love. That love is for God, and for the world, our country, our community, and our family. That’s a mother’s dream worth holding on to. Now let’s take 30 seconds to water the seed… What dream are you working toward?