Genealogy

   

     Merry Christmas to all on this cloudy and cool Christmas eve.  This week, I've been bitten by the genealogy bug.  I've never cared much about family history, that was my mom's hobby.  Her research was supposedly lost by my brother, so the morale of that story is "get it while you can".  If you've got older relatives with family information, give a gentle nudge to hand it over before it falls into the "mine,mine,mine" of inheritance hackers(if you have any).

     Anyway, I've gone back to within eight miles of Jamestown, Va in the early 1600's.  I have one name from England but have seemingly reached the end with my side of the family.  My wife's, on the other hand, is a different story.  Her pedigree, through her grandfather, L.V. Wright, goes all the way back to King Edward I (longshanks).  I think it's funny that her side is opposite of William Wallace(Braveheart), in that contest.  I read some of Longshanks history and he wasn't entirely evil.  He made some excellent legal reforms and his wars of expansion were probably necessary for the kingdom's survival.

     I do enjoy reading some of the old family histories. Their wills with how the property was distributed is interesting too.  I read one who gave each person in the family a named slave as inheritance first, with particular attention to where the slave would go if something happened to that person.  The rest of their property would be lumped together as an afterthought near the end.  To me, that shows the value placed on slaves and the care promised to each one.

     The other interesting fact is the way they bought and sold large tracts of land.  It was like trading cards, 357 acres bought this year and traded next year for 200 acres on the Roanoke River.  Land was abundant and people were scarce.  River front property was important, as that seemed to be the preferred mode of travel.  In looking at our family's migration south, the cities along the route were closely connected to water.  I've always liked the Tennessee River and just didn't know why.

     Earthly lineage is pretty neat, but not as important as the religious, or spiritual line.  My own belief in Christ connects me directly to the "King of Kings" and "Lord of Lords"!  Needless to say, that puts me in the family of God with an inheritance(reward) that can't be imagined.  A person can't choose their earthly line, but anyone can choose to belong to Christ's family at any time.  Maybe this Christmas the best gift you could give yourself is a belief in Jesus as Christ!  Hey, it's an impressive pedigree!

     But when the right time came, God sent his Son who was born of a woman and lived under the law. God did this so he could buy freedom for those who were under the law and so we could become his children.  Since you are God's children, God sent the Spirit of his Son into your hearts, and the Spirit cries out, "Father." So now you are not a slave; you are God's child, and God will give you the blessing he promised, because you are his child.    Galatians, chapter 4