Joseph Washington Conner is my third great granduncle (I have to use a relationship calculator for that one!). Our common ancestor is Isaac Jackson "Jack" Conner who is my 4th great grandfather. My direct ancestor, Erwin McCoy Conner, and Joseph Washington Conner were brothers.

Joseph Washington Conner was born 7/15/1845 in Rutherford County, NC to Isaac Jackson Conner (DOB 1817-1820 in Rutherford County, NC; DOD After 1871 in Rutherford County, NC) and Adaline Thomason (DOB 1816-1826 in Rutherford County, NC; DOD After 1870 in Rutherford County, NC). He was the 3rd of 8 known children. His two older brothers were James Conner and Erwin McCoy Conner. His younger siblings were Thomas Conner, Martha Conner Wilson, William M. Conner, Emily Conner, Ursilla Conner Wilson.



The Hickory Nut Gorge starts at the Eastern Continental Divide in Gerton, NC and runs through the communities of Gerton, Bat Cave, and Chimney Rock, and ends 10 miles later at Lake Lure--dropping about 1800 feet. Route 74 runs along it with 14 hairpin curves. The Town of Buffalo was located in what was known as Whiteside Valley. It was centered on farming and mining. There is no know record of how many people lived in the Town of Buffalo but judging by the church records of the Whiteside Valley Church of 1918 with 98 members, it can be assumed that the entire town was about 150 people. This town was often a brief stop for those heading through Hickory Nut Gorge on the Drover’s Road to Asheville, NC. The Town of Buffalo was located at about the center of what is now Lake Lure. There was a complete relocation of an entire community known as Whiteside Valley, all homes, the Whiteside Valley Church and Cemetery and the Ledbetter Store. Whiteside Valley Church was organized July 7, 1892. On August 29, 1928, the Whiteside Valley church became Chimney Rock Baptist, and is still located on that site. Most of the graves were moved to Buffalo Cemetery in the Rumbling Bald Resort. When it was known that plans for the lake to be built were going to flood the area in the 1920’s, the church members began to look for another property and ending up tearing down the original church, using the materials to build on repair the old Chimney Rock Church site.

Bill’s Creek Road starts out as a “Cherokee trail to return to the North Carolina Piedmont… The rutted mud trail became part of what was to be called “The Rutherford Trace”. Over time, the trail grew into a wagon route for Scotch-Irish settlers who were moving into the Blue Ridge. By the 1930’s the trail was paved, and was called Bill’s Creek Road, after a small stream that flowed from nearby Bill’s Mountain.” From Historic Bill’s Creek, The Bill’s Creek community was known as Uree until 1947.

First church in area was Bill’s Creek Baptist Church established around 1785.




1850 U.S. Census of Bills Creek, Rutherford County, North Carolina; Roll: M432_644; Page: 329B; Image: 205, Dwelling 1414 and 1415 and 1416 and 1419 and 1420, Family 1462 and 1463 and 1464 and 1667 and 1668, "Jackson Canner" and "Isaac Cornor" and "William Conner" (sic, it is Jackson Conner, Isaac Conner and William Conner), "Marcus Crawford", "Margaret Conner"
Jackson Cannor, 30 yrs old (DOB 1820), M(ale), W(hite), Labor, Real Estate Value $50, Born in NC
Adaline Cannor, 31 yrs old (DOB 1819), F, W, Born in NC
James Cannor, 15 yrs old DOB 1835), M, W, Born in NC, Attends school
Ervin Cannor, 10 yrs old (DOB 1840), M, W, Born in NC, Attends School
Joseph Cannor, 7 yrs old (DOB 1843), M, W, Born in NC
Thomas Cannor, 3 yrs old (DOB 1847), M, W, Born in NC
Martha Cannor, 1 yrs old (DOB 1849), F, W, Born in NC
Nancy Thomason, 65 yrs old (DOB 1785), F, W, Born in NC
Isaac Cannor, 49 yrs old (DOB 1801), M, W, Farmer, $100 Real Estate Value, Born in NC
Rosana Cannor, 45 yrs old (DOB 1805), F, W, Born in NC
Susannah Cannor, 17 yrs old (DOB 1833), F, W, Born in NC, Attends School
Cyntha Cannor, 14 yrs old (DOB 1836), F, W, Born in NC, Attends school
Samuel Cannor, 12 yrs old (DOB 1838), M, W, Born in NC, Attends school
William Cannor, 10 yrs old (DOB 1840), M, W, Born in NC, Attends school
Sophiar Cannor, 6 yrs old (DOB 1844), F, W, Born in NC
Calvin Cannor, 4 yrs old (DOB 1846), M, W, Born in NC
William Canner, 52 yrs old (DOB 1798), M, W, Farmer, $100 Real Estate Value, Born in NC
Elizabeth Conner, 52 yrs old (DOB 1798), F, W, Born in NC
Atta Conner, 17 yrs old (DOB 1833), F, W, Born in NC
Johnathon Conner, M, W, Born in NC
Albert Conner, 12 yrs old (DOB 1838), M, W, Born in NC
Marcus Crawford, 28 yrs old (DOB 1822), M(ale), W(hite), House carpenter, Born in NC
Martha Crawford, 25 yrs old (DOB 1825), F, W, Born in NC
Louisa Crawford, 4/12 mos old (DOB 1850), F, W, Born in NC
William Crawford, 12 yrs old (DOB 1838), M, W, Born in NC
Margaret Connor (sic), 30 yrs old (DOB 1820), F, W, Head, Born in NC




1860 U.S. Census of Montforts Cove, Rutherford County, NC, Roll M653_913, Pg 340, Image 130, Ancestry.com, Lines 27-29, Dwelling 940, Family 940, "James Thomas"
James Thomas, 22 yrs old (DOB 1838), M(ale), W(hite), Farm Labor, $0 Real Estate Value, $30 Personal Estate Value, Born in NC
Nancy Thomas, 70 yrs old (DOB 1790), F, W, Born in NC
Washington Coner, 17 yrs old (DOB 1843), M, W, Farm Laborer, Born in NC

My 3rd great grandfather, Erwin McCoy Conner (Wash Conner's older brother) served in the War of Northern Aggression. He was in the C.S.A. NC 25th Infantry Regiment, Co A, Private. He was present or accounted for until he died in the hospital at Wilson Hospital Confederate Military No. 2, 401 Goldsboro Street South, Wilson, Wilson County, NC on 7/4/1862. Cause of death unknown but family tradition was he died of "fever".

Confederate NC Troops
25th Regiment, NC Infantry

The 25th Infantry Regiment, formerly the 15th Volunteers, was assembled at Camp Patton, Asheville, North Carolina, in August, 1861. The following counties furnished companies for the regiment: Henderson, Jackson, Haywood, Cherokee, Transylvania, Clay, Macon, and Buncombe. It moved to Grahamville, South Carolina and remained there until March, 1862. The unit then moved back to North Carolina and arrived in Virginia on June 24. Serving in R. Ransom's and M.W. Ranson's Brigade, it fought with the army from the Seven Day's Battles to Fredericksburg, served in North Carolina, then saw action at Plymouth and Drewery's Bluff. Later the 25th participated in the long Petersburg siege south of the James River and the Appomattox Campaign. It reported 128 casualties during the Seven Days' Battles, 15 in the Maryland Campaign, 88 at Fredericksburg, and 103 at Plymouth. Many were disabled at Sayler's Creek, and on April 9, 1865, only 8 officers and 69 were present. The field officers were Colonels Thomas L. Clingman and Henry M. Rutledge; Lieutenant Colonels S.C. Bryson, St. Clair Dearing, and Matthew N. Love; and Majors John W. Francis, William S. Grady, and William Y. Morgan.

The eldest, James Conner, was born About 1835 and would have been 26 yrs old when the War started. He is in the 1850 U.S. Census with his family but I couldn't find him in the 1860 U.S. Census. Had he died between 1850-1860 U.S. Census? Or did he missed being enumerated or did I miss finding him? I don't know. I found no further records of him. There were some possibilities in the Roster of Confederate Soldiers.

The Roster of Confederate Soldiers, Vol IV, Pg 78
J. Conner, NC 3rd Jr. Res. Co. I
James Conner, NC 22nd Inf. Col. (The NC 22nd was organized in Raleigh, Wake County, NC)
James B. Conner, NC 3rd Arty, (40th St Troops), Co. E (The NC 3rd Arty was organized in Raleigh, Wake County, NC)
James B. Conner, NC 12th Inf., Co. E (Became the NC 22nd)
James R. Conner, NC 1st Inf. (6 mo. '61), Co. L (The NC 1st was organized in Warren County, NC.)
James W. Conner, NC 5th Inf., Co. I (The NC 5th was organized in Halifax County, NC)
J.H. Conner, NC 62nd Inf., Co. D (The NC 62nd was organized in Waynesville, Haywood County, NC.)
These are the "Conner" possibilities but it looks like "J.H. Conner" is the closest to being James Conner but I can't prove it. There were no "Connor" possibilities that match James.

He may have died or moved before the Civil War. I would expect him to be in the same group with his brother, Erwin McCoy Conner (NC 25th) but none of the above are the NC 25th. He was 15 yrs old and with his family in the 1850 U.S. Census but he is not listed with the family in the 1860 U.S. Census.

Now I come to Wash Conner. Since Erwin McCoy Conner was in the NC 25th, you would think Wash would be also. The Roster of Confederate Soldiers, Vol IV, Pg 79, "Conner, J. Wash, NC 62nd Inf., Co. F". Is this Joseph Washington Conner?

Here are the possibilities for Wash Conner:
J. Conner, NC 3rd Jr. Res. Co. I
Joseph Conner, NC 5th Inf., Co. F
J.W. Conner, 4th Cav. (59th St. Troops), Co. K
J.W. Conner, NC Cav. 12th Bn., Co. A
J. Wash Conner, NC 62nd Inf., Co. F

These are the possibilities for Joseph Washington Conner. I would expect Joseph Washington Conner to be in the same group with his brother, Erwin McCoy Conner (NC 25th). But there are no possibilities for Wash Conner that were in the NC 25th. The closest one is "J. Wash Conner" in the NC 62nd which was organized in Waynesville, Haywood County, NC. There was a James Conner possibility that was in NC 62nd so could it be the two brothers? How would I prove/disprove it?

Joseph Wash Conner married Cynthia Catherine Flynn (aka Cynthia Caroline Flynn) on 5/28/1865 in Rutherford County, NC. Cynthia Catherine Flynn was born 9/13/1848 in Rutherford County to William "Billie" Flynn and Cynthia Bagwell. Wash Conner and Cynthia Flynn had 12 known children:

1) Serelda Evline Conner (DOB About 1868 in Rutherford County, NC; DOD About 1893 in Rutherford County, NC) married John A. Robertson (DOB 5/5/1856 in Rutherford County, NC, DOD 3/9/1931 in Mooresville, Iredell County, NC). They had Meriman M. Robertson (female) who married John W. Goins; Hester C. Robertson who married Joseph Ellenburg; Fay B. Robertson who married Claude Nathan Logan; Darina Catherine Robertson who married Lee John Robertson; and, Thomas Roscoe Robertson who married Ellen Riley. Serelda was only 25 years old when she died and their youngest child was born in 1893 so she may have died of complications of childbirth. John A. Robertson died of Cerebral hemorrhage (duration 20 mins), other contributory factors were chronic institial nephritis and hypertension.

2) John Alexander Conner (DOB 5/9/1868 in Rutherford County, NC; DOD 6/13/1936 in Rutherford County, NC of Chronic interstitial nephritis) married Lillie Burgess (DOB 11/24/1871 in Rutherford County, NC; DOD 6/8/1956 in Union Mills, Rutherford County, NC.

3) Lillian Adaline "Addie" Conner (DOB 9/20/1870 in Buncombe County, NC; DOD 7/26/1954 in Rutherford County, NC of Cerebral hemorrhage) married Thomas Minter Skipper (DOB 6/20/1864 in NC; DOD 3/27/1904 in Rutherford County, NC). They had Dovie Francis Skipper, Furman W. Skipper, Fred Garnell Skipper, Thurl Skipper, Ina Beatrice Skipper Davis, Garner Cleveland Skipper, Virgil Witchel Skipper and Minter Cornelius Skipper.


Photo from Jane Gouge, The home and family of Lillian Adaline Conner Skipper about 1941-1942.


4) Louisa A. Conner (DOB 10/18/1874 in Madison County, NC; DOD 11/4/1919 in West Asheville, Buncombe County, NC of Pellagra, secondary was emphysema) married William Fletcher Bynum Jackson (DOB 2/4/1872 in Polk County, NC; DOD 11/17/1934 in Asheville, Buncombe County, NC). They had Major Bynum Jackson.

5) Major Henry Porter Conner (DOB 12/15/1875 in Rutherford County, NC; DOD 4/10/1963 in Rutherford County, NC of Cerebro-vascular accident due to fracture left hip. Slipped and fell.) married 1st Nannie Jane Burgess (DOB 10/12/1879 in Rutherford County, NC; DOD 4/6/1909 in Rutherford County, NC). They had Cynthia Louise Conner Davis, Dora E. Conner, Rufus Roy Conner, Bessie Alma Conner Lytle, Jay Roscoe Conner. He married 2nd Alice Frady (DOB 2/14/1875 in Rutherford County, NC; DOD 9/15/1960 in Gilkey, Rutherford County, NC, formerly married to a Shitte). They had one child, George Hampton Conner.

6) Ina Jane Conner (DOB 1/9/1878 in Rutherford County, NC; DOD 9/23/1954 in Rutherford County, NC of Gangrene rt foot due to arteriosclerotic cardiovascular disease) married Rollins Orlando Dalton (DOB 9/3/1867 in Rutherford County, NC; DOD 1/12/1923 in Rutherford County, NC, "From history of case believe he died of acute endocarditis, only saw him after death"). They had Cynthia Maybelle Dalton Davis, Mary Elizabeth Dalton McDaniel, Dora Easter Dalton Walker, Rachel Lee Dalton Sisk, Joseph Barney Dalton, Annie Ruth Dalton England, William Theodore Dalton, Lillian Viola Dalton Rumfelt, Sally Jane Dalton Baily, Edna Leona Dalton, Alma Sue Dalton Hyder.

7) Mary Louvada Conner (DOB 2/16/1882 in Rutherford County, NC; DOD 11/28/1938 in Old Fort, McDowell County, NC of Myocardial decompensation due to organic heart disease) married Ulysses Davis.

8) Martha Ella Conner (DOB 5/1883 in Rutherford County, NC; DOD 9/16/1947 in Chimney Rock, Rutherford County, NC) married Oscar Alphonso Robertson (DOB 5/18/1880 in Rutherford County, NC; DOD 5/27/1951 in Rutherford County, NC). They had Florence Elizabeth "Lizzie" Robertson McDaniel, Major Columbus Robertson, Lillian Jeannette Robertson McDaniel, Ruth Cynthia Robertson McDaniel, Ralph John Robertson, Ina Louise Robertson Wilson, Ella Maude Robertson Whitesides, Rev. Fred Logan Robertson, Daisy Cleo Robertson Noblitt, Margie Fay Robertson Tessneer, Francis Sue Robertson Wilson.

9) Thomas Twitty Conner (DOB 2/28/1885 in Rutherford County, NC; DOD 9/16/1896 in Rutherford County, NC). Never married.

10) Corris Columbus Conner (DOB 4/15/1886 in Rutherford County, NC; DOD 10/28/1953 in Rutherford County, NC of Coronary Thrombosis due to arteriosclerosis) married Malinda "Lindy" Fite (DOB 10/21/1895 in Rutherford County, NC; DOD 2/16/1984 in Rutherford County, NC). They had Clarence Leroy Conner, Emma Geneva Rebecca Conner, Grover Cleveland Conner and Willie Corris Conner.

11) Sallie Matilda Conner (DOB 4/5/1888 in Rutherford County, NC; DOD 11/12/1970 in Marion, McDowell County, NC) married Edward Logan Davis (DOB 10/20/1882 in McDowell County, NC; DOD 7/29/1968 in Marion, McDowell County, NC). They had Glenn Taft Davis, Viola Rosebud Davis Gilliam, Bessie Lee Davis Sluder, Maybelle Davis Lavendar, Adell Davis Gilliam, Pauline Thelma Davis Gilliam, Virginia Ruth Davis Condrey.

12) Edgar "Ed" Beam Conner (DOB 6/30/1892 in Rutherford County, NC; DOD 11/20/1980 in Rutherford County, NC) married Lillie Minnie Crawford (DOB 7/8/1896 in Rutherford County, NC; DOD 6/18/1987 in Rutherford County, NC). They had Ellie Paralee Conner Cloninger, Nellie Easter Conner, Eva Cynthia Conner Smith, Joe C. Conner, Charles Edgar Conner, Clifford Washington Conner, Marjorie "Margie" Roena Conner Meggison.


I was unable to find Wash Conner and Cynthia Flynn in the 1870 U.S. Census.

A series of earthquakes began on 1/1/1874 centered in Bald Mountain (Rumbling Bald) at the Hickory Nut Gorge. The tremors rattled dishes and broke windows. Dust, smoke and eerie sounds emanated from the rugged peak as shocks dislodged boulders inside the mountain and opened massive fissures. Residents were terrified.


1880 U.S. Census of Chimney Rock, Rutherford County, NC, Roll T9_981, Family History Film 1254981, Pg 572.1000, ED 167, Image 0402, Ancestry.com, Line 1-9, Dwelling 34, Family 38, "J. Washington Conner"
J. Washington Conner, W(hite), M(ale), 35 yrs old (DOB 1845), Head, Married, Farmer, Born in NC, Father born in NC, Mother born in NC
Cintha C. Conner, W, F, 32 yrs old (DOB 1848), Wife, Married, Housekeeping, Born in NC, Father born in NC, Mother born in NC
Evline S. Conner, W, F, 13 yrs old (DOB 1867), Daughter, Single, Laborer, Attends school, Born in NC, Father born in NC, Mother born in NC
John A. Conner (sic, may be Jake A. Conner), W, M, 12 yrs old (DOB 1868), Son, Laborer, Attends school, Born in NC, Father born in NC, Mother born in NC
Lillia A. Conner, W, F, 9 yrs old (DOB 1871), Daughter, Born in NC, Father born in NC, Mother born in NC
Louiza C. Conner (sic), W, F, 6 yrs old (DOB 1874), Daughter, Born in NC, Father born in NC, Mother born in NC
Juaf Henry P. Conner (sic, maybe Joseph Henry P. Conner), W, M, 4 yrs old (DOB 1876), Son, Born in NC, Father born in NC, Mother born in NC
Iner Jane Conner (sic), W, F, 2 yrs old (DOB 1878), Daughter, Born in NC, Father born in NC, Mother born in NC
Mary Louvada Conner, W, F, 3/12 mos old, Born in Febry (DOB 1880), Daughter, Born in NC, Father born in NC, Mother born in NC


1900 U.S. Census of Chimney Rock, Rutherford County, NC, Roll T623_1216, Pg 7A, ED 130, Ancestry.com, Lines 37-43, Dwelling 91, Family 93, "George W. Conner" (sic, should be Joseph Washington Conner)
George W. Conner, Head, W(hite), M(ale), Born May, 1845, 55 yrs old, Married 35 years, Born in NC, Father born in NC, Mother born in NC, Farmer, Owns farm free of mortgage
Cynthia Conner, Wife, W, F, Born Aug, 1845, 54 yrs old, Married 34 yrs, 14 children with 10 still living, Born in NC, Father born in NC, Mother born in NC, Domestic
Mary V. Conner, Daughter, W, F, Born Feby, 1881, 19 yrs old, Single, Born in NC, Father born in NC, Mother born in NC, Domestic
Ella M. Conner, Daughter, W, F, Born May, 1883, 17 yrs old, Single, Born in NC, Father born in NC, Mother born in NC, Domestic
Corris Conner, Son, W, M, Born Dec, 1888, 11 yrs old, Born in NC, Father born in NC, Mother born in NC, Farmer
Sallie Conner, Daughter, W, F, Born May, 1890, 10 yrs old, Born in NC, Father born in NC, Mother born in NC, Domestic
Edgar Conner, Son, W, F, Born June, 1892, 7 yrs old, Born in NC, Father born in NC, Mother born in NC

1910 U.S. Census of Broad River, Chimney Rock, Rutherford County, NC, Roll T624_1132, Pg 13A, ED 126, Image 65, Ancestry.com, Lines 40-44, Dwelling 211, Family 213, "Washington Conner" Lines 17-23, Dwelling 206, Family 208, "Major P. Canner" (sic, should be Major P. Conner)
Major P. Canner (sic), Head, M(ale), W(hite), 34 yrs old (DOB 1876), Second marriage, Married less than a year, Born in NC, Father born in NC, Mother born in NC, Farm Laborer on home farm for wage, Can read and write
Alice Canner, Wife, F, W, 35 yrs old (DOB 1875), Second Marriage, Married less than a year, 2 children with 2 still living, Born in NC, Father born in NC, Mother born in NC, Own Income, Owns farm free of mortgage
Cintha Canner, Daughter, F, W, 13 yrs old (DOB 1897), Single, Born in NC, Father born in NC, Mother born in NC, Farm Laborer on home farm, Attends school
Boyl Canner (sic), Son, M, W, 9 yrs old (DOB 1901), Born in NC, Father born in NC, Mother born in NC, Farm Laborer on home farm, Attends school
Bessie Canner, Daughter, F, W, 5 yrs old (DOB 1905), Born in NC, Father born in NC, Mother born in NC
Rosco Canner (sic), Son, M, W, 3 yrs old (DOB 1907), Born in NC, Father born in NC, Mother born in NC
Wheiston Shitte, (sic, looks like Whinston but that is still probably misspelled verson of Winston), Stepson, M, W, 11 yrs old (DOB 1899), Born in NC, Father born in NC, Mother born in NC, Farm Laborer on home farm, Attends school
Leardy, Isac M. (sic) and family
Keeter, James (sic) and family
Robison, Bargan (sic) and family
Edgeston, Joshawa (sic) and family
Washington Conner , Head, W(hite), M(ale), 64 yrs old (DOB 1846), First marriage, Married 44 yrs (DOM 1866), Born in NC, Father born in NC, Mother born in NC, Farmer, General farming, Owns farm free of mortgage
Cintha Conner, Wife, F, W, 61 yrs old (DOB 1849), First marriage, Married 44 yrs, 14 children with 10 still living, Born in NC, Father born in NC, Mother born in NC
Carice Conner, Son, M, W, 22 yrs old (DOB 1888), Single, Born in NC, Father born in NC, Mother born in NC, Farm laborer on home farm
Edker Conner (sic, should be Edgar Conner), Son, M, W, 17 yrs old (DOB 1893), Single, Born in NC, Father born in NC, Mother born in NC, Farm Laborer on home farm
George Conner, Grandson, M, W, 1 yrs old (DOB 1909), Born in NC, Father born in NC, Mother born in NC

Flood of 1916
Two Category 4 hurricanes converged over western North Carolina in 1916. On July 5-6, a category 3 hurricane hit the Gulf Coast of Alabama and Florida. This was the earliest major hurricane to make landfall in U.S. history until 1957. A few days later, July 7 and 8, the weakened storm dropped heavy rainfall over the foothills and mountains of North Carolina. Normal rains continued every day from July 9 to July 14. On July 14, a category 2 hurricane made landfall along South Carolina’s coast, passing over the Charleston area. On July 15 and 16, this system reached the North Carolina mountains as a tropical storm. It had now been raining for 10 days. On July 15, in Henderson County, 10 inches of rain fell in less than 12 hours. Because of the complete ground saturation from the earlier rain, it is estimated that 90 per cent of the water resulted from the second hurricane ran off. The French Broad River crested at an estimated 21 feet, some 17 feet above flood stage. The average width of the French Broad near Asheville was 381 feet in 1916. During the flood, it was approximately 1,300 feet across. Along the Catawba River, the flooding was similar. In some locations along its path in North Carolina, the Catawba rose almost 23 feet beyond previous high-water marks. Early Sunday morning, July 16, almost every dam in Western North Carolina burst. Trees were denuded absolutely of every vestige of bark. Rocks were ground smooth. Buildings were carried away in the irresistible rush. All bridges and train trestles were totally washed away, as were the Gerton, Bearwallow, Bat Cave and Chimney Rock Post Offices. Middle Fork, between Gerton and Bat Cave, was one of the areas most affected by the flood. The sides of the mountains gave way. Many other bodies were never found, and many people who lost everything could not afford to mark their loved ones’ graves.

Flood of 1916


Mudslides washing out railroad tracks.


Citizens of Old Fort, McDowell County, NC helping to clean up after the Flood of 1916.


Joseph Washington Conner died 2/9/1917 of unknown causes. He was 71 yrs old.

NC Death Certificate #52, Registration District #81-6085, Certificate #3, J.W. Conner, DOD 2/10/1917 in Chimney Rock, Rutherford County, NC
Male, White, Married, DOB 1845 in Rutherford County, NC, 73 yrs old
Occupation: Farmer
Father: Jackson Conner Born in Rutherford County, NC
Mother: Adline Thomas born in Rutherford County, NC
Informant: M.R. Conner, Uree, R. #1
DOD 2/10/1917
Cause of death Unknown
Signed by A.A. Rucker of Uree, NC
Buried 2/11/1917 at Bill's Creek Church
Undertaker: R.L. Hoos (sic), of Rutherfordton, NC

NC Death Indexes, 1908-2004
Name: J W Conner
Race: White
Age: 73
Date of Birth: 1844
Date of Death: 10 Feb 1917
Death County: Rutherford
Death State: North Carolina
Source Vendor: NC State Archives. North Carolina Deaths, 1908-67

NC Deaths 1906-1930
J . W . Conner
in the North Carolina, Deaths, 1906-1930
Name: J . W . Conner
Gender: Male
Age: 73 y
Birth Date: 1844
Death Date: 10 Feb 1917
Death Place: Chimney Rock, Rutherford, North Carolina
Father: Jackson Conner
Mother: Adline Thomas
Reference ID: 3
FHL Film Number: 1892162

FindaGrave.com
Joseph Washington Conner
Birth: May 15, 1845, Bills Creek, Rutherford County, North Carolina, USA
Death: Feb. 9, 1917, Bills Creek, Rutherford County, North Carolina, USA
The home of Wash Conner, my direct ancestor, is now gone. It was located on the road known as O.A. Messersmith off of Buffalo Shoals, across from Apple Valley Golf Course, and very close to Fairfield Mountains on Lake Lure. How things have changed since his time on earth! One of his children, Corris, lived on in his father's house. His daughter, Ina Jane's, house has just recently (Aug. 2009) been sold and moved. Nothing is left but a fieldstone chimney. Time passes...
Family links: Parents: Isaac JACKSON Conner (1828 - ____)
Spouse: Cynthia Caroline Flynn Conner (1848 - 1937)
Children:
Mary Louvada Conner Davis
John Alexander Conner (1868 - 1936)
Adeline Conner Skipper (1870 - 1957)
Major Porter Conner (1875 - 1963)
Ina Jane Conner Dalton (1878 - 1954)
Mary Lou Vada Conner Davis (1882 - 1938)
Martha Ella Conner Robertson (1882 - 1947)
Thomas Twitty Conner (1885 - 1896)
Corris Columbus Conner (1886 - 1953)
Sallie Matilda Conner Davis (1888 - 1970)
Edgar Beam Conner (1892 - 1980)
Burial: Bills Creek Baptist Church Cemetery, Bills Creek, Rutherford County, North Carolina, USA
Maintained by: Donna Hemphill Robbins
Originally Created by: KindredWhispers
Record added: Apr 14, 2009
Find A Grave Memorial# 35869643



Cynthia Caroline Flynn Conner



1920 U.S. Census of Chimney Rock, Rutherford County, NC, Roll T625_1321. Pg 5A, ED 153, Page 622-623. Ancestry.com, Line 50, next page Line 51-55, Dwelling 82 and 83, Family 89 and 90, "Cynthia C. Conner", "Edgar B. Conner"
Cynthia C. Conner, Head, Owns farm, F(emale), W(hite), 71 yrs old (DOB would be 1849), Widow, Can read and write, Born in NC, Father born in NC, Mother born in NC, No occupation
George H. Conner, Grandson, M, W, 11 yrs old, Attends school, Can read and write, Born in NC, Father born in NC, Mother born in NC
Edgar B. Conner, Head, Owns farm, M, W, 27 yrs old, Married, Can read and write, Born in NC, Father born in NC, Mother born in NC, Farmer, General farm
Lillie M. Conner, Wife, F, W, 21 yrs old, Married, Can read & write, Born in NC, Father born in NC, Mother born in NC
Ellie P. Conner, Daughter, F, W, 3 11/12 mos old, Born in NC, Father born in NC, Mother born in NC
Nellie E. Conner, Daughter, F, W, 1 3/12 mos old, Born in NC, Father born in NC, Mother born in NC


1930 U.S. Census of Chimney Rock, Rutherford County, North Carolina; Roll: 1719; Page: 8A; Enumeration District: 0003; Image: 480.0; FHL microfilm: 2341453, Family 146, Line 26, "Cynthia Connor" (sic)
Cynthia Connor, Head, Owns home valued at $200, No radio set, F(emale), W(hite), 82 yrs old (DOB 1848), Widowed, Married at age 18 yrs old (DOM 1866), Can read and write, Born in NC, Both parents born in NC, No occupation

Cynthia Flynn Conner died 5/31/1937 of angina pectoris.

NC Death Certificate #371, Registration District #81-01, Certificate #5, Cynthia Cathrin Connon (sic, should be Cynthia Catherine Connor), DOD 5/31/1937 at Chimney Rock, Rutherford County, NC
Usual Residence: Uree R #1, Chimney Rock, Rutherford County, NC
Female, White, Widow of Wash Conner, DOB 9/13/1849 in Rutherford County, NC, 88 yrs old
Occupation: Retired
Father: Billie Flynn born in Rutherford County, NC
Mother: Cynthia Bagwell born in "unknown"
Informant: O.A. Roberson of Uree, NC, R #1
DOD 5/31/1937, Death occurred at 2:00pm
Physician attended deceased from 4/27/1937 to 5/1937 and last saw her alive on 5/21/1937.
Cause of death: Angina Pectoris (duration since April 1937)
Contributory causes: Org. heart disease
Burial 6/1/1937 at Bill's Creek
Undertaker: Hovis Thuler (sic) of Rutherfordton, NC

NC Death Indexes, 1908-2004
Name: Cynthia C Conner
Race: White
Age: 88
Date of Birth: 1849
Date of Death: 31 May 1937
Death County: Rutherford
Death State: North Carolina
Source Vendor: NC State Archives. North Carolina Deaths, 1908-67

FindaGrave.com
Cynthia Caroline Flynn Conner
Birth: Aug. 13, 1848, Rutherford County, North Carolina, USA
Death: May 31, 1937, Bills Creek, Rutherford County, North Carolina, USA
Cynthia Flynn was a petite woman with blond hair. She was known for the long pipe she smoked.
Family links:
Parents:
William T Flynn (1815 - 1908)
Catherine Bagwell Flynn (1814 - 1904)
Spouse: Joseph Washington Conner (1845 - 1917)
Children:
Mary Louvada Conner Davis
John Alexander Conner (1868 - 1936)
Adeline Conner Skipper (1870 - 1957)
Major Porter Conner (1875 - 1963)
Ina Jane Conner Dalton (1878 - 1954)
Mary Lou Vada Conner Davis (1882 - 1938)
Martha Ella Conner Robertson (1882 - 1947)
Thomas Twitty Conner (1885 - 1896)
Corris Columbus Conner (1886 - 1953)
Sallie Matilda Conner Davis (1888 - 1970)
Edgar Beam Conner (1892 - 1980)
Burial: Bills Creek Baptist Church Cemetery, Bills Creek, Rutherford County, North Carolina, USA
Maintained by: Donna Hemphill Robbins
Originally Created by: KindredWhispers
Record added: Apr 14, 2009
Find A Grave Memorial# 35869649


They are both buried at Bills Creek Baptist Church, 1475 Bills Creek Road, Lake Lure, Rutherford, NC.













If you have any corrections or further information about this family, please contact me at Mom25dogs@gmail.com.

I got on the Internet and found some great ideas for wreaths! I was looking for wreaths that weren't just red and green. If you don't feel confident in making your own, you can buy wreaths. I feel intimidated by the thought of making fresh wreaths but I enjoy putting artificial wreaths together.

I liked this odd shape and the different colors...not just the normal read and green.










This wreath is different. They used scraps of wool, felt and little knitted squares. Notice the red buttons for holly berries?



Do you have some Christmas ornaments that are no longer needed on the tree? Before throwing them away, make up a Christmas wreath and use it for a few seasons. I thought this one was really pretty being gold, pink and white. Can you find the tiny creche?














This wreath is made from plastic shopping bags. That's an interesting recycling idea! Again, the colors aren't the normal reds and greens.



Another beautiful wreath made of Christmas ornaments and bead garland. I love the fresh, modern colors on this one!














This one has natural aspects to it (although it may be artificial). Peacock feathers, nuts, pomegranate and the white poinsetta.





















This one is not for me. I can't imagine putting garbage on my front door! But you have to admit it's unusual! Talk about recycling and "going green" !












This is a beautiful wreath. I like the lighter green and fuzzy ivy mixed with the evergreen. The tiny crabapples give a nice red and the red and gold berries fill it out nicely. I also liked how they wove the ribbon throughout the wreath.



Another recycling idea. This little wreath is made up of used CD's. The shiny CD surface is so reflective.














I loved the lavendar color on this one. I think it upgrades it and makes it more formal although it's a very simple wreath.













This wreath is another nice change of color. The burgundy, fuschia and pink roses mixed with the deep purple berries is very attractive.

Luke 1 in the Amplified Version
Since [as is well known] many have undertaken to put in order and draw up a [thorough] narrative of the surely established deeds which have been accomplished and fulfilled in and among us. Exactly as they were handed down to us by those who from the [official] beginning of [Jesus' ministry] were eyewitnesses and ministers of the Word [that is, of the doctrine concerning the attainment through Christ of salvation in the kingdom of God]. It seemed good and desirable to me, [and so I have determined] also after having searched out diligently and followed all things closely and traced accurately the course from the highest to the minutest detail from the very first, to write an orderly account for you, most excellent Theophilus. [My purpose is] that you may know the full truth and understand with certainty and security against error the accounts (histories) and doctrines of the faith of which you have been informed and in which you have been orally instructed. In the days when Herod was king of Judea there was a certain priest whose name was Zachariah, of the daily service (the division) of Abia; and his wife was also a descendant of Aaron, and her name was Elizabeth. And they both were righteous in the sight of God, walking blamelessly in all the commandments and requirements of the Lord. But they had no child, for Elizabeth was barren; and both were far advanced in years. Now while on duty, serving as priest before God in the order of his division, as was the custom of the priesthood, it fell to him by lot to enter [the sanctuary of] the temple of the Lord and burn incense. And all the throng of people were praying outside [in the court] at the hour of incense [burning]. And there appeared to him an angel of the Lord, standing at the right side of the altar of incense. And when Zachariah saw him, he was troubled, and fear took possession of him. But the angel said to him, Do not be afraid, Zachariah, because your petition was heard, and your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and you must call his name John [God is favorable]. And you shall have joy and exultant delight, and many will rejoice over his birth. For he will be great and distinguished in the sight of the Lord. And he must drink no wine nor strong drink, and he will be filled with and controlled by the Holy Spirit even in and from his mother's womb. And he will turn back and cause to return many of the sons of Israel to the Lord their God, And he will [himself] go before Him in the spirit and power of Elijah to turn back the hearts of the fathers to the children, and the disobedient and incredulous and unpersuadable to the wisdom of the upright [which is the knowledge and holy love of the will of God]-in order to make ready for the Lord a people [perfectly] prepared [in spirit, adjusted and disposed and placed in the right moral state]. And Zachariah said to the angel, By what shall I know and be sure of this? For I am an old man, and my wife is well advanced in years. And the angel replied to him, I am Gabriel. I stand in the [very] presence of God, and I have been sent to talk to you and to bring you this good news. Now behold, you will be and will continue to be silent and not able to speak till the day when these things take place, because you have not believed what I told you; but my words are of a kind which will be fulfilled in the appointed and proper time. Now the people kept waiting for Zachariah, and they wondered at his delaying [so long] in the sanctuary. But when he did come out, he was unable to speak to them; and they [clearly] perceived that he had seen a vision in the sanctuary; and he kept making signs to them, still he remained dumb. And when his time of performing priestly functions was ended, he returned to his [own] house. Now after this his wife Elizabeth became pregnant, and for five months she seculded herself entirely, saying, [I have hid myself] because thus the Lord has dealt with me in the days when He deigned to look on me to take away my reproach among men.


Now in the sixth month [after that], the angel Gabriel was sent from God to a town of Galilee named Nazareth, to a girl never having been married and a virgin engaged to be married to a man whose name was Joseph, a descendant of the house of David; and the virgin's name was Mary. And he came to her and said, Hail, O favored one [endued with grace]! The Lord is with you! Blessed (favored of God) are you before all other women! But when she saw him, she was greatly troubled and disturbed and confused at what he said and kept revolving in her mind what such a greeting might mean. And the angel said to her, Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found grace (free, spontaneous, absolute favor and loving-kindness) with God. And listen! You will become pregnant and will give birth to a Son, and you shall call His name Jesus. He will be great (eminent) and will be called the Son of the Most High; and the Lord God will give to Him the throne of His forefather David. And He will reign over the house of Jacob throughout the ages; and of His reign there will be no end. And Mary said to the angel, How can this be, since I have no [intimacy with any man as a] husband? Then the angel said to her, The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you [like a shining cloud], and so the holy (pure, sinless) Thing (Offspring) which shall be born of you will be called the Son of God. And listen! Your relative Elizabeth in her old age has also conceived a son, and this is now the sixth month with her who was called barren. For with God nothing is ever impossible and no word from God shall be without power or impossible of fulfillment. Then Mary said, Behold, I am the handmaiden of the Lord; let it be done to me according to what you have said. And the angel left her. And at that time Mary arose and went with haste into the hill country to a town of Judah. And she went to the house of Zachariah and, entering it, saluted Elizabeth. And it occurred that when Elizabeth heard Mary's greeting, the baby leaped in her womb, and Elizabeth was filled with and controlled by the Holy Spirit. And she cried out with a loud cry, and then exclaimed, Blessed (favored of God) above all other women are you! And blessed (favored of God) is the Fruit of your womb! And how [have I deserved that this honor should] be granted to me, that the mother of my Lord should come to me? For behold, the instant the sound of your salutation reached my ears, the baby in my womb leaped for joy. And blessed (happy, to be envied) is she who believed that there would be a fulfillment of the things that were spoken to her from the Lord.

The Visitation, Juan Correa De Vivar(1539 -1552), The Museum Del Prado
Mary's Magnificat

And Mary said,
My soul magnifies and extols the Lord.
And my spirit rejoices in God my Savior, for He has looked upon the low station and humiliation of His handmaiden.
For behold, from now on all generations [of all ages] will call me blessed and declare me happy and to be envied!
For He Who is almighty has done great things for me-and holy is His name [to be venerated in His purity, majesty and glory]!
And His mercy (His compassion and kindness toward the miserable and afflicted) is on those who fear Him with godly reverence,
From generation to generation and age to age.
He has shown strength and made might with His arm;
He has scattered the proud and haughty in and by the imagination and purpose and designs of their hearts.
He has put down the mighty from their thrones and exalted those of low degree.
He has filled and satisfied the hungry with good things,
And the rich He has sent away empty-handed [without a gift].
He has laid hold on His servant Israel [to help him, to espouse his cause], in remembrance of His mercy.
Even as He promised to our forefathers, to Abraham and to his descendants forever.

And Mary remained with her [Elizabeth] for about three months and [then] returned to her [own] home. Now the time that Elizabeth should be delivered came, and she gave birth to a son. And her neighbors and relatives heard that the Lord had shown great mercy on her, and they rejoiced with her. And it occurred that on the eighth day, when they came to circumcise the child, they were intending to call him Zachariah after his father. But his mother answered, Not so! But he shall be called John. And they said to her, None of the your relatives is called by that name. And they inquired with signs to his father [as to] what he wanted to have him called. Then Zachariah asked for a writing tablet and wrote, His name is John. And they were all astonished. And at once his mouth was opened and his tongue loosed, and he began to speak, blessing and praising and thanking God. And awe and reverential fear came on all their neighbors; and all thses things were discussed throughout the hill country of Judea. And all who heard them laid them up in their hearts, saying Whatever will this little boy be then? For the hand of the Lord was [so evidently] with him [protecting and aiding him].

Zachariah's Benedictus
Now Zachariah his father was filled and controlled by the Holy Spirit and prophesied, saying,


"Blessed (praised and extolled and thanked) be the Lord, the God of Israel,
because He has come and brought deliverance and redemption to His people!
And He has raised up a Horn of salvation [a mighty and valiant Helper, the Author of salvation] for us in the house of David His servant-
This is as He promised by the mouth of His holy prophets from the most ancient times [in the memory of man]-
That we should have deliverance and be saved from our enemies and from the hand of all who detest and pursue us with hatred;
To make true and show the mercy and compassion and kindness [promised] to our forefathers and to remember and carry out His holy covenant [to bless, which is all the more sacred because it is made by God Himself].
That covenant He sealed by oath to our forefather Abraham:
To grant us that we, being delivered from the hand of our foes, might serve Him fearlessly in holiness (divine consecration) and righteousness (in accordance with the everlasting principles of right] within His presence all the days of our lives.

And you, little one, shall be called a prophet of the Most High;
For you shall go on before the face of the Lord to make ready His ways,
To bring and give the knowledge of salvation to His people in the forgiveness and remission of their sins.
Because of and through the heart of tender mercy and loving-kindness of our God,
A Light from on high will dawn upon us and visit [us] to shine upon and give light to those who sit in darkness and in the shadow of death,
To direct and guide our feet in a straight line into the way of peace. "

John The Baptist by Titian
And the little boy grew and became strong in spirit; and he was in the deserts (wilderness) until the day of his appearing to Israel [the commencement of his public ministry].


Matthew Chapter 1: 19-25 in the Amplified Version
And her [promised] husband Joseph, being a just and upright man and not willing to expose her publicly and to shame and disgrace her, decided to repudiate and dismiss (divorce) her quietly and secretly.

But as he was thinking this over behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, Joseph, descendant of David, do not be afraid to take Mary [as] your wife, for that which is conceived in her is of (from out of) the Holy spirit. She will bear a Son, and you shall call His name Jesus [the Greek form of the Hebrew Joshua, which means Savior], for He will save His people from their sins [that is, prevent them from failing and missing the true end and scope of life, which is God]. All this took place that it might be fulfilled which the Lord had spoken throught the prophet, Behold, the virgin shall become pregnant and give birth to a Son, and they shall call His name Emmanuel-which, when translated, means, God with us. Then Joseph, being aroused from his sleep, did as the angel of the Lord had commanded him; he took [her to his sidea as] his wife. But he had no union with her as her husband until she had borne her firstborn Son, and he called His name Jesus.

Luke Chapter 2 in the Amplified Version
In those days it occurred that a decree went out from Caesar Augustus that the whole Roman empire should be registered. This was the first enrollment, and it was made when Quirinius was governor of Syria. And all the people were going to be registered, each to his own city or town. And Joseph also went up from Galilee from the town of Nazareth to Judea, to the town of David, which is called Bethlehem, because he was of the house and family of David. To be enrolled with Mary, his espoused (married) wife, who was about to become a mother.

And while they were there, the time came for her delivery, And she gave birth to her Son, her Firstborn; and she wrapped Him in swaddling clothes and laid Him in a manger, because there was no room or place for them in the inn.

And in that vicinity there were shepherds living [out under the open sky] in the field watching [in shifts] over their flock by night.

And behold, an angel of the Lord stood by them, and the glory of the Lord flashed and shone all about them, and they were terribly frightened. But the angel said to them,
"Do not be afraid;
"For behold, I bring you good news of a great joy which will come to all the people.
"For to you is born this day in the town of David a Savior,
"Who is Christ (the Messiah) the Lord!
"And this will be a sign for you [by which you will recognize Him]:
"You will find [after searching] a Baby wrapped in swaddling clothes and lying in a manger."

Then suddenly there appeared with the angel an army of the troops of heaven (a heavenly knighthood), praising God and saying,


"Glory to God in the highest [heaven], and on earth peace among men with whom He is well pleased [men of goodwill, of His favor]."

When the angels went away from them into heaven, the shepherds said one to another, "Let us go over to Bethlehem and see this thing (saying) that has come to pass, which the Lord has made known to us." So they went with haste and [by searching] found Mary and Joseph, and the Baby lying in a manger.

And when they saw it, they made known what had been told them concerning this Child. And all who heard it were astounded and marveled at what the shepherds told them. But Mary was keeping within herself all these things (sayings) weighing and pondering them in her heart. And the shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all the things they had heard and seen, just as it had been told them.

Matthew 2:1-16 in the Amplified Version
Now when Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of Herod the king, behold, wise men [astrologers] from the east came to Jerusalem, asking, Where is He Who has been born King of the Jews? For we have seen His star in the east at it's rising and have come to worship Him.

When Herod the king heard this, he was disturbed and troubled, and the whole of Jerusalem with him. So he called together all the chief preists and learned men (scribes) of the people and anxiously asked them where the Christ was to be born. They replied to him, In Bethlehem of Judea, for so it is written by the prophet: And you Bethlehem, in the land of Judah, you are not in any way least or insignificant among the chief cities of Judah; for from you shall come a Ruler (Leader) Who will govern and shepherd My people Israel. Then Herod sent for the wise men [astrologers] secretly, and accurately to the last point ascertained from them the time of the appearing of the star [that is, how long the star had made itself visible since its rising in the east]. Then he sent them to Bethlehem, saying, Go and search for the Child carefully and diligently, and when you have found Him, bring me word, that I too may come and worship Him. When they had listened to the king, they went their way, and behold, the star which had been seen in the east in its rising went before them until it came and stood over the place where the young Child was. When they saw the star, they were thrilled with ecstatic joy.

And on going into the house, they saw the Child with Mary His mother, and they fell down and worshiped Him.


Then opening their treasure bags, they presented to Him gifts-gold and frankincense and myrrh. And receiving an answer to their asking, they were divinely instructed and warned in a dream not to go back to Herod; so they departed to their own country by a different way. Now after they had gone, behold an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream and said, Get up! [Tenderly] take unto you the young child and His mother and flee to Egypt; and remain there till I tell you [otherwise], for Herod intends to search for the Child in order to destroy Him. And having risen, he took the Child and His mother by night and withdrew to Egypt and remained there until Herod's death. This was to fulfill what the Lord had spoken by the prophet, Out of Egypt have I called My Son. Then Herod, when he realized that he had been misled by the wise men, was furiously enraged, and he sent and put to death all the male children in Bethlehem and in all that territory who were two years old and under, reckoning according to the date which he had investigated diligently and had learned exactly from the wise men.

Erwin McCoy Conner and Mary A. Rhodes (or Mary Williams) are my Great-Great-Great Grandparents.

Erwin McCoy Conner was born between 1839-1840 in Rutherford County, NC to Isaac Jackson Conner (DOB 1817-1820 in Rutherford County, NC; DOD After 1871 in Rutherford County, NC) and Adaline Thomason (DOB 1816-1826 in Rutherford County, NC; DOD After 1870 in Rutherford County, NC). Erwin McCoy Conner was the 2nd of 8 children. He had an older brother named James Conner. James was born about 1835 in Rutherford County, NC. He was with the family in the 1850 U.S. Census but I found no further record of him after that. It's possible he died before the War of Northern Aggression. It's also possible that he fought. Although there are some possibilities in the rosters of Confederate soldiers, none could be shown as definitively him.

Erwin McCoy Conner had 3 younger brothers named Joseph Washington "Wash" Conner, Thomas Conner and William M. Conner and 3 younger sisters named Martha "Mattie" Conner, Emily Conner and Ursilla/Lucilla Conner.

1) James Conner (DOB About 1835 in Rutherford County, NC; DOD ? in ? ) married ?.

2) Erwin McCoy Conner

3) Joseph Washington Conner (DOB 7/15/1845 in Rutherford County, NC; DOD 2/9/1917 in Bills Creek, Rutherford County, NC) married Cynthia Catherine Flynn (DOB 9/13/1848 in Rutherford County, NC; DOD 5/31/1937 in Bills Creek, Rutherford County, NC). They had 12 children: Serelda Evline Conner Robertson, John Alexander Conner, Lillian Adaline Conner Skipper, Louisa A. Conner Jackson, Major Henry Porter Conner, Ina Jane Conner Dalton, Mary Louvada Conner, Martha Ella Conner Robertson, Thomas Twitty Conner, Corris Columbus Conner, Sallie Matilda Conner Davis, Edgar Beam Conner.

4) Thomas Conner (DOB About 1847 in Rutherford County, NC; DOD ? in ? ) married Sarah A. ? (DOB About 1850 in Rutherford County, NC; DOD ? in ? ). They had one son that I know of named Joseph Conner (DOB About 1869 in Rutherford County, NC; DOD ? in ? ). I was able to follow him in the 1850, 1860 and 1870 U.S. Censuses but found no further record of this family after 1870.

5) Martha "Mattie" Conner (DOB About 1849 in Chimney Rock, Rutherford County, NC; DOD 1/22/1918 in Gilkey, Rutherford County, NC) married James Thomas Wilson (DOB 12/4/1846 in Rutherford County, NC; DOD 6/13/1923 in Clinchfield, Marion, McDowell County, NC). They had 6 children: Julia Ann Wilson Early, Dovie Lodicey Wilson Nix, Fannie Wilson, Sarah Wilson, George F. Wilson, Carado "Carrie" Wilson Seagle.

6) William M. Conner (DOB About 1850 in Rutherford County, NC; DOD ? in ? ) married Mary A. Nix (DOB About 1853 in Rutherford County, NC; DOD ? in ? ). They had 5 children that I am aware of: James Cletus Conner, Virgil C. Conner, Francis M. Henry Baxter Robert Conner, Samuel Conner and Thomas Edgar Conner. I was able to follow this family through 1860, 1870, 1880 U.S. Censuses but lost them after that. I was only able to find James Cletus Conner and his family until he died, Francis M. Henry Baxter Robert Conner until the 1910 U.S. Census (he must have died between 1910-1920 as his children are living with others in 1920) and Thomas Edgar Conner until his death. I couldn't find the other children or their parents after the 1880 U.S. Census.

7) Emily Conner (DOB ABout 1852 in Rutherford County, NC; DOD ? in ? ) married ?. I was only able to find her in the 1860 and 1870 U.S. Census. I couldn't find a marriage record of her.

8) Ursilla Conner (aka Lucilla Conner Wilson)(DOB About 1855 in Rutherford County, NC; DOD ? in ? ) married Jonathon Wilson (DOB About 1852 in NC; DOD 4/9/1935 in Forest City, Rutherford County, NC). They were married 2/24/1875 in Rutherford County, NC. I found no further record of Ursilla after their marriage. I believe Jonathon Wilson remarried to Elizabeth "Lizzie" Dalton on 5/16/1877 in Rutherford County, NC. If that marriage record is the same Jonathon Wilson, then Ursilla died between 1875-1877.


Erwin McCoy Conner lived with his family in Rutherford County, NC.



1850 U.S. Census of Bills Creek, Rutherford County, North Carolina; Roll: M432_644; Page: 329B; Image: 205, Dwelling 1414 and 1415 and 1416 and 1419 and 1420, Family 1462 and 1463 and 1464 and 1667 and 1668, "Jackson Canner" and "Isaac Cornor" and "William Conner" (sic, it is Jackson Conner, Isaac Conner and William Conner), "Marcus Crawford", "Margaret Conner"
Jackson Cannor, 30 yrs old (DOB 1820), M(ale), W(hite), Labor, Real Estate Value $50, Born in NC
Adaline Cannor, 31 yrs old (DOB 1819), F, W, Born in NC
James Cannor, 15 yrs old DOB 1835), M, W, Born in NC, Attends school
Ervin Cannor, 10 yrs old (DOB 1840), M, W, Born in NC, Attends School
Joseph Cannor, 7 yrs old (DOB 1843), M, W, Born in NC
Thomas Cannor, 3 yrs old (DOB 1847), M, W, Born in NC
Martha Cannor, 1 yrs old (DOB 1849), F, W, Born in NC
Nancy Thomason, 65 yrs old (DOB 1785), F, W, Born in NC
Isaac Cannor, 49 yrs old (DOB 1801), M, W, Farmer, $100 Real Estate Value, Born in NC
Rosana Cannor, 45 yrs old (DOB 1805), F, W, Born in NC
Susannah Cannor, 17 yrs old (DOB 1833), F, W, Born in NC, Attends School
Cyntha Cannor, 14 yrs old (DOB 1836), F, W, Born in NC, Attends school
Samuel Cannor, 12 yrs old (DOB 1838), M, W, Born in NC, Attends school
William Cannor, 10 yrs old (DOB 1840), M, W, Born in NC, Attends school
Sophiar Cannor, 6 yrs old (DOB 1844), F, W, Born in NC
Calvin Cannor, 4 yrs old (DOB 1846), M, W, Born in NC
William Canner, 52 yrs old (DOB 1798), M, W, Farmer, $100 Real Estate Value, Born in NC
Elizabeth Conner, 52 yrs old (DOB 1798), F, W, Born in NC
Atta Conner, 17 yrs old (DOB 1833), F, W, Born in NC
Johnathon Conner, M, W, Born in NC
Albert Conner, 12 yrs old (DOB 1838), M, W, Born in NC
Marcus Crawford, 28 yrs old (DOB 1822), M(ale), W(hite), House carpenter, Born in NC
Martha Crawford, 25 yrs old (DOB 1825), F, W, Born in NC
Louisa Crawford, 4/12 mos old (DOB 1850), F, W, Born in NC
William Crawford, 12 yrs old (DOB 1838), M, W, Born in NC
Margaret Connor (sic), 30 yrs old (DOB 1820), F, W, Head, Born in NC


McCoy Conner married Mary A. between the 1850 and 1860 U.S. Censuses. Mary was born 1834-1836 in Henderson County, NC to unknown parents. You see, two of their sons have their mother with different names on their death certificate. Mack Coy Conner has his mother as Mary A. Rhodes and William Washington Conner's death certificate has his mother as Mary A. Williams. If her maiden name was Mary Rhodes than there is a possibility that her parents were a Chapman Rhodes and Cynthia Coggswell. But I don't know and I don't know who her parents could be if she was a Williams.

1860 U.S. Census of Fairview, Buncombe County, NC, Series M653, Roll 889, Pg 248, HeritageQuest.com, Dwelling 25, Family 25, Lines 16-18, "E. McConner", sic
E. McConner, 21 yrs old (DOB 1839), M(ale), W(hite), Farmer, $150 Real Estate Value, $200 Personal Estate Value, Born in NC, Cannot read or write
Mary McConner, 24 yrs old (DOB 1836), F, W, Domestic, Born in NC
Menerva McConner (sic), 1 yrs old (DOB 1859), F, W, Born in NC

Erwin McCoy and Mary Conner had 4 children:
1) Manerva Louisa Conner (aka Lou Conner)(DOB 10/20/1858 in Henderson County, NC; DOD 3/1/1931 in Gerton, Henderson County, NC) married W. John Mangus Bradley (DOB 7/16/1860 in Rutherford County, NC; DOD 2/10/1945 in Forest City, Rutherford County, NC). They had Burgin Lee Bradley, Floyd Washington Bradley, Grady Eli Bradley, Mollie M. Bradley, McCoy Bradley, Dollie Bradley Carver, Rhoda Bradley Wilkerson.

2) William Washington Conner (DOB 9/15/1860 in Madison County, NC; DOD 9/29/1939 in Madison County, NC) married Lydia Kate Fisher (DOB 1/1865 or 1/1867 in Rutherford County, NC; DOD 12/3/1939 in Alexander, Buncombe County, NC). They had Vesta M. Conner, John Bunyon Connor, Mollie Jennie Conner.

3) McCoy Conner (DOB 7/24/1861 in Henderson County, NC; DOD 2/7/1950 in Madison County, NC) married Margaret Alice Ensley (DOB 10/10/1859 in Madison County, NC; DOD 12/2/1938 in Bluff, Madison County, NC). They had Lillian Vianna Conner Reese, William S. Conner, Minnie Lee Conner Fowler, James Coy Connor, Hattie Louester Conner Keith Holt, Floyd Washington Connor, William Jeter Connor, Alice Conner, Fred Conner and Gertrude Conner Knipp. My direct ancestor being my Great Great Grandfather.

4) Grady Eli Connor (DOB 6/7/1866 in NC; DOD 8/29/1935 in Marshall, Madison County, NC) married Dosha Thula Lankford (DOB 12/14/1884 in Buncombe County, NC; DOD 6/17/1951 in Marshall, Madison County, NC). They had Charlie Plato Connor, Laura Grace Conner, Geneva Pearl Conner Tweed, General Vance Conner, Clara Lavina Conner Davis, Annie Lee Connor.





According to Erwin McCoy Conner's granddaughter, Lillian Vianna Conner Reese, Erwin McCoy Conner had a farm when the War of Northern Aggression started. He left his farm, livestock, home, and family to fight and never returned. She said he died of  "fever".

He was a Private in the C.S.A. NC's 25th Infantry Regiment, Co. A. The 25th Infantry Regiment, formerly the 15th Volunteers, was assembled at Camp Patton, Asheville, North Carolina, in August, 1861. The following counties furnished companies for the regiment: Henderson, Jackson, Haywood, Cherokee, Transylvania, Clay, Macon, and Buncombe. It moved to Grahamville, South Carolina and remained there until March, 1862. The unit then moved back to North Carolina and arrived in Virginia on June 24. Serving in R. Ransom's and M.W. Ranson's Brigade, it fought with the army from the Seven Day's Battles to Fredericksburg, served in North Carolina, then saw action at Plymouth and Drewery's Bluff. Later the 25th participated in the long Petersburg siege south of the James River and the Appomattox Campaign. It reported 128 casualties during the Seven Days' Battles, 15 in the Maryland Campaign, 88 at Fredericksburg, and 103 at Plymouth. Many were disabled at Sayler's Creek, and on April 9, 1865, only 8 officers and 69 were present. The field officers were Colonels Thomas L. Clingman and Henry M. Rutledge; Lieutenant Colonels S.C. Bryson, St. Clair Dearing, and Matthew N. Love; and Majors John W. Francis, William S. Grady, and William Y. Morgan.

Erwin McCoy Conner was present and accounted for until he died 7/4/1862 in the Wilson Hospital Confederate Military No. 2, 401 Goldsboro Street South, Wilson, Wilson, NC. Built originally as the Wilson Female Seminary, the Italianate structure served as a Confederate hospital during the Civil War. After the war was over, 101 men who had died in the hospital and were interred locally were removed to the Maplewood Cemetery. In 1872, it became known as Wilson Collegiate Institute. It seems that it was divided up and made into 4 houses in 1898. On Tuesday, July 23, 2013 at 11 am, there was an unveiling of the Civil War Trails marker for the Wilson Confederate Military Hospital Museum. It is located on 401 Goldsboro St. N. Wilson, NC 27893.

Department of Cultural Resources:
The Confederacy organized its Medical Department late in 1861 and within months, in April of 1862, the North Carolina General Military Hospital No. 2 was established in Wilson in what had once been the Wilson Female Seminary. Dr. Solomon Sampson Satchwell, who had graduated from Wake Forest College and studied medicine at New York University before serving as a military surgeon with the NC 25th Infantry, was appointed Surgeon-in-Charge. In the 1864 Confederate States Medical and Surgical Journal the Wilson hospital was listed as one of twenty-one principal hospitals in North Carolina. It served those wounded in fighting along the coast. Wilson's location on the busy Wilmington and Weldon Railroad made it a good place for a military hospital. On April 2, 1862, Confederate authorities seized the Wilson Female Academy building for that use. The 40 classrooms were turned into wards where soldiers were treated for wounds and disease. Many of the dead from the hospital were buried in nearby Maplewood Cemetery. The building here is the only surviving portion of the Academy.

Marker Text:"Confederate. Headed by Dr. S. S. Satchwell in building of the Wilson Female Seminary, which was chartered in 1859. Stood 1 1/2 blocks S.E."

The hospital made Wilson known outside of the state of North Carolina. Employing thirty-five to forty people, it also boosted the local economy. Most nurses and orderlies were unskilled soldiers; however, at least seven local women were known to have worked at the hospital as matrons. Their duties included food preparation and cleaning. The Atlantic Coast Line Railroad that ran through Wilson provided the military hospital with supplies, including ice and turpentine, used to treat fevers.

Fighting never broke out in Wilson, but, on July 20, 1863, “an immense armament of negroes and Yankees” advanced on Wilson. Reportedly, a group of invalids from the hospital and local militia defended Wilson by destroying the bridge over the Toisnot Swamp to halt the invaders. All of those who died at the hospital were buried in a mass grave. The hospital closed at the end of the war. When Wilson created a town cemetery, they were re-interred there with a Confederate monument erected over the site. Wilson Female Seminary reopened in the former hospital and received a charter as Wilson Collegiate Institute in 1872.

References:
Confederate States Medical and Surgical Journal, vol. 1, no. 10 (1864)
History of Wilson County and its Families (1985)
Patrick Valentine, The Rise of a Southern Town: Wilson, North Carolina (2002)
William S. Powell, ed., Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, V, 284—sketch by W. Conard Gass

American Civil War Soldiers
McCoy Conner, Confederacy, Enlisted in Henderson County, NC as Private on 3/14/1862 at age 22, Died on 7/4/1862 at Hospital, Wilson, Sources 16


U.S. Civil War Soldiers Records and Profiles
McCoy Conner, Residence: Henderson County, NC, Enlisted 3/14/862 at 22 yrs old as Private, Did not survive the War, DOB about 1840, Mustered out on 7/4/1862 in Hospital at Wilson.
Name: McCoy Conner
Residence: Henderson County, North Carolina, North Carolina
Age at Enlistment: 22
Enlistment Date: 14 Mar 1862
Rank at enlistment: Private
Enlistment Place: Henderson County, North Carolina
State Served: North Carolina
Survived the War?: No
Service Record: Enlisted in Company A, North Carolina 25th Infantry Regiment on 14 Mar 1862. Mustered out on 04 Jul 1862 at Hosp, Wilson.
Birth Date: abt 1840
Sources: North Carolina Troops 1861-65, A Roster


U.S., Confederate Soldiers Compiled Service Records, 1861-1865
Name: McCoy Conner
Birth Date: abt 1840
Age: 22
Enlistment Date: 1862
Military Unit: Twenty-fifth Infantry


U.S. Civil War Soldiers, 1861-1865
McCoy Conner, Confederate, Enlisted in Co. A, 25th NC Infantry Regiment as a Private, Film #M230 Roll 8.
Name: McCoy Conner
Side: Confederate
Regiment State/Origin: North Carolina
Regiment Name: 25 North Carolina Infantry
Regiment Name Expanded: 25th Regiment, North Carolina Infantry
Company: A
Rank In: Private
Rank In Expanded: Private
Rank Out: Private
Rank Out Expanded: Private
Film Number: M230 roll 8


The Roster of Confederate Soldiers
Vol. IV, Pg 79, "Conner, McCoy, NC 25th Inf, Co. A"


HendersonHeritage.com
18. Conner, Francis M. died of wounds in a hospital outside of Petersburg, Va. The exact date of his death was not reported. He was transferred to the hospital (most likely at Richmond) on 6-18-1864. He was wounded 6-17-1864 at Meade’s Assaults (Second Battle of Petersburg) during the Siege of Petersburg. (Petersburg National Battlefield)
...
Died in War of Disease
19. Conner, Alexander died of disease 3-22-1862 at Grahamville, S.C.
...
Died during the War of Unspecified Causes
5. Conner, McCoy died 7-4-1862 in Wilson, N.C.
6. Conner, Robert J. died 4-22-1862 in Kinston, N.C. He was possibly wounded at the Battle of South Mills on 4-19-1862 in Camden County, N.C.
...

NC Troops, A Roster, McCoy Conner, Volume VII, Page 359



The French Broad hustler, October 08, 1908, Image 7, "Confederate Pensioners of Henderson County", Under Pensioners and Under "Widows", Line 7, Mary A. Conner, Widow of McCoy Conner, Co. A, NC 25th Regiment, Class 4, Died of Disease, Post Office Bear Wallow.

The French Broad hustler, October 08, 1908, Image 7, "Confederate Pensioners of Henderson County", Under Pensioners and Under "Widows"
Pensioners
Line 17, H.P. Connor, Co. A, NC 25th Regiment, Class 4, Wounds, Post Office Maxwell
Line 18, I.W. Conner, Co. E, NC 25th Regiment, Class 4, Sounds, Post Office Maxwell
Widows
Line 5, Adline Conner, Widow of J. Conner, Co. F, NC 62nd Regiment, Class 4, Died of (blank), Post Office Bear Wallow
Line 7, Mary A. Conner, Widow of McCoy Conner, Co. A, NC 25th Regiment, Class 4, Died of Disease, Post Office Bear Wallow
Line 8, Harriet Conner, Widow of W.A. Conner, Co. A, NC 25th Regiment, Class 4, Died of Disease, Post Office Bear Wallow

The French Broad Hustler, 10/11/1906, Image 8, "Confederate Pensioners of Henderson Co." Confederate Pensioners of Henderson Co.
What the State Democracy is Doing for Heroes of the Lost Cause and Surviving Widows in this Immediate Section
$3,242.00 Now Annually Distributed Here
114 Soldiers and 57 Widows the Beneficiaries of a Great State's Generocity, Complete List on File in Office of the State Auditor; Many Republicans Among the Number
14, Jonathon Conner, Co. F, NC 62nd, Class 4, Died of Disease, Post Office Bat Cave
19, I.W. Conner, Co. E, NC 25th, Class 4, Wounds, Post Office Maxwell
Widows
6, Adline Conner, Widow of J. Conner, Co. F, NC 62nd, Post Office Bear Wallow
8, Mary A. Conner, Widow of McCoy Conner, Co. A, NC 25th, Died of Disease, Post Office Bear Wallow
9, Harriett Conner, Widow of W.A. Conner, Co. A, NC 25th, Died of Disease, Post Office Bear Wallow
29, R.M. Garren, Widow of A.W. Conner, Co. H. NC 25th, Post Office Fletcher


1870 U.S. Census of Fairview Township #7, Asheville, Buncombe County, NC, Roll M593-1125, Pg 161, Image 326, Ancestry.com, Lines 34-38, Dwelling 21, Family 21, "Mary Conner"
Mary Conner, 36 yrs old (DOB 1834), F(emale), W(hite), Keeping House, $0 Real Estate Value, $0 Personal Estate Value, Born in NC
Louise Conner, 13 yrs old (DOB 1857), F, W, At Home, Born in NC
Washington Conner, 10 yrs old (DOB 1860), M, W, At Home, Born in NC
William Conner, 8 yrs old (DOB 1862), M, W, At Home, Born in NC
Eli Conner, 4 yrs old (DOB 1866), M, W, At Home, Born in NC


1880 U.S. Census of Edneyville, Henderson County, NC, Roll T9_967, Family History Film 1254967, Pg 237.4000; ED 95, Image 0468, Ancestry.com, House #14350987, "Mary Cormer" (sic, should be Mary Conner), Ancestry.com had her indexed but the "original image" attached to the record was incorrect. I had to go to HeritageQuest.com and found her there at Series T9, Roll 967, Pg 239, ED 95, Lines 24-26 (all the same references as Ancestry.com but the wrong original image attached to that reference)
Mary Cormer (sic, should be Mary Conner), F(emale), W(hite), 44 yrs old (DOB 1836), Widowed, Keeping House, Born in NC, Father born in NC, Mother born in NC
Lou M. Cormer (sic, Minerva Louisa Conner), F, W, 21 yrs old (DOB 1859), Daughter, Single, Born in NC, Father born in NC, Mother born in NC
Eli Cormer (sic, Eli Conner), M, W, 13 yrs old (DOB 1867), Son, Farm hand, Attends school, Born in NC, Father born in NC, Mother born in NC


1900 U.S. Census of Fairview, Buncombe County, NC, Roll T623_1184, Pg 4B, ED 144, Ancestry.com, Lines 85-90, Dwelling 78, Family 72, "Elie Conner" (sic)
Elie Conner (sic, should be Eli), Head, W(hite), M(ale), Born June 1867, 32 yrs old, Married 1 yrs, Born in NC, Father born in NC, Mother born in NC, Farmer, Can read & write, Rents farm
Karthula T. Conner (sic, should be Darthula T. Conner), Wife, W, F, Born Dec, 1885, 26 yrs old, Married 1 yrs, 0 children, Born in NC, Father born in NC, Mother born in NC
Maud L. Conner, Daughter, W, F, Born Sept, 1892, 8 yrs old, Born in NC, Father born in NC, Mother born in NC
Jeray Conner (sic, should be Leroy), Son, W, M, Born Jan, 1893, 7 yrs old, born in NC, Father born in NC, Mother born in NC
Hector E. Conner (sic, Doctor E. Conner) Son, W, M, Born June, 1897, 2 yrs old, Born in NC, Father born in NC, Mother born in NC
Mary A. Conner, Mother, W, F, Born unknown, unknown age, Widow, 1 child, 1 still living, Born in NC, Father born in NC, Mother born in NC

Mary Conner died between 1906-1910. She was not in the 1910 U.S. Census. She is buried at Bear Wallow Baptist Cemetery, 194 Bear Wallow Road, Gerton, Henderson County, NC Latitude: 35° 28' 51.19" N , Longitude: 82° 21' 2.81" W (35.480885 , -82.350781).


For more on Erwin McCoy Conner and Mary A. Rhodes/Williams, see Part I.

I will never forget a little cousin of mine who one day asked me, "Where do find all these interesting things in the Bible? Whenever I try to read it, it's just a bunch of little scriptures." LOL! I understood what they meant. The most important thing to open the scriptures, is to do it with a believer's heart. The Bible was written by God for His People. It won't make a lot of sense to those who aren't His Children! Once you become a believer, you are one of God's Children and the Holy Spirit comes to reside in you to help you mature and learn about God. The Holy Spirit will then begin to open the scriptures up to your understanding. So without His help, it may just be a "bunch of little scriptures" to you.

Another reason why the Bible seems mysterious is because we haven't studied it. I remember when I was in high school and we had to read some "classic literature". At least half of what I read, I hated. I couldn't imagine why it was considered a "classic"! For instance, Herman Melville's Moby Dick. I just didn't get it. Why would I care about a crazy old man chasing a whale? But I found a key to it all... study a little about the lives of the author and the times he/she lived. That was key to opening up the interest and understanding. There really was a "Moby Dick" (not so named, but an actual killer whale) and Melville knew about mental illness and monomania from his own struggle with mental illness and those of his family.

So, if we have the help of the Holy Spirit and we begin to actually study the Bible, it begins to unfurl just like a rose of many petals. In fact, I have studied the Bible most of my life and have never come close to the depths of the Word of God! The more I learn, the more excited I get and I realize there is even more to learn.

So let's look at one of the most "boring" passages... the Begats. There are chapters in the Bible that you think you can skip because they are boring genealogy lists. Genesis 4-5 are some of those chapters.


Begat means to procreate, to produce an offspring. I.e. have children. If you have looked over my blog you see immediately that I'm really into genealogy. But most people aren't until they get hooked themselves. How do you get hooked on genealogy? When someone in your family line has a story that interests you. For instance, you find out that your ancestor was Daniel Boon and you love hunting. You see, you are connecting with someone in your family line based on things you love to do. I happen to love mysteries. I have since my Nancy Drew days. So when I come across an ax murderer in the family line, it piques my interest! We all have interests... maybe it's car racing or football or painting pictures or playing boardgames. When we connect with someone because of our interests, we have something in common. Same with genealogy. We will always find someone in our family tree that had a story or interest like us and this is usually how genealogy comes alive for us. Once our interest is piqued, we begin to dig and find out all we can and fill in the picture. It becomes a huge jigsaw puzzle with each piece taking on new meaning. Maybe you remember a family story about your great grandfather and, sure enough, you find proof that the story was true all along. Maybe you remember visiting a home place as a child and when you start digging, you find the deed to the property with your very own great grandfather's signature. The more you dig and find, the more interesting it becomes and eventually you are in it hook line and sinker. Before long, history itself is coming alive and you are not only interested in your genealogy but in the history that they lived in! What caused them to move out west? What caused them to think and feel like they did? Why did they dress the way they did? etc.

It's the same with these Begat chapters. Don't just let your eyes glaze and you skip these chapters. There are nuggets that will capture your imagination and give you insight even in these Begat chapters.

Let's look at Genesis 4-5 (King James Version - KJV):
CHAPTER 4
And Adam knew Eve his wife; and she conceived, and bare Cain, and said, I have gotten a man from the LORD.
(Gen 4:1)

And she again bare his brother Abel. And Abel was a keeper of sheep, but Cain was a tiller of the ground.
(Gen 4:2)

And in process of time it came to pass, that Cain brought of the fruit of the ground an offering unto the LORD.
(Gen 4:3)

And Abel, he also brought of the firstlings of his flock and of the fat thereof. And the LORD had respect unto Abel and to his offering:
(Gen 4:4)

But unto Cain and to his offering he had not respect. And Cain was very wroth, and his countenance fell.
(Gen 4:5)

And the LORD said unto Cain, Why art thou wroth? and why is thy countenance fallen?
(Gen 4:6)

If thou doest well, shalt thou not be accepted? and if thou doest not well, sin lieth at the door. And unto thee shall be his desire, and thou shalt rule over him.
(Gen 4:7)

And Cain talked with Abel his brother: and it came to pass, when they were in the field, that Cain rose up against Abel his brother, and slew him.
(Gen 4:8)

And the LORD said unto Cain, Where is Abel thy brother? And he said, I know not: Am I my brother's keeper?
(Gen 4:9)

And he said, What hast thou done? the voice of thy brother's blood crieth unto me from the ground.
(Gen 4:10)

And now art thou cursed from the earth, which hath opened her mouth to receive thy brother's blood from thy hand;
(Gen 4:11)

When thou tillest the ground, it shall not henceforth yield unto thee her strength; a fugitive and a vagabond shalt thou be in the earth.
(Gen 4:12)

And Cain said unto the LORD, My punishment is greater than I can bear.
(Gen 4:13)

Behold, thou hast driven me out this day from the face of the earth; and from thy face shall I be hid; and I shall be a fugitive and a vagabond in the earth; and it shall come to pass, that every one that findeth me shall slay me.
(Gen 4:14)

And the LORD said unto him, Therefore whosoever slayeth Cain, vengeance shall be taken on him sevenfold. And the LORD set a mark upon Cain, lest any finding him should kill him.
(Gen 4:15)

And Cain went out from the presence of the LORD, and dwelt in the land of Nod, on the east of Eden.
(Gen 4:16)

And Cain knew his wife; and she conceived, and bare Enoch: and he builded a city, and called the name of the city, after the name of his son, Enoch.
(Gen 4:17)

And unto Enoch was born Irad: and Irad begat Mehujael: and Mehujael begat Methusael: and Methusael begat Lamech.
(Gen 4:18)

And Lamech took unto him two wives: the name of the one was Adah, and the name of the other Zillah.
(Gen 4:19)

And Adah bare Jabal: he was the father of such as dwell in tents, and of such as have cattle.
(Gen 4:20)

And his brother's name was Jubal: he was the father of all such as handle the harp and organ.
(Gen 4:21)

And Zillah, she also bare Tubalcain, an instructer of every artificer in brass and iron: and the sister of Tubalcain was Naamah.
(Gen 4:22)

And Lamech said unto his wives, Adah and Zillah, Hear my voice; ye wives of Lamech, hearken unto my speech: for I have slain a man to my wounding, and a young man to my hurt.
(Gen 4:23)

If Cain shall be avenged sevenfold, truly Lamech seventy and sevenfold.
(Gen 4:24)

And Adam knew his wife again; and she bare a son, and called his name Seth: For God, said she, hath appointed me another seed instead of Abel, whom Cain slew.
(Gen 4:25)

And to Seth, to him also there was born a son; and he called his name Enos: then began men to call upon the name of the LORD. (Gen 4:26)
CHAPTER 5
This is the book of the generations of Adam. In the day that God created man, in the likeness of God made he him;
(Gen 5:1)

Male and female created he them; and blessed them, and called their name Adam, in the day when they were created.
(Gen 5:2)

And Adam lived an hundred and thirty years, and begat a son in his own likeness, after his image; and called his name Seth:
(Gen 5:3)

And the days of Adam after he had begotten Seth were eight hundred years: and he begat sons and daughters:
(Gen 5:4)

And all the days that Adam lived were nine hundred and thirty years: and he died.
(Gen 5:5)

And Seth lived an hundred and five years, and begat Enos:
(Gen 5:6)

And Seth lived after he begat Enos eight hundred and seven years, and begat sons and daughters:
(Gen 5:7)

And all the days of Seth were nine hundred and twelve years: and he died.
(Gen 5:8)

And Enos lived ninety years, and begat Cainan:
(Gen 5:9)

And Enos lived after he begat Cainan eight hundred and fifteen years, and begat sons and daughters:
(Gen 5:10)

And all the days of Enos were nine hundred and five years: and he died.
(Gen 5:11)

And Cainan lived seventy years, and begat Mahalaleel:
(Gen 5:12)

And Cainan lived after he begat Mahalaleel eight hundred and forty years, and begat sons and daughters:
(Gen 5:13)

And all the days of Cainan were nine hundred and ten years: and he died.
(Gen 5:14)

And Mahalaleel lived sixty and five years, and begat Jared:
(Gen 5:15)

And Mahalaleel lived after he begat Jared eight hundred and thirty years, and begat sons and daughters:
(Gen 5:16)

And all the days of Mahalaleel were eight hundred ninety and five years: and he died.
(Gen 5:17)

And Jared lived an hundred sixty and two years, and he begat Enoch:
(Gen 5:18)

And Jared lived after he begat Enoch eight hundred years, and begat sons and daughters:
(Gen 5:19)

And all the days of Jared were nine hundred sixty and two years: and he died.
(Gen 5:20)

And Enoch lived sixty and five years, and begat Methuselah:
(Gen 5:21)

And Enoch walked with God after he begat Methuselah three hundred years, and begat sons and daughters:
(Gen 5:22)

And all the days of Enoch were three hundred sixty and five years:
(Gen 5:23)

And Enoch walked with God: and he was not; for God took him.
(Gen 5:24)

And Methuselah lived an hundred eighty and seven years, and begat Lamech:
(Gen 5:25)

And Methuselah lived after he begat Lamech seven hundred eighty and two years, and begat sons and daughters:
(Gen 5:26)

And all the days of Methuselah were nine hundred sixty and nine years: and he died.
(Gen 5:27)

And Lamech lived an hundred eighty and two years, and begat a son:
(Gen 5:28)

And he called his name Noah, saying, This same shall comfort us concerning our work and toil of our hands, because of the ground which the LORD hath cursed.
(Gen 5:29)

And Lamech lived after he begat Noah five hundred ninety and five years, and begat sons and daughters:
(Gen 5:30)

And all the days of Lamech were seven hundred seventy and seven years: and he died.
(Gen 5:31)

And Noah was five hundred years old: and Noah begat Shem, Ham, and Japheth.
(Gen 5:32)


Adam and Eve were created by God personally. Whereas God had spoken the creation of the universe, earth and all it's accoutrements (animals, plants, fish) by His spoken Word, when it came to Adam and Eve, God used His Hands to form them and breathed His very life into them. He had created a paradise for them and He daily walked with them. They had a relationship with God! But then satan tempted Eve to eat fruit from a tree God had forbidden and she influenced Adam to do the same. This sin of disobedience brought sin into the world and the world drastically changed. Death is the wages of sin and death had now entered the world. Adam and Eve could die, animals now died, plants died. Death is the result of sin and now human beings could age and die; they could get sick and die; they could get injured and die; they could kill each other and die. God knew this would happen beforehand and He had a plan. His Son, Jesus Christ would be the solution. He would take the punishment for sin upon Himself in order to save us and give us eternal life with God again. We could be returned to paradise and a daily relationship with God in bodies that would never die, just like Adam and Eve to begin with. But a lot had to happen and is still happening before all is back as it should be. Suffice it to say that Jesus is the answer to the sin brought into the world by Adam and Eve.

So we set the stage. The first 4 chapters of Genesis tell the story of Creation, the story of the first human beings and how sin entered the world and it's results.

God had created a paradisiacal world for His people. If you read the creation chapters you will see that He had made earth into a protected and plentiful place for mankind. It says the waters were divided with some on the earth and some above the earth

Genesis 1:6-8 (KJV) And God said, Let there be a firmament in the midst of the waters, and let it divide the waters from the waters. (7) And God made the firmament, and divided the waters which were under the firmament from the waters which were above the firmament: and it was so. (8) And God called the firmament Heaven. And the evening and the morning were the second day.

Somehow, God created a water covering over the earth which created a protected hothouse-style environment. There wouldn't have been extreme temperatures of hot and cold. It also says that there was no rain, God watered the earth with mists.

Genesis 2:5-6 (KJV) And every plant of the field before it was in the earth, and every herb of the field before it grew: for the LORD God had not caused it to rain upon the earth, and there was not a man to till the ground. (6) But there went up a mist from the earth, and watered the whole face of the ground.

God created animals, sea creatures, plants. And no animals were meat eaters. They all grazed on plant life.

Genesis 1:29-30 (KJV) And God said, Behold, I have given you every herb bearing seed, which is upon the face of all the earth, and every tree, in the which is the fruit of a tree yielding seed; to you it shall be for meat. (30) And to every beast of the earth, and to every fowl of the air, and to every thing that creepeth upon the earth, wherein there is life, I have given every green herb for meat: and it was so.

God gave Adam and Eve dominion over the earth.

Genesis 1:26-28 (KJV) And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness: and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth. (27) So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them. (28) And God blessed them, and God said unto them, Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth, and subdue it: and have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over every living thing that moveth upon the earth.

They lacked for nothing. But they still sinned with disobedience. After the Fall, God had to bar them from the Garden of Eden because there was another tree in there that couldn't be eaten now. The tree of life!

Genesis 2:9 (KJV) And out of the ground made the LORD God to grow every tree that is pleasant to the sight, and good for food; the tree of life also in the midst of the garden, and the tree of knowledge of good and evil.

Adam and Eve had eaten of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. God had specifically told them not to eat of that tree but satan, in the form of the serpent, had tempted them and they had disobeyed. In their sinful state they could have eaten of the tree of life and lived eternally in sin, forever lost. The only way to save humanity was if Jesus DIED on the cross! Jesus was God and He was man, fully God and fully human. It was his humanity that had to die to pay for the sin of the world. And it had to be sinless humanity and none of us were sinless after the Fall except for Jesus Christ!!!

Anyway, mankind would be beyond salvation if they had eaten of the tree of life in their sinful state. So God barred them from the Garden of Eden. Now, we have Adam and Eve living outside the Garden of Eden in a world still protected by the water covering, still able to sustain life but a life that would end in death eventually.

Now back to Genesis 4-5. One of the first things you notice as you read the Begats is the length of time these patriarchs lived! Adam lived 930 years! How can that be? It must be a myth, it can't be true... or can it? If we realize these first generations were living in a world so protected by the water covering; living in a world where there was no pollution; a world where everything they ate was organic and pure... maybe they did live longer lives. And then we take into consideration that God was involved. He had an agenda. He had told them to "Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth, and subdue it: and have dominion..."

In order to be fruitful, multiply and replenish and have dominion meant that these first generations had to live longer in order to have more children. One of the first questions someone may ask is who did Adam and Eve's sons marry? Isn't incest a sin that God hates? Yes, it is now. But, those first generations were physically more pure in their genetics and dna so it wouldn't have resulted in children with the problems we know is associated with incest. It was much later when God told the Israelites that incest was a sin. It was after the dilution of our genetics and dna that problems would arise in children from incestuous relationships. It was a necessity at first, but eventually there was enough population it was no longer a necessity and then it became an abomination.

So God had provided the right genetic material, had formed a man and woman's body with His own Hands and breathed His very Life into them. It doesn't get any purer than that. So I don't have a problem with Adam's sons marrying sisters because God was the one orchestrating it.

God had an agenda, a purpose and He made it such that these first generations could do exactly what He wanted them to do... be fruitful, multiply, replenish the earth, subdue and have dominion over it.

So God created them, He had provided a perfect environment for them, He had provided a protection over the earth, He had a plan in motion. So, yes, I believe those first generations could live a lot longer to accomplish God's purpose.

 So Adam lived 930 years. His son, Cain, killed his brother, Abel. There are no descendants of Abel. What about Cain? His name meant "aquired". Adam and Eve had acquired a son with the help of God. But Cain was jealous of others and lusted for the things of the world. God had shown Adam and Eve that the only pleasing sacrifice was a blood sacrifice. So a blood sacrifice was the prescribed way to worship God and Cain decided that he could do things his own way. Whereas Abel brought the prescribed animal sacrifice, Cain brought a sacrifice of produce. When God accepted Abel's sacrifice, Cain became hurt and jealous. But Cain had reasoned that God didn't have to be obeyed explicitly. God had said a blood sacrifice was the only acceptable way but Cain, in his self will, decided he knew better than God and brought only what he wanted to bring, a sacrifice of his produce.

Hebrews 11:4 (Contemporary English Version - CEV) Because Abel had faith, he offered God a better sacrifice than Cain did. God was pleased with him and his gift, and even though Abel is now dead, his faith still speaks for him.

Lest you think God was too hard on poor Cain, remember that Cain knew better. And God gave him a chance to repent and do it the right way.

Genesis 4:6-7 (Easy To Read Version - ERV) The LORD asked Cain, "Why are you angry? Why does your face look sad? (7) You know that if you do what is right, I will accept you. But if you don't, sin is ready to attack you. That sin will want to control you, but you must control it."

In Cain's hardness of heart, he refused to repent and obey. Cain can be described as sullen, selfwilled, haughty, vindictive, defiant.

1 John 3:12 (Easy To Read Version - ERV) Don't be like Cain. He belonged to the Evil One. Cain killed his brother. But why did he kill him? Because what Cain did was evil, and what his brother did was good.

What happened to Cain? After the murder of his brother, Abel, God exiled Cain and the Bible says he ended up in the land of Nod (means "exile"). In Nod, he and his wife had a son named Enoch and founded a city named after his son, Enoch. His descendants are enumerated to the sixth generation. They gradually degenerated in their moral and spiritual condition till they became wholly corrupt before God. To make up for his loss of fellowship with God and His people, Cain creates for himself an earthly center of unity; a civilization, but without God. Cain's descendant named Lamech began polygamy; Jabal, nomadic life; Jubal, musical instruments; Tubal-cain, working in brass and iron. Lamech made his manslaughters an occasion for composing poetry. The names of the women, Naamah (pleasant), Zillah (shadow), Adah (ornament), all imply refinement but when allied with godlessness, violence, and luxurious self indulgence brings corruption. So what we learn from the begat chapter of Genesis 4 is Cain and his descendants wanted the things of the world without God. They acquired much of the worthless because it was without God. They acquired wives and children but they were godless. They acquired knowledge and skills but it was without the blessing of God. They acquired land and cities but godless. His desendants became utterly corrupt and his line was extinguished in the Flood.

Now let's look at the begats in Genesis 5. You will notice that there are some names repeated. For instance, Cain had a son named Enoch and had a descendant named Methusael and Lamech. But in Genesis 5 we are looking at the descendants of Adam and Eve's son, Seth. So it's not the same Enoch, Lamech, etc.

In Genesis 5, ten generations are documented from Adam to Noah. The oldest recorded life span was Methuselah who lived 969 years! He lived just 39 years longer than Adam! Let's look at a timeline.



You will notice some interesting things as you study this chart. Did you realize that Adam was still alive when Noah's father, Lamech, was born (again, this is not the same Lamech as Cain's descendant by the same name in chapter 4)? Lamech could have known Adam! In fact, Lamech was born and lived 56 years before Adam died. Makes you wonder if he ever got to ask questions from his 6th great grandfather, Adam. If you had a chance to talk to an ancestor, who would it be and what would you ask them? How many times have I wanted to ask Adam and Eve, "Why?"

Did you see that Enoch had a "short" lifespan? Actually, Enoch never died. Enoch was taken to heaven without dying at 365 years of age.

Genesis 5:23-24 - KJV And all the days of Enoch were three hundred sixty and five years: And Enoch walked with God: and he was not; for God took him.

Methuselah, the oldest living man, died the year of the Flood!

Look again and you will notice that Noah was still alive when Abram (later Abraham) was born.

Let's learn a little about each of the names listed:

Seth - means "foundation" and "appointed". Seth took Abel's place as ancestor of the promised Seed, Jesus Christ. What promised seed? Well, look at Genesis 3:15 (Modern King James Version - MKJV) "And I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your seed and her Seed; He will bruise your head, and you shall bruise His heel." After the Fall, God prophesied that there would be a descendant of Eve who would deliver a mortal blow to satan. That would be Jesus Christ. Jesus was fully human on Mary's side and fully divine on God's side. The only human being to be sinless and therefore whose sacrifice could pay the price of sin and deliver us from eternal punishment. Adam handed down to Seth, and his descendants, the promise of mercy, faith in God. It would be from Seth's line that Noah would come. And Noah and his family were the only ones to survive the Flood. Therefore, it would be from Noah's line that eventually Mary, the mother of Jesus, would come. It is from Seth's line that Joseph, the adopted and legal father of Jesus would come. Let's look at Luke 3: 23-38. It's another "begat" chapter:

And Jesus Himself was beginning to be about thirty years of age, being (as was supposed) son of Joseph, son of of Heli,
(Luk 3:23)

son of of Matthat, son of of Levi, son of of Melchi, son of of Janna, son of of Joseph,
(Luk 3:24)

son of of Mattathias, son of of Amos, son of of Nahum, son of of Esli, son of of Naggai,
(Luk 3:25)

son of of Maath, son of of Mattathias, son of of Semei, son of of Joseph, son of of Juda,
(Luk 3:26)

son of of Joanna, son of of Rhesa, son of of Zerubbabel, son of of Shealtiel, son of of Neri,
(Luk 3:27)

son of of Melchi, son of of Addi, son of of Cosam, son of of Elmodam, son of of Er,
(Luk 3:28)

son of of Joses, son of of Eliezer, son of of Jorum, son of of Matthat, son of of Levi,
(Luk 3:29)

son of of Simeon, son of of Juda, son of of Joseph, son of of Jonan, son of of Eliakim,
(Luk 3:30)

son of of Melea, the son of Menan, son of of Mattatha, son of of Nathan, son of of David,
(Luk 3:31)

son of of Jesse, son of of Obed, son of of Boaz, son of of Salma, son of of Nahshon,
(Luk 3:32)

son of of Amminadab, son of of Ram, son of of Hezron, son of of Pharez, son of of Judah,
(Luk 3:33)

son of of Jacob, son of of Isaac, son of of Abraham, son of of Terah, son of of Nahor,
(Luk 3:34)

son of of Serug, son of of Reu, son of of Peleg, son of of Eber, son of of Shelah,
(Luk 3:35)

son of of Cainan, son of of Arphaxad, son of of Shem, son of of Noah, son of of Lamech,
(Luk 3:36)

son of of Methuselah, son of of Enoch, son of of Jared, son of of Mahalaleel, son of of Cainan,
(Luk 3:37)

son of Enos, son of of Seth, son of of Adam, son of of God.
(Luk 3:38)


The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge (TSK) - Mary not being mentioned, because the Hebrews never permitted the name of a woman to enter the genealogical tables, but inserted her husband as the son of him who was, in reality, but his father-in-law. Hence it appears that Matthew, who wrote principally for the Jews, traces the pedigree of Jesus Christ from Abraham, through whom the promises were given to the Jews, to David, and from David, through the line of Solomon, to Jacob the father of Joseph, the reputed or legal father of Christ; and that Luke, who wrote for the Gentiles, extends his genealogy upwards from Heli, the father of Mary, through the line of Nathan, to David, and from David to Abraham, and from Abraham to Adam, who was the immediate "son of God" by creation, and to whom the promise of the Saviour was given in behalf of himself and all his posterity. The two branches of descent from David, by Solomon and Nathan, being thus united in the persons of Mary and Joseph, Jesus the son of Mary re-united in himself all the blood, privileges, and rights, of the whole family of David; in consequence of which he is emphatically called "the Son of David."

So now we know that Jesus Christ was descended from the line of Seth through his mother Mary and through his legal adoptive father, Joseph!

An extra-biblical source, Josephus, says that Seth was a very good man, and brought up his children well, who trod in Adam's steps, and who studied the nature of the heavenly bodies; and that the knowledge of these things they had acquired might not be lost, remembering a prophecy of Adam, that the world should be destroyed both by fire and by water, they erected two pillars, called Seth's pillars; the one was made of brick, and the other of stone, on which they inscribed their observations, that so if that of brick was destroyed by a flood - Gill's Exposition of the Entire Bible

Seth's son was Enosh, or Enos, meaning frailty, mortality. Genesis 4:26 (KJV) And to Seth, to him also there was born a son; and he called his name Enos: then began men to call upon the name of the LORD.

Enoch, the son of Cain, had a city named after him in the land of Nod. The descendants of Cain, through Enoch, were godless. On the other hand, the son of Seth, Enosh, realized his weakness and dependence on God. There seems to be a parallel being drawn between Cain's Enoch and Seth's Enosh. Men began "to call upon the name of the Lord" in Enosh' time. This either meant they began to call themselves by the name of the Lord, indicating a true relationship with Him in comparison with ungodly men (Cain's descendants). Or it meant that they called upon the name of the Lord as in a spiritual revival. Either way, these descendants of Adam and Eve, through Seth and Enosh, were worshippers of God and made a distinction between true religion and the ungodly world around them.

Next came Enos' eldest son, Cainan (aka Kenan). Cainan means to possess, smith, weapon maker. There are actually two Cainans mentioned in the Bible, both in genealogical lists. This one is the son of Enos (or Enosh). The other is the son of Arphaxad (Luke 3:36, see above scripture). This second Cainan is not in the Hebrew manuscripts and is not named in the three Old Testament genealogies.

Luke 3:36 is the only verse in the Bible where one can read of the patriarch Arphaxad having a son named Cainan. Although another Cainan (the son of Enosh) is mentioned seven times in Scripture (Genesis 5:9-10,12-14; 1 Chronicles 1:2; Luke 3:37), outside of Luke 3:36, Cainan, the son of Arphaxad, is never mentioned. He is omitted in the genealogies of Genesis 10 and 11, as well as in the genealogy of 1 Chronicles 1:1-28. When the son of Arphaxad is listed in these genealogies, the name always given is Salah (or Shelah), not Cainan. - by Eric Lyon, M. Min

The next patriarch listed is Mahalaleel, son of Cainan (Kenan). Mahalaleel means praise of God or glory of God. It comes from the root, halal, in which we get Hallelujah!

The next descendant was Jared (or Jered) which means descent. It either refers to his descending from Adam through Seth, Enosh, Cainana (Kenan), Mahalaleel. Or it refers to the first 5 generations being godfearing but from Jared down, the descendants begin to degenerate and fall away from God. Jared lived 962 years and is the second oldest living person.

The Book of Enoch (one of the apocryphal writings) is an ancient Jewish religious work, ascribed by tradition to Enoch, the great-grandfather of Noah, although modern scholars estimate the older sections (mainly in the Book of the Watchers) to date from about 300 BC, and the latest part (Book of Parables) probably to the first century BC. It is not part of the biblical canon as used by Jews, apart from Beta Israel. Most Christian denominations and traditions may accept the Books of Enoch as having some historical or theological interest or significance, but they generally regard the Books of Enoch as non-canonical or non-inspired. It is regarded as canonical by the Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church and Eritrean Orthodox Tewahedo Church, but not by any other Christian group. According to the Book of Enoch, Mahalalel named [his son] Jared "descent or to descend" because during his lifetime the angels of the Lord who were called Watchers descended to earth upon the mount of Hermon. Hermon also means "to swear" as the Watchers "swore" to take wives of human women (this was forbidden by God) due to a strong desire for their beauty. In their lust and subsequent procreation, the Watchers had sons by human women called "The Nephelim" or "fallen ones"...(also referred to as the Giants). The Watchers taught their wives and sons forbidden and secret knowledge that corrupted the hearts and minds of mankind which eventually led to the destruction of the first world through the flood of Noah. - Wikipedia

The biblical book of Jude quotes from the Book of Enoch in verses 14-15, “Enoch, the seventh from Adam, prophesied about these men: ‘See, the Lord is coming with thousands upon thousands of his holy ones to judge everyone, and to convict all the ungodly of all the ungodly acts they have done in the ungodly way, and of all the harsh words ungodly sinners have spoken against him.’” But this does not mean the Book of Enoch is inspired by God and should be in the Bible.

Next is Enoch (Henoch), the son of Jared and father of Methuselah. Enoch means initiated, dedicated, consecrated. In Jude 1: 14, he is described as the seventh generation from Adam. The number seven usually symbolizes divine completeness and rest (as in the seventh day of creation was the day when God was finished and rested). Enoch was translated to heaven without dying. Genesis 5:24 (ERV) "One day Enoch was walking with God, and he disappeared. God took him." Enoch and Noah are written as having walked with God. Walking with God is a relic of the first paradise when man talked and walked with God in holy familiarity, and an anticipation of the second when we will once again be able to commune with God freely in His Presence.
Revelation 21:3 (ERV) I heard a loud voice from the throne. It said, "Now God's home is with people. He will live with them. They will be his people. God himself will be with them and will be their God.

Hebrews 11:4-6 (ERV) Cain and Abel both offered sacrifices to God. But Abel offered a better sacrifice to God because he had faith. God said he was pleased with what Abel offered. And so God called him a good man because he had faith. Abel died, but through his faith he is still speaking. (5) Enoch was carried away from this earth, so he never died. The Scriptures tell us that before he was carried off, he was a man who pleased God. Later, no one knew where he was, because God had taken Enoch to be with him. This all happened because he had faith. (6) Without faith no one can please God. Whoever comes to God must believe that he is real and that he rewards those who sincerely try to find him.

Enoch lived on earth far fewer years than his ancestors and some of his descendants but yet the Bible has more to say about him. He not only begat sons and daughters, including Methuselah, but his family ties did not keep him from a relationship with God. God's gift of children awakened in him a new love to God and a deeper sense of responsibility. The words, "walked with God", indicates a life of intimate communion with God.

Next is Methuselah. Methuselah was the son of Enoch, father of Lamech and grandfather of Noah. The Bible doesn't give any indication of his godliness or lack thereof. Just that he was the longest living man. His name means his death shall bring judgment, man of the dart or spear. When Methuselah was born, his godly father, Enoch, must have prophetically known of coming things for his son's name means "when he dies, judgment," We do not know if he died in the flood waters or of another cause just before the Flood. He had a godly father and his son, Lamech, prophesied with spiritual insight at the birth of his son, Noah. Does this indicate that Methuselah was a godly man? On the other hand, he was not on the Ark and the Bible says God was judging the world because of the rampant sin. Does this indicate that he was ungodly?

Genesis 6:5-7 (KJV) And GOD saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually. (6) And it repented the LORD that he had made man on the earth, and it grieved him at his heart. (7) And the LORD said, I will destroy man whom I have created from the face of the earth; both man, and beast, and the creeping thing, and the fowls of the air; for it repenteth me that I have made them.

We just don't know so we really can't speculate. Was he the last martyr for God before the Flood or was he as evil as the rest of humanity. All we know is he lived 969 years and died the year of the Flood.

Next is Lamech (or Lemech) who was the son of Methuselah and father of Noah. Adam was still alive when Lamech was born.

All the patriarchs that lived before the flood, except Noah, were born before Adam died. From him they might receive a full account of the creation, the fall, the promise, and the Divine precepts about religious worship and a religious life. Thus God kept up in his church the knowledge of his will. - Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary

Lamech means poor, made low, wild man and to strike down. Cain's descendant named Lamech had two wives and is considered the father of polygamy. "He does not put his trust in God, but in the weapons and implements invented by his sons, or rather these instruments, enhancing the physical and material powers of man, are his God. He glories in them" - International Bible Encyclopedia

But the Lamech in Seth's line had a believing hope in God's promise. He prophesied when he named his son, Noah. Genesis 5:29, (Bible in Basic English - BBE) "And he gave him the name of Noah, saying, Truly, he will give us rest from our trouble and the hard work of our hands, because of the earth which was cursed by God."

Romans 8:19-24 (CEV) In fact, all creation is eagerly waiting for God to show who his children are. (20) Meanwhile, creation is confused, but not because it wants to be confused. God made it this way in the hope (21) that creation would be set free from decay and would share in the glorious freedom of his children. (22) We know that all creation is still groaning and is in pain, like a woman about to give birth. (23) The Spirit makes us sure about what we will be in the future. But now we groan silently, while we wait for God to show that we are his children. This means that our bodies will also be set free. (24) And this hope is what saves us. But if we already have what we hope for, there is no need to keep on hoping.

2 Peter 3:13 (CEV) But God has promised us a new heaven and a new earth, where justice will rule. We are really looking forward to that!

What a comparison! Cain's Lamech was defiant and relying on the things of this world for his happiness and security. But Seth's Lamech was relying on God to bring about His promises and the hope of real and lasting happiness, peace and security through God's Ways and in God's Timing!

The last one in this "begat" chapter is Noah. Noah is the 10th in descent from Adam, son of Lamech, builder of the Ark. His name means rest or repose. Resting in God, resting in God's provision, trusting in God's ways. He obeyed God in building the Ark and was rewarded by safety in God's providence despite the Flood.

Up until the Flood, the earth had been watered by mists and protected by a water covering (ice or some such covering). Noah had three sons: Shem, Ham and Japheth. Noah, his wife and his three sons and their wives were the only human beings saved during the Flood.

Genesis 6:1-22 (MKJV) And it happened, when men began to multiply on the face of the earth, and when daughters were born to them, (2) the sons of God saw the daughters of men, that they were good. And they took wives for themselves from all whom they chose. (3) And Jehovah said, My spirit shall not always strive with man, in his erring; he is flesh. Yet his days shall be a hundred and twenty years. (4) There were giants in the earth in those days. And also after that, when the sons of God came in to the daughters of men, and they bore to them, they were mighty men who existed of old, men of renown. (5) And Jehovah saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually. (6) And Jehovah repented that He had made man on the earth, and He was angry to His heart. (7) And Jehovah said, I will destroy man whom I have created, from the face of the earth, both man, and beast, and the creeping thing, and the fowls of the air. For I repent that I have made them. (8) But Noah found grace in the eyes of Jehovah. (9) These are the generations of Noah. Noah was a just man and perfect in his generations. Noah walked with God. (10) And Noah fathered three sons, Shem, Ham, and Japheth. (11) The earth also was corrupt before God, and the earth was filled with violence. (12) And God looked upon the earth. And, behold, it was corrupted! For all flesh had corrupted its way upon the earth. (13) And God said to Noah, The end of all flesh has come before Me, for the earth is filled with violence through them. And, behold, I will destroy them with the earth. (14) Make an ark of cyprus timbers. You shall make rooms in the ark. And you shall pitch it inside and outside with pitch. (15) And this is the way you shall make it. The length of the ark shall be three hundred cubits, the breadth of it shall be fifty cubits and its height thirty cubits. (16) You shall make a window in the ark, and you shall finish it above to a cubit. And you shall set the door of the ark in the side of it. You shall make it with lower, second and third stories. (17) And behold! I, even I, am bringing a flood of waters upon the earth in order to destroy all flesh (in which is the breath of life) from under the heavens. Everything which is in the earth shall die. (18) But I will establish My covenant with you. And you shall come into the ark, you and your sons and your wife and your sons' wives with you. (19) And you shall bring into the ark two of every kind, of every living thing of all flesh, to keep them alive with you. They shall be male and female. (20) Two of every kind shall come to you to keep them alive; of fowls after their kind, and of cattle after their kind, of every creeping thing of the earth after its kind. (21) And take for yourself all food that is eaten, and you shall gather for yourself. And it shall be for food, for you and for them. (22) Noah did so, according to all that God commanded him, so he did.

Look at verse 2, "the sons of God saw the daughters of men, that they were good. And they took wives for themselves from all whom they chose." Who were the "sons of God"? benē 'ĕlōhı̄m, “sons of God”. They were offspring of the "sons of God" and the "daughters of men" before the Flood (or Deluge). This offspring was called the Nephilim or Giants. Possibly where the ancient religions got their "giant" gods such as Zeus or Hercules. Goliath was one who had this Nephilim blood in him. Possibly through one of Noah's sons' wives. We know that Noah and his sons had no diluted blood, but were human beings descended through Seth. But, perhaps one of the sons' wives had that supernatural bloodline in her and that is where the giants in the Old Testament came from. There had been an unholy commingling between the fallen angels and the human race. This could not continue. Jesus was set to rescue mankind. But our blood had to be pure, we had to be human, not some type of halflings.

Jude 1:6 (BBE) And the angels who did not keep to their kingdom but went out from the place which was theirs, he has put in eternal chains and in dark night till the great day of the judging.

Numbers 13:33 (BBE) There we saw those great men, the sons of Anak, offspring of the Nephilim: and we seemed to ourselves no more than insects, and so we seemed to them.

Genesis 6:8-9 (KJV) But Noah found grace in the eyes of the LORD. (9) These are the generations of Noah: Noah was a just man and perfect in his generations, and Noah walked with God.

Noah and his sons were still completely human. Noah had a relationship with God and was known by God. He"walked with God" like Enoch, his great grandfather. But it seems that Noah and his immediate family were the only ones that would make it through the Great Deluge. Cain's line and all those who had mixed blood with fallen angels had created a hell on earth.

So God told Noah what was coming and what to do. It took Noah 120 years to build the Ark.

Genesis 6:3 And the LORD said, My spirit shall not always strive with man, for that he also is flesh: yet his days shall be an hundred and twenty years.

Mankind’s violence and evil had reached its peak and God declared that 120 years was the “drop dead” date for mankind. Scholars think Noah had from 55-120 years to build the Ark. When it was time, God led the animals and Noah and his family into the Ark and God shut the door of the Ark. Noah's Ark was 440 feet long by 73 feet wide by 44 feet high. It had three internal divisions (which are not actually called "decks", although presumably this is what is intended), a door in the side, and a sohar, which may be either a roof or a skylight.

Genesis 7:1 (KJV) And the LORD said unto Noah, Come thou and all thy house into the ark; for thee have I seen righteous before me in this generation.

Genesis 7:16 (KJV) And they that went in, went in male and female of all flesh, as God had commanded him: and the LORD shut him in.

Then the water covering that had surrounded the earth through Ten Generations from Adam to Noah, broke. For the first time, it rained. But not just a rain like we know it today. It was truly a deluge. The water covering broke and deluged and flooded the whole earth. It killed every animal, bird and human except those safely resting in God's providential care in the Ark. God provided a way to rescue Noah and his family. God was trustworthy and did what He promised to do. Noah had faith that God would take care of him and proved that faith by obeying and building the Ark. God provided a way of escape, a refuge in the midst of judgment. He has done that for us today, through His Son, Jesus Christ. This world is still a sinful world and we are born with a sinful nature. But God provided a way of escape, by believing and trusting in salvation through Jesus Christ. Jesus has done the work, we only need to accept it and rest therein. Jesus is our Ark of protection, provision and security. Like Noah, we can rest in God's Hands and trust in His Way.

We have come to the end of studying a "begat" chapter. Was it boring after all? I hope not. I found it thrilling. Once again, the scarlet thread of Jesus is woven through this Old Testament genealogy. We see that not only was Jesus descended from Seth's line through Mary but also how Jesus is our Ark of Safety, the provision of God for our salvation. Once again, I come to the conclusion that the Bible is perfect, inerrant and deeply meaningful and relevant to me today.

• Keep a box in a closet for donations. As you come across clothes or other items you wish to give away, toss in the box. Once it's full, take it to your favorite charity.
• Go through your linens and pull any old towels or dish towels. If they are ragged, stained, too thin it's time to decide what you want to do with them. You can take some scissors and cut them into rags for cleaning, washing the car, paint rags, etc. Or you can donate them to your local vet or humane society or pet groomers. They always need washing/drying rags.
• Create a Google (or other, such as Yahoo) calendar. Use this to track everything. I have a gmail email account. No matter what computer or software or device I use, I can always access Google and my gmail. With this same gmail account, I have a calendar. I use this calendar to schedule when bills are due, when I need to refill a perscription, my appointments, when to change my air filter or change the oil in my car, etc. It's color coded and you can add others to events with emailed reminders. It's a one-stop place I check every morning and evening. I even keep up with the weather, how I feel that day, what I accomplished that day (like a mini diary). All this is digital and accessible via my tablet, smart phone, laptop. No paper, no journal, no paper calendar or daybook or planner.
• Sign up for ebills to lessen the amount of papers that come in. Save in pdf format and organize on your computer in annual folders. For instance, I have a folder for 2016 and within that folder are subfolders for Utitlities, Credit Card Statements, Bank Statements, etc. Almost all these things can come to you digitally now or you can scan them as they come in. Just sign up at your bank for ebank statements. Same for credit cards and some utilities, as well as 401k statements, etc.
• Create a cloud based storage account and make backups on the cloud. This makes it accessible from any device but also keeps it safe. If your house burned down, was flooded, destroyed by a tornado or hurricane, you would have backups offsite in the cloud. Cloud storage refers to a company who has a huge storage server somewhere that you can store your files either free (for a minimal amount of storage) or for a fee (for more storage). I keep at least my most important, cannot lose files on cloud storage for easy access from anywhere and as backup.
• Prep station or launch station. As you come in and go out, there is a place where you keep your purse, your keys, your cell phone, things to come in or go out. This is your action station. Most people usually use a place near the door you use to come in and out. I heard that you should always keep your keys and your cell phone in your bedroom. That way, if someone breaks into your house, you can use your remote on your key chain to set off the car panic alert and use your cell phone to call for help. Therefore, I made a closet in my bedroom as my launch station. I put shelves in there to hold things that I need to take with me on my next trip out. Maybe it's a box of items to donate, or coupons for my trip to the grocery store, or the bag with an item to return to a store, etc. In that closet, I also keep a basket for incoming mail, my camera (I take it most places), a mirror for touchups before going out. My shredder is there and junk mail goes through there first, then the rest of the mail goes in the incoming basket for further processing later. I have some tote bags already made up for some regularly scheduled things like club meetings and church. For instance I have a tote bag with a Bible, pen and spiral notebook to take to church and Bible study. I have a tote bag with my DAR club manual, member list, spiral notebook (I'm the secretary and have to take minutes) and the table flags. I have also made a tote bag for the gym. These are also kept in my closet in my bedroom.
• As you purchase herbs and spices, use your labeler to put the purchase date on the jar or canister. Toss herbs and spices that are over a year old. It's lost it's flavor.
• As the season begins to change, take any seasonal clothes to be drycleaned. For instance, as spring comes on, it's time to take coats, jackets, sweaters, wool suits and other winter clothes to the dry cleaner. Take furs to storage. As Fall comes on, take your silk, linen summer items to the drycleaner. It's a good time to sort and go through your wardrobe and get rid of items that you aren't wearing.
• Use Wish Lists at online shopping sites like Amazon. I not only put things I would like to purchase, but I also put items I think would make good gifts for someone and make a note (there are places for comments and notes) as to who I would like to get this for. I also use it to keep up with things I need to re-order. For instance, I purchase my vacuum cleaner bags from Amazon so I have that on my wish list with a comment and it's easy to go back to find and re-order. I also have a digital labeler attached to my laptop. I have it on my wish list so that when it comes time to re-order the label tape, I can find it easily. If I come across books I want to check out, I put on my wish list and then check with the library to see if they have that book, before I order it. I use my wish list at Amazon very extensively. Keep up with your favorite products like my favorite bra maker, size, style.
• Keep 1-2 sets of sheets for each bed. No more. I prefer to take sheets off, wash and dry and put them right back on. That saves me folding them. But I keep one extra set in case something happens and I need to change sheets right then. For instance, if my dog (who sleeps with me) has an accident one evening, I need fresh sheets without having to wait for them to wash and dry.
• Do you really need to collect CDs or DVDs? I don't any more. I can do it all through Netflix, Youtube, Amazon Prime, and digital music. You can hoard all you want as long as it's digitally. That takes less money and there is no clutter or need for storage or maintenance. Same with books and magazines!
• Get a decent scanner and learn to use it. You can scan birthday cards and save as a jpg file and toss the hard copy. You can scan bills or invoices or receipts as you come in and save digitally, toss the hard copy. Scan artwork by your children and save as a jpg file. Scan and organize your digital files. Make backups in the cloud or on an external hard drive (or both) and rely on these digital files.
• Yard stuff - My husband has an old pair of shoes he wears in the yard, along with a pair of work gloves. I keep them in a plastic shoebox (for $1 at the Dollar Tree). This keeps them outside the house (no trailing grass clippings inside) but safe from spiders and bugs. I don't want to stick my feet in a pair of yard shoes that have been sitting on my porch only to get a spider bite. Same with your gloves. So make it a habit to put those gloves and shoes in the box and store in the closet by the door, on the back porch or in the gardening shed. Wherever it makes sense for you and is convenient.
• Be sure any old photos are safely stored in acid free boxes or acid free photo albums. Whether you are highly organized and have them sorted by year, theme or person or you just have a bag full of lose photos... please store them in an acid free box or album. Digital photos are stored on your computer but be sure you have backups on an external hard drive or cloud (or both).
• As you come in or change clothes, put your jewelry away. Do NOT lay them anywhere but put them back where they belong in your jewelry box, drawer or rack. As soon as I come in, I put my purse down, hang up my keys and go to my jewelry box. I remove my jewelry, even my wedding rings and put them away. This keeps them cleaner, safe and easy to find. No hunting for earrings by the phone and rings by the kitchen sink or necklaces by the bed.

Christmas Eve at Stan's mother's home. Peggy has hosted Christmas Eve for the family all our 38 years of marriage. Her home is getting a little small for all the family. We're outgrowing it! LOL!





Great Uncle Stan with our grandnephew, Will.





My sister, Elaine, is talking to her daughter, Jenny, in California. Jenny, Kyle and their 3 children are an Air Force family and he's stationed in California. We miss them so much but whenever we all get together, we facetime, Skype or call via cellphone.





Kenny and his middle son, Aaron.



Kenny and Anna's eldest son, Evans, and their youngest son, Logan.



Our grandniece, Savannah, took these photos. Here I am from her viewpoint using my camera.





Stan's youngest sister, Angie.





Evans' wife, Chelsea.





Aaron



Hannah, Luke's wife and mother of Savannah and Will.





Luke, Hannah and Will



Kenny holding his grandson, Cash.



Peggy is talking to Jenny, her granddaughter. Great Aunt Kathi with her grandniece, Savannah.



Anna with her grandson, Cash.



Stan with another grandniece, Reagan.



Stan talking to Jenny on the cell phone.



Anna and Cash







Will, Cash and Savannah as they open their gifts.





Kenny, Anna and Savannah opening gifts.













Chelsea helping her son, Cash, open gifts.







Reagan opening her gifts



















Kenny and his youngest son, Logan.



Savannah loves having her picture taken. She loves to make faces too. So I bribed her. I told her if she would let me take a sweet picture, then I would take a picture of one of her faces. That way I got both!



















Ronnie and his sister, Kathi, and her husband, Eddie.









Logan, Dustin, Katie, Chelsea and Reagan.




Christmas brunch with my family at Elaine and Ronnie's home. It was warm enough we were able to enjoy sitting on the screened in porch.



Mom holding one of Elaine's dogs.



Our nephew, Lee. Melinda and Mike's son.



Elaine holding one of her dogs.







Me



Elaine's husband, Ronnie.











My youngest sister, Melinda.











Melinda playing with Elaine's hair.





My Daddy



Facetiming with our niece, Jenny, and her family in California.
























Hannah, Luke's wife, mother of Savannah and Will.









Mom and her younger brother, Uncle Glenn.





Melinda's husband, Mike. Lee's father.



















Luke and Hannah's daughter, Savannah. Elaine and Ronnie's granddaughter, our grandniece.













Uncle Glenn's wife, Aunt Janis.





Luke and Hannah's son, Will. Elaine and Ronnie's grandson, our grandnephew.









Our nephew, Luke. Elaine and Ronnie's son.

































Ronnie and Elaine's dog, Trouble. A beautiful cream Pomeranian.

Conner Genealogy

William Albert Conner and Elizabeth Dalton are my fifth great grandfather. William Albert Conner was born about 1796 in Bills Creek, Rutherford County, NC. I don't know who are his parents right now.



William Albert Conner married Elizabeth Dalton. Elizabeth Dalton was born about 1796 in NC. I don't know who her parents are right now.

William Albert Conner and Elizabeth Dalton had 5 children that I'm aware of:

1) Isaac Jackson Conner (DOB 1817-1820 in Rutherford County, NC; DOD After 1871 in Rutherford County, NC) married Adaline Thomason (DOB 1816-1826 in Rutherford County, NC; DOD After 1870 in Rutherford County, NC). They had James Conner, Erwin McCoy Conner, Joseph Washington Conner, Thomas Conner, Martha Conner Wilson, William M. Conner, Emily Conner and Ursilla Lucilla Conner Wilson.

2) Martha "Patsy" Conner (DOB About 1826 in Bills Creek, Rutherford County, NC; DOD After 1880, Chimney Rock, Rutherford County, NC) married Marcus Rollin Crawford (DOB 1820-1822 in Rutherford County, NC; DOD After 1870 in Chimney Rock, Rutherford County, NC). They had Louisa Ida Jane Crawford (Joshua Ledbetter Grant), Felix M. Crawford (Sarah Elvira Halford), James Crawford, John C. Crawford (Almira Jestine Dalton), Rachel Manerva Crawford (Gilbert Pinckney Conner), Mary Martha Marannas Crawford (aka Polly Crawford)(Rev. Jonathon "John" M. Hall), Rhoda Malinda Crawford (Moses James Hall).

3) Sarah Alta Conner (DOB About 1833 in Bills Creek, Rutherford County, NC; DOD After 1910 in Rutherford County, NC) married 1st Noah Wesley Dalton (DOB About 1832 in Bills Creek, Rutherford County, NC; DOD 12/24/1863 in Camp Douglas, Cook County, IL) and 2nd James Wilson (DOB About 1808 in NC; DOD ? in ? ). They had Whitington Wilson, Lewis Wilson, Elvira Wilson, William Wilson, Myra Wilson, Elizabeth Wilson, Jane Wilson, Manerva Wilson, Mary C. Wilson, Simon Wilson.

4) Johnathon Conner (DOB 2/14/1834 in Bills Creek, Rutherford County, NC; DOD 3/28/1906 in Henderson County, NC) married Nancy Adaline Griggs (DOB 7/10/1838 in NC; DOD 2/26/1935 in Edneyville, Henderson County, NC). They had Marcus Alexander Conner (Harriet "Hattie" L. Unknown), Martha Elizabeth Jane Conner (Flavius Josephus Huntley), Joseph Grayson Conner (Emma Oland Casey), William Albert Conner (Ursilla Drucilla "Silla" Hill), Elizabeth Ann Jane Connor (John N. Hill and Flavius Josephus Huntley).

5) William Albert Conner, Jr. (DOB About 1838 in Bills Creek, Rutherford County, NC; DOD 3/4/1893 in Bat Cave, Henderson County, NC) married Elizabeth Harriet William (DOB 3/30/1836 in Henderson County, NC; DOD 10/23/1911 in Bat Cave, Henderson County, NC). They had George Washington "General" Conner (Naomi "Oma" Caroline Sawyer and Susan Alice Wilkie), Laura E. Connor (John William Wilson), Alice May Connor (John William Wilson), Cynthia Susan Luella "Ella" Conner (Columbus "Lum" Oates), Marcus "Mark" Napoleon "Ian" Connor (Harriet "Hattie" Adeline Barnwell), William "Will" Mitchell Connor (Sarah Alza Leah Wilson and Mary Ann Virginia "Jenny" Freeman), Jeanette Vernetta "Nettie" Bessie Connor (Benjamin Franklin "Frank" Huntley), Mary "Mollie" Jane Connor (John Moton Freeman, Sr.), Samuel Rutledge Connor (Hattie Lillie Huntley), Thomas "Tom" Burgin Connor (Lillian Mariah Morrow), Jerome Conner, Naomi "Oma" Connor (Merritt Gaston), Hattie T. Connor (Steven Gaston Freeman).

1830 U.S. Census of Rutherford County, North Carolina, Series: M19; Roll: 124; Page: 447; Family History Library Film: 0018090, "William Conners" (sic)
Name: William Conners
[William Croner]
Home in 1830 (City, County, State): Rutherford, North Carolina
Free White Persons - Males - 5 thru 9: 2 (Isaac Jackson Conner would have been 3-13 yrs old.)
Free White Persons - Males - 10 thru 14: 2 (? ?)
Free White Persons - Males - 30 thru 39: 1 (William Albert Conner would have been 34 yrs old)
Free White Persons - Females - 5 thru 9: 1 (Martha Patsy Conner would have been 4 yrs old)
Free White Persons - Females - 30 thru 39: 1 (Elizabeth Dalton Conner would have been 35 yrs old)
Free White Persons - Under 20: 5
Free White Persons - 20 thru 49: 2
Total Free White Persons: 7
Total - All Persons (Free White, Slaves, Free Colored): 7

1840 U.S. Census of West of North Fork, Burke County, North Carolina; Roll: 355; Page: 345; Image: 700; Family History Library Film: 0018092, Line 16, "Wm Conner"
Ross Massey
Jas Bright
Cornelius Welch
Wm Morris
Jas C. Dawson
Jas Berryman
Sarah Bright
Jas M. Gibson
Mary Bell
Henry Bell
Jno Arrowood
Jno Woodey

Wm Conner
Name: Wm Conner
Home in 1840 (City, County, State): West of North Fork, Burke, North Carolina
Free White Persons - Males - Under 5: 1
Free White Persons - Males - 5 thru 9: 1
Free White Persons - Males - 10 thru 14: 2
Free White Persons - Males - 40 thru 49: 1 (William Albert Conner would have been 44 yrs old)
Free White Persons - Females - 5 thru 9: 1
Free White Persons - Females - 20 thru 29: 1
Free White Persons - Females - 40 thru 49: 1 (Elizabeth Dalton Conner would have been 44 yrs old)
Persons Employed in Agriculture: 3
No. White Persons over 20 Who Cannot Read and Write: 1
Free White Persons - Under 20: 5
Free White Persons - 20 thru 49: 3
Total Free White Persons: 8
Total All Persons - Free White, Free Colored, Slaves: 8

Jas H. Ferney
Jno J. Falconer
B.M. Bracket

Isaac Conner
Name: Isaac Conner
Home in 1840 (City, County, State): West of North Fork, Burke, North Carolina
Free White Persons - Males - Under 5: 2
Free White Persons - Males - 10 thru 14: 1
Free White Persons - Males - 40 thru 49: 1
Free White Persons - Females - Under 5: 1
Free White Persons - Females - 5 thru 9: 2
Free White Persons - Females - 10 thru 14: 2
Free White Persons - Females - 30 thru 39: 1
Persons Employed in Agriculture: 2
No. White Persons over 20 Who Cannot Read and Write: 2
Free White Persons - Under 20: 8
Free White Persons - 20 thru 49: 2
Total Free White Persons: 10
Total All Persons - Free White, Free Colored, Slaves: 10
Wm Conner
Name: Wm Conner
Home in 1840 (City, County, State): West of North Fork, Burke, North Carolina
Free White Persons - Males - Under 5: 1
Free White Persons - Males - 5 thru 9: 1
Free White Persons - Males - 10 thru 14: 2
Free White Persons - Males - 40 thru 49: 1
Free White Persons - Females - 5 thru 9: 1
Free White Persons - Females - 20 thru 29: 1
Free White Persons - Females - 40 thru 49: 1
Persons Employed in Agriculture: 3
No. White Persons over 20 Who Cannot Read and Write: 1
Free White Persons - Under 20: 5
Free White Persons - 20 thru 49: 3
Total Free White Persons: 8
Total All Persons - Free White, Free Colored, Slaves: 8

Wesley Barnet
Jno Sping
M.S. Perkins
Thos Meschell
Levi Perkins
Jess Abbott
Marthy Brucket
Jos Brucket
Bastury Brucket


1850 U.S. Census of Bills Creek, Rutherford County, North Carolina; Roll: M432_644; Page: 329B; Image: 205, Dwelling 1414 and 1415 and 1416 and 1419 and 1420, Family 1462 and 1463 and 1464 and 1667 and 1668, "Jackson Canner" and "Isaac Cornor" and "William Conner" (sic, it is Jackson Conner, Isaac Conner and William Conner), "Marcus Crawford", "Margaret Conner"
Jackson Cannor, 30 yrs old (DOB 1820), M(ale), W(hite), Labor, Real Estate Value $50, Born in NC
Adaline Cannor, 31 yrs old (DOB 1819), F, W, Born in NC
James Cannor, 15 yrs old DOB 1835), M, W, Born in NC, Attends school
Ervin Cannor, 10 yrs old (DOB 1840), M, W, Born in NC, Attends School
Joseph Cannor, 7 yrs old (DOB 1843), M, W, Born in NC
Thomas Cannor, 3 yrs old (DOB 1847), M, W, Born in NC
Martha Cannor, 1 yrs old (DOB 1849), F, W, Born in NC
Nancy Thomason, 65 yrs old (DOB 1785), F, W, Born in NC
Isaac Cannor, 49 yrs old (DOB 1801), M, W, Farmer, $100 Real Estate Value, Born in NC
Rosana Cannor, 45 yrs old (DOB 1805), F, W, Born in NC
Susannah Cannor, 17 yrs old (DOB 1833), F, W, Born in NC, Attends School
Cyntha Cannor, 14 yrs old (DOB 1836), F, W, Born in NC, Attends school
Samuel Cannor, 12 yrs old (DOB 1838), M, W, Born in NC, Attends school
William Cannor, 10 yrs old (DOB 1840), M, W, Born in NC, Attends school
Sophiar Cannor, 6 yrs old (DOB 1844), F, W, Born in NC
Calvin Cannor, 4 yrs old (DOB 1846), M, W, Born in NC
William Canner, 52 yrs old (DOB 1798), M, W, Farmer, $100 Real Estate Value, Born in NC
Elizabeth Conner, 52 yrs old (DOB 1798), F, W, Born in NC
Atta Conner, 17 yrs old (DOB 1833), F, W, Born in NC
Johnathon Conner, M, W, Born in NC
Albert Conner, 12 yrs old (DOB 1838), M, W, Born in NC
Marcus Crawford, 28 yrs old (DOB 1822), M(ale), W(hite), House carpenter, Born in NC
Martha Crawford, 25 yrs old (DOB 1825), F, W, Born in NC
Louisa Crawford, 4/12 mos old (DOB 1850), F, W, Born in NC
William Crawford, 12 yrs old (DOB 1838), M, W, Born in NC
Margaret Connor (sic), 30 yrs old (DOB 1820), F, W, Head, Born in NC


1860 U.S. Census of Buffalo, Rutherford County, North Carolina; Roll: M653_913; Page: 371; Image: 192; Family History Library Film: 803913, Family 1392, Lines 23-25, "Wm Conner"
Wm Conner, 64 yrs old (DOB 1796), M(ale), W(hite), Day laborer, $0 Real estate value, $0 Personal estate value, Born in NC Elizabeth Conner, 64 yrs old (DOB 1796), F, W, Born in NC
Albert Conner, 22 yrs old (DOB 1838), M, W, Born in NC
Noah and Alto Dalton


1870 U.S. Census of Chimney Rock, Rutherford County, North Carolina; Roll: M593_1159; Page: 16B; Image: 36; Family History Library Film: 552658, Family 26, Lines 7-16, "Marcus Crofford" (sic, Marcus Crawford)
Marcus Crofford, 50 yrs old (DOB 1820), M(ale), W(hite), Farming, $500 Real estate value, $250 Personal estate value, Born in NC, Cannot read or write
Martha Crofford, 45 yrs old (DOB 1825), F, W, Keeping house, Bron in NC, Cannot read or write
Loiza Crofford (sic), 20 yrs old (DOB 1850), F, W, At home, Born in NC, Can read, Cannot write
Felix M. Crofford, 19 yrs old (DOB 1851), M, W, Working on farm, Born in NC, Can read, Cannot write
James Crofford, 15 yrs old (DOB 1855), M, W, Farming, Born in NC, Cannot read or write
John Crofford, 13 yrs old (DOB 1857), M, W, At home, Born in NC, Cannot read or write
Manerva Crofford, 11 yrs old (DOB 1859), M (sic), W, At home, Born in NC
Mary Crofford, 7 yrs old (DOB 1863), M (sic), W, At home, Born in NC
Rhody M. Crofford, 3 yrs old (DOB 1867), M (sic), W, Born in NC
William Conner, 71 yrs old (DOB 1799), M, W, Farming, Born in NC, Cannot read or write


FindAGrave.com
William Albert Conner
Birth: 1796, Bills Creek, Rutherford County, North Carolina, USA
Death: unknown, Bills Creek, Rutherford County, North Carolina, USA
William Albert Conner's grave cannot be pictured, but is located in the center of the graveyard where the field stones have been removed. His and Elizabeth's first daughter, Margaret, was born around 1820, so it is assumed that they were married before that time. His death was after 1860.
Family links:
Parents: James Conner
Spouse: Elizabeth Dalton Conner (1796 - 1862)
Children:
Martha Conner Crawford (1826 - ____)* Isaac JACKSON Conner (1828 - ____)*
Burial: Bills Creek Baptist Church Cemetery, Bills Creek, Rutherford County, North Carolina, USACreated by: Donna Hemphill Robbins Record added: Aug 08, 2009 Find A Grave Memorial# 40424349

Elizabeth Dalton Conner
Birth: 1796, USA
Death: Jan. 11, 1862, Bills Creek, Rutherford County, North Carolina, USA
Born around 1796.
Family links: Spouse: William Albert Conner (1796 - ____)
Children:
Martha Conner Crawford (1826 - ____)
Isaac JACKSON Conner (1828 - ____)
Burial: Bills Creek Baptist Church Cemetery, Bills Creek, Rutherford County, North Carolina, USA
Created by: Donna Hemphill Robbins
Record added: Aug 08, 2009
Find A Grave Memorial# 40439421











Isaac Jackson Conner
Birth: 1828, Bills Creek, Rutherford County, North Carolina, USA
Death: unknown, Bills Creek, Rutherford County, North Carolina, USA
Jackson's grave cannot be found exactly, but is located in the center of the graveyard, where the unmarked stones have been removed.
Family links:
Parents:
William Albert Conner (1796 - ____)
Elizabeth Dalton Conner (1796 - 1862)
Spouse:
Adaline Thomason Conner
Children:
Joseph Washington Conner (1845 - 1917)
Martha Conner Wilson (1849 - 1918)
Burial: Bills Creek Baptist Church Cemetery, Bills Creek, Rutherford County, North Carolina, USA
Created by: Donna Hemphill Robbins
Record added: Aug 08, 2009
Find A Grave Memorial# 40424343


William Albert Conner
Birth: 1796, Bills Creek, Rutherford County, North Carolina, USA
Death: unknown, Bills Creek, Rutherford County, North Carolina, USA
William Albert Conner's grave cannot be pictured, but is located in the center of the graveyard where the field stones have been removed. His and Elizabeth's first daughter, Margaret, was born around 1820, so it is assumed that they were married before that time. His death was after 1860.
Family links:
Parents: James Conner
Spouse: Elizabeth Dalton Conner (1796 - 1862)
Children:
Martha Conner Crawford (1826 - ____)*
Isaac JACKSON Conner (1828 - ____)*
Burial: Bills Creek Baptist Church Cemetery, Bills Creek, Rutherford County, North Carolina, USA
Created by: Donna Hemphill Robbins
Record added: Aug 08, 2009
Find A Grave Memorial# 40424349


Martha Conner Crawford
Birth: 1826
Death: unknown
d/o William Conner, Elizabeth Dalton
w/o Marcus Crawford, m. 26 Mar 1849 in Rutherford, North Carolina
Last found June 1880 living with husband and 2 daughters in Chimney Rock, Rutherford, North Carolina
Daughter, Martha Polly (Crawford) Hall (1862-1923) @ Find A Grave Memorial # 12391668
Daughter, Rhoda M (Crawford) Hall (1866-1921) @ Find A Grave Memorial # 43086743
Family links:
Parents:
William Albert Conner (1796 - ____)
Elizabeth Dalton Conner (1796 - 1862)
Spouse: Marcus Rollin Crawford (1822 - ____)
Children:
Felix M Crawford (1852 - 1924)
John C Crawford (1857 - 1941)
Siblings:
William Albert Conner (1825 - 1893)
Isaac JACKSON Conner (1828 - ____)
Burial: Unknown
Created by: KindredWhispers
Record added: Aug 29, 2010
Find A Grave Memorial# 57851322


Jonathon Conner
Birth: Feb. 14, 1834
Death: Mar. 28, 1906
Family links: Spouse: Nancy Adaline Griggs Conner (1838 - 1935)
Children: Liza Ann Conner Hill (1865 - 1963)
Burial: Conner Cemetery, Bat Cave, Henderson County, North Carolina, USA
Created by: Rebecca
Record added: May 19, 2003
Find A Grave Memorial# 7461634

1. Take a moonlit walk (somewhere safe)
2. If you like games, treat yourself to a game night.  Cards, board games, charades, whatever you enjoy.
3. If you both enjoy cooking, make your meal together. Someone can make the salad and salad dressing while the other grills the steaks. Or you can bake together, making some goodies. Or how about doing a fondue with a nice wine.
4. Have a picnic. Even if it's not good outside, have your picnic indoors. Take it to your spouse at work for lunch or have it on the living room floor at the coffee table. If the weather is nice, take it outside and enjoy. You want it to be easy and fun.
5. Dancing together. You can go out dancing but you can also play music at home and light some candles and dance the night away. I prefer it this way as it's not so loud and noisy.
6. If you like sports, do something together. Whether it's taking a run together, playing a tennis game, go bowling, work out together (and I mean really together). Don't just go to the gym and separate until you meet back in the lobby. Workout together. There are exercises and routines you can assist each other with, swim in the pool together, walk on side-by-side treadmills, etc. Or maybe watch a favorite sport on TV. Make some popcorn and tea and root for your team together.
7. Are there places in your locale that you've always wanted to visit but haven't taken the time to? Maybe you could take this time to finally go together. Visit that museum, that art gallery, that historical place, The most romantic thing is to do what you wouldn't normally be interested in just because it's of interest to your significant other. You may hate sports but your husband is a basketball fan. So watch a game with him. He may hate art museums but would visit one with you because you want to go. And be a willing partner. Don't go and make the visit miserable by complaining, mocking, etc. The whole point is to make it enjoyable whether it's something you would normally like or not. You are doing it for the other person!
8. If one of you is a musician, how about playing some love songs.
9. Write a love message on their car windshield.
10. Do you know something that your loved one particularly loves? Maybe their favorite coffee? Give them a gift card to their favorite coffee cafe or convenience store. For instance I love QT convenience store coffee. So my hubby could get me a gift card and one of their refillable mugs! Or maybe your loved prefers hot tea and you could purchase some special gourmet teas and put in a basket. Maybe they love coconut cake and you could bake one or purchase one for them. If they like ice cream, how about making banana splits before watching a movie?
11. Mail a love letter or card (via snail mail) to their work address so they will get it on Valentine's Day. Just a note to tell them you love them. If you are good at poetry, here's your chance! If not, look up a love poem and put it in the letter.
12. Make a special breakfast. Most of us hit the road without a full breakfast, but if you get up early, you could make your loved one their favorite breakfast. Make a heart shape pancake, eggs and bacon, biscuits and sausage gravy (make those biscuits in a heart shape), etc. Set the table, sprinkle some rose petals on the plate and serve.
13. Start a back and forth journal for sharing love notes, hopes, dreams, memories for just the two of you. To make it more fun, hide it around your house for your love to find.
14. Can you sneak their car off and have it cleaned? Maybe change the oil too? Then bring it back to them as a surprise.
15. Make up your own gift basket. Tie a bow on the handle and place some gifts that are just right for your loved one. How about some bath salts, pretty soap, body lotion and some soothing music. Or some chocolate candy, hot chocolate mixes, chocolate wine for that chocolate lover. Or a couple of movie DVDs, popcorn and comfy slippers. There are so many ways to make up a gift basket based on your loved one's interests.
16. Do a chore that your loved one particularly hates. Do it just for them. Does your wife hate to clean the bathrooms? Do it for her and do it to her specifications. Don't just do a couple of swipes around the sink and think that's it. Do it right. Pay attention and do it correctly. If you have to ask her HOW to do it, listen to her and do it without grumbling and complaining. If you husband hates to clean the garage, try to do it for him. And do it just the way he wants it. You are doing it as a gift to the other person.
17. Do you have an interest that you share? How about taking a class in it together? A dance class, art class, cooking class, genealogy workshop, etc
18. Make some Valentine's Day cupcakes, cookies or muffins for your special someone.
19. Make a fruit basket for your loved one.
20. Pick up your loved one's favorite magazines. Go out and buy them their favorite magazines whether it be hunting and gun magazines or home decor or soap opera or fashion magazines.

This particular subject is deep and much deeper than we, human beings, can fully understand. It is a topic that has been discussed and studied by those much more knowledgeable than I and with the end result about as cloudy as it was to start with.

First and foremost, as Christians, we recognize God as omniscient (all knowing), omnipotent (all powerful) and omnipresent (everywhere present). There is nothing beyond Him and nothing that is not known by Him. He is the Creator and He existed before the creation. I.e. He was present before there was a universe, before there was a solar system, before there was an earth and before there was a man/woman on the earth. This means that He exists outside of time as we know it. We see time linearly, meaning one second is followed by the next second and followed by the next. But God exists outside of time seeing it all as present. No past or future with Him, but present.

Whether we understand or comprehend this means little because we are NOT God and therefore cannot know as He knows. We are created beings, He is the Creator. Despite the fact that the first human beings, Adam and Eve, were created to be immortal (would have never died) and with the full use and function of their organic brain, we are still NOT God. And, of course, with sin and the Fall, human beings die and we don't have the full function of our brains (but, when Jesus returns, He will resurrect our mortal bodies and they will be changed to be what was originally intended and given immortality). The wages of sin is death and so our fleshly bodies will die and our spirits will live forever. When Jesus returns our spirits will rejoin our resurrected immortal bodies and so shall we live forever with Him. We will also be able to see and understand more than we can today in our limited fleshly bodies and our limited time (we cannot comprehend it and don't have the time to gain the experiential knowledge because we die).

How does this affect our topic of predestination and free will? As much as we can understand it, we must still realize that our understanding is essentially limited and incomplete. It will remain so until we can sit directly in His presence. He is sovereign. He has the absolute authority, right, and ability to do with His creation as He pleases. He has supreme, indisputable power and we are in no position to make demands on Him except as His children through Jesus Christ. If I begin to tell God what to do, I'm being presumptuous and arrogant, trying to be God in God's place as though He were not enough. In a sense, this is what satan did and what he enticed Adam and Eve to do. They wanted to be God. And, we have inherited that evil desire. We want to be our own gods. We tend to think that we know better than God and God should do our bidding. But, as we mature as Christians, we begin to realize that we cannot be God and that God is trustworthy. We can trust Him to be God and to do all things in their correct order and at the right time and in the perfect way. For instance, when a child becomes sick, we want that child healed and back in perfect health. In our fear and desperation, we will make demands on God or try to "persuade" Him to do what we want as though God does our bidding on demand. But, as Christians, the Holy Spirit begins working in our hearts until we come to a place of trusting in the love of God. When we come to that place of trust, we can let go of our sick child and trust that child in God's Hands to do as He wills knowing it's for the ultimate best of all concerned. He answers our prayers even if it's not the answer we want. But, we learn to trust even those answers we don't like. It's what we call faith.

He proclaims Himself as a God of love.
Exodus 34:5-8 The LORD came down in a cloud and stood there with him and proclaimed the name of the LORD. (6) The LORD passed in front of him and proclaimed, "The LORD, the LORD God, compassionate and gracious, slow to anger, and filled with gracious love and truth. (7) He graciously loves thousands, and forgives iniquity, transgression, and sin. But he does not leave the guilty unpunished, visiting the iniquity of the ancestors on their children, and on their children's children to the third and fourth generation." (8) Moses quickly bowed to the ground and prostrated himself in worship.

As we come to know Him and experience His love, we learn to trust that love and to trust He knows best. We may experience hard times and think we cannot stand it, but He sustains us through it. One day we can look back and see how He really was with us even though we didn't feel like it.

Footprints In The Sand
One night I dreamed a dream.
As I was walking along the beach with my Lord.
Across the dark sky flashed scenes from my life.
For each scene, I noticed two sets of footprints in the sand,
One belonging to me and one to my Lord.

After the last scene of my life flashed before me,
I looked back at the footprints in the sand.
I noticed that at many times along the path of my life,
especially at the very lowest and saddest times,
there was only one set of footprints.

This really troubled me, so I asked the Lord about it.
"Lord, you said once I decided to follow you,
You'd walk with me all the way.
But I noticed that during the saddest and most troublesome times of my life,
there was only one set of footprints.
I don't understand why, when I needed You the most, You would leave me."

He whispered, "My precious child, I love you and will never leave you
Never, ever, during your trials and testings.
When you saw only one set of footprints,
It was then that I carried you."

- by Mary Stevenson

I've seen a funny add on to this: "See those long marks, that's where I had to drag you kicking and screaming all the way."

Knowing God is ultimately in control, comes the question of whether or not we have free will. Are we predestined by this all knowing God and therefore have no free will or do we have free will and our choices determine our future and therefore there is no predestination? God's omniscience seems incompatible with human free will. But is it? Are we predetermined to know and accept Christ and therefore be saved versus those who are predetermined to reject Christ and be lost? If so, then where does our free will come in?

Calvinism is the theological system associated with the Reformer John Calvin that emphasizes the rule of God over all things as reflected in its understanding of Scripture, God, humanity, salvation, and the church.Calvinism has always been diverse, with a wide range of influences rather than a single founder. Since the Arminian controversy, protestantism has divided into separate groups, Arminians and Calvinists. Basically, Calvinism is known by an acronym: T.U.L.I.P. for Total Depravity (also known as Total Inability and Original Sin); Unconditional Election; Limited Atonement (also known as Particular Atonement); Irresistible Grace; Perseverance of the Saints (also known as Once Saved Always Saved).

Arminianism is a school of theology based on the teachings of Dutch theologian Jacob Arminius, for whom it is named. It is perhaps most prominent in the Methodist movement and found in various other evangelical circles today. These were: (1) that the divine decree of predestination is conditional, not absolute; (2) that the Atonement is in intention universal; (3) that man cannot of himself exercise a saving faith, but requires God's help to attain this faith; (4) that though the grace of God is a necessary condition of human effort it does not act irresistibly in man; (5) that believers are able to resist sin but are not beyond the possibility of falling from grace. In essence, the Arminians maintained that God gives indispensible help in salvation, but that ultimately it is the free will of man which decides the issue.

Arminians reject the concept of individual election entirely, preferring to understand the doctrine in corporate terms. According to this corporate election, God never chose individuals to elect to salvation, but rather He chose to elect the believing church to salvation. Dutch Reformed theologian Herman Ridderbos says "[The certainty of salvation] does not rest on the fact that the church belongs to a certain "number", but that it belongs to Christ, from before the foundation of the world. Fixity does not lie in a hidden decree, therefore, but in corporate unity of the Church with Christ, whom it has come to know in the gospel and has learned to embrace in faith."

Calvinists and Arminians agree that only some are chosen for salvation. Both viewpoints agree that those who turn from sin to follow Christ are saved. Arminianism is related to Calvinism historically. However, because of their differences over the doctrines of divine predestination and election, many people view these schools of thought as opposed to each other. The question is: On what basis did God predestine people? Did He predestine some because He knew they would believe of their own free will, or did He predestine without regard to human choices? Was God's choice based on man's choice, or is man's choice itself a result of God's choice?

According to John Calvin, "Predestination we call the eternal decree of God, by which He has determined in Himself, what He would have to become of every individual of mankind. For they are not all created with a similar destiny; but eternal life is foreordained for some and eternal death for others. Every man, therefore, being created for one or the other of these ends, we say he is predestinated either to life or to death." Institutes, Book III, Ch. XXI, Sec. 5.

As I said in the beginning, scholars have debated this question for centuries and there are varying answers, some to one extreme or another. But these different viewpoints are just viewpoints and does not affect our salvation. We can be saved and have different viewpoints on this issue.

Neither Calvinists nor Arminians will dispute that God exists beyond space and time. God would not have foreknowledge or past knowledge of an event, He would just have knowledge of it period. The Bible teaches the fact of predestination, as well as teaching we have the freedom to make choices. The great Christian writer, C.S. Lewis states, “Of course reality must be self-consistent; but till (if ever) we can see the consistency it is better to hold two inconsistent views than to ignore one side of the evidence . . . It is plain from Scripture that, in whatever sense the Pauline doctrine is true, it is not true in any sense which excludes its (apparent) opposite.”

Yours, Jack: Spiritual Direction from C. S. Lewis
"All that Calvinist question — Free-Will and Predestination, is to my mind undiscussable, insoluble. Of course (say us) if a man repents God will accept him. Ah yes, (say they) but the fact of his repenting shows that God has already moved him to do so. This at any rate leaves us with the fact that in any concrete case the question never arrives as a practical one. But I suspect it is really a meaningless question. The difference between Freedom and Necessity is fairly clear on the bodily level: we know the difference between making our teeth chatter on purpose and just finding them chattering with cold. It begins to be less clear when we talk of human love (leaving out the erotic kind). ‘Do I like him because I choose or because I must?’ — there are cases where this has an answer, but others where it seems to me to mean nothing. When we carry it up to relations between God and Man, has the distinction perhaps become nonsensical? After all, when we are most free, it is only with a freedom God has given us: and when our will is most influenced by Grace, it is still our will. And if what our will does is not ‘voluntary’, and if ‘voluntary’ does not mean ‘free’, what are we talking about? I’d leave it all alone." (p. 186) See More

Jason T. Eberl “’You Cannot Escape Your Destiny’ (Or Can You)?: Freedom And Predestination In The Skywalker Family”
"For some religious believers, God can pull certain strings in the world to make it turn out as He wills. God designed the universe with all the physical causal laws that we live by everyday, such as gravity, inertia, centrifugal force, the fact that all “lite” beers are tastelees, and so forth. But does God also pull the strings of human will? Does He, for example, truly “harden hearts” as the Bible says He did to the Egyptian Pharoah (Exodus 4:21)? This is an important question for religious believers who also think that human beings are morally responsible for their actions: Do good and you go to Heaven, do evil and you got to Hell. If God hardened Pharoah’s heart so that he wouldn’t let the Israelites leave Egypt, does he deserve his punishment when God drowns the Egyptians in the Red Sea?

For religious philosophers, such as Augustine and Aquinas, God may infuse “grace” into the minds and hearts of those who invite it, and deny it to those who refuse it. And this grace may influence a person’s will, usually toward goodness. But the reception of grace requires the compliance of the person’s own will. The only way to receive God’s grace is not to reject it, and someone can avoid being infused with grace by willing against it. Thus, by creating human beings with freedom of will, God limits His own power to control our lives; God can pull only those strings in our will that we let Him though He can still pull the strings of everything around us."

So here we are, a sticky wicket but not one to distress us or cause us such controversy that we would cannot sleep. If we feel called and we respond and are saved, we don't have to be afraid. We are saved. If we feel called and we refuse to respond and refuse the free gift of salvation through Jesus Christ, we are lost. That's as far as we need to worry. Do we accept or do we reject? Whether we are foreordained, pre-elected or predestined is not for us to figure out. We answer the call with a choice - to accept or reject. "The predestined certainty of God's gracious work in Christ was not meant to perplex men, but to encourage and reassure all who trust in His grace." - International Standard Bible Encyclopedia

Acts 2:22-24 (CEV) Now, listen to what I have to say about Jesus from Nazareth. God proved that he sent Jesus to you by having him work miracles, wonders, and signs. All of you know this. (23) God had already planned and decided that Jesus would be handed over to you. So you took him and had evil men put him to death on a cross. (24) But God set him free from death and raised him to life. Death could not hold him in its power.

1 Peter 1:19-20 (Easy To Read Version - ERV) You were bought with the precious blood of Christ's death. He was a pure and perfect sacrificial Lamb. (20) Christ was chosen before the world was made, but he was shown to the world in these last times for you.

Romans 8:29-30 (Modern King James Version - MKJV) For whom He foreknew, He also predestinated to be conformed to the image of His Son, for Him to be the First-born among many brothers. (30) But whom He predestinated, these He also called; and whom He called, those He also justified. And whom He justified, these He also glorified.
Ephesians 1:3-6 (MKJV) Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenlies in Christ; (4) according as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before Him in love, (5) having predestined us to the adoption of children by Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the good pleasure of His will, (6) to the praise of the glory of His grace, in which He has made us accepted in the One having been loved.

Ephesians 1:7-9 (MKJV) In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of His grace, (8) which He caused to abound toward us in all wisdom and understanding; (9) having made known to us the mystery of His will, according to His good pleasure which He purposed in Himself,

Romans 9:14-25 (Contemporary English Version - CEV) Are we saying that God is unfair? Certainly not! (15) The Lord told Moses that he has pity and mercy on anyone he wants to. (16) Everything then depends on God's mercy and not on what people want or do. (17) In the Scriptures the Lord says to Pharaoh of Egypt, "I let you become king, so that I could show you my power and be praised by all people on earth." (18) Everything depends on what God decides to do, and he can either have pity on people or make them stubborn. (19) Someone may ask, "How can God blame us, if he makes us behave in the way he wants us to?" (20) But, my friend, I ask, "Who do you think you are to question God? Does the clay have the right to ask the potter why he shaped it the way he did? (21) Doesn't a potter have the right to make a fancy bowl and a plain bowl out of the same lump of clay?" (22) God wanted to show his anger and reveal his power against everyone who deserved to be destroyed. But instead, he patiently put up with them. (23) He did this by showing how glorious he is when he has pity on the people he has chosen to share in his glory. (24) Whether Jews or Gentiles, we are those chosen ones, (25) just as the Lord says in the book of Hosea, "Although they are not my people, I will make them my people. I will treat with love those nations that have never been loved.
2 Timothy 1:9 (ERV) God saved us and chose us to be his holy people, but not because of anything we ourselves did. God saved us and made us his people because that was what he wanted and because of his grace. That grace was given to us through Christ Jesus before time began.

Galatians 1:15-16 (ERV) But God had special plans for me even before I was born. So he chose me through his grace. (16) It pleased him to let me see and know his Son so that I could tell the Good News about him to the non-Jewish people. I immediately prepared to do this work without asking for advice or help from anyone.

1 Corinthians 2:7-8 (ERV) But we speak God's secret wisdom that has been hidden from everyone until now. God planned this wisdom for our glory. He planned it before the world began. (8) None of the rulers of this world understood this wisdom. If they had understood it, they would not have killed our great and glorious Lord on a cross.
John 15:15-18 (ERV) I no longer call you servants, because servants don't know what their master is doing. But now I call you friends, because I have told you everything that my Father told me. (16) "You did not choose me. I chose you. And I gave you this work: to go and produce fruit--fruit that will last. Then the Father will give you anything you ask for in my name. (17) This is my command: Love each other. (18) "If the world hates you, remember that they hated me first.

1 Thessalonians 5:9-10 (ERV) God did not choose us to suffer his anger. God chose us to have salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ. (10) Jesus died for us so that we can live together with him. It is not important if we are alive or dead when Jesus comes.
Joshua 24:15 (ERV) "But maybe you don't want to serve the LORD. You must choose for yourselves today. Today you must decide who you will serve. Will you serve the gods that your ancestors worshiped when they lived on the other side of the Euphrates River? Or will you serve the gods of the Amorites who lived in this land? You must choose for yourselves. But as for me and my family, we will serve the LORD."

How do you decorate with wood panelling? Many of the older homes have wood panelling. If you buy a home with wood panelling what do you do with it? Do you work with it or rip it out? Some of it is pretty bad and I can see ripping it out. But sometimes the wood panelling is better than anything you can replace it with. Some of that old real wood paneling, ship lap siding, raised paneling, board and batten, tongue and groove... that's all good stuff. If it's in good condition you should try to work with it. Either clean and polish it good or paint it. Then decorate around it and use it's beauty.

A root cellar is any storage location that uses the natural cooling, insulating, and humidifying properties of the earth. Back in the days before temperature control, root cellars provided food storage using the earth as the temperature controller. Root vegetables needed a cool, dry place so they would last longer. Potatoes, beets, turnips, carrots, parsnips, winter squash are some of the vegetables that need a temperature of 32º to 40º F and a humidity level of 85 to 95 percent. Apples have a tendency to emit ethylene gas, which causes problems for potatoes stored nearby, and will also make any exposed carrots or other root crops bitter. So cabbages were often pulled up and stuck back into the hole in the ground but upside down. Then hay would have been piled on top to further insulate the cabbage. Fruit, like apples, could have been stored in a separate fruit cellar. Cooler temperatures slow the release of ethylene gas and stops the grow of microorganisms that cause decomposition. The humidity level prevents loss of moisture and the resulting withering. Many root cellars were also used as storage for canned goods, milk and dairy products, wine, cider, cured meats (salted or smoked for preservation), grains (in sealed containers to prevent bugs), nuts, pumpkins, onions and and dried beans. The cellars kept food from freezing during the winter and cool during the summer months to prevent spoilage. Today we have refrigerators and coolers and temperature controlled houses. These cellars were usually dug into the side of a hill or a pit was dug deep enough and a shed roof put on top. The earth was the insulating factor. A good root cellar has shelves, some higher than others, and some closer to the air vents. Placing the ethylene producers up high and nearer the exit vents has a tendency to move harmful gases away from produce stored on the floor below. Many root crops are also regularly stored in boxes of loose soil or sawdust, further insulating them from their neighbors’ emissions. Some produce, like cabbages and onions, often emit odors that can taint the flavors of other vegetables, as well as fruits, so finding high, remote corners for these pungent items is a good idea too.


One of the key control features of a root cellar is the set of air vents that allow air to enter and exit the cellar. These vents not only allow a greater amount of temperature adjustment than available to a static space, but the air circulation can also be a valuable tool to deal with the ethylene gases and odors produced by a mixed assortment of fruits and vegetables. At least one inlet vent and one outlet vent should be included. Inlet vents should be placed low, and exit vents placed high. This is conducive to a nice, passive air flow through the root cellar. The outsides of the vents should all be sealed where they enter the structure with packed cloth, expanding foam or tight rubber gaskets. The vents themselves should be equipped with closing and opening valves, and it is convenient to make these valves operable from outside the root cellar. Closing vents in freezing weather and during summer heat. Use metal wire mesh to over vent openings to prevent rodents from getting into the root cellar via the vents. Also using rat traps, glue boards, rat poison or repellers to keep rodents away from the food.

Shelves should include some bins with wire mesh bottoms for air circulation. It's important to regularly check your root cellar and remove any spoiled, rotten or moldy vegetables as it can cause the others to spoil quickly.











In constructing a root cellar, you want to keep it from any leakage or drainage problem since rain and water will ruin a root cellar. Make sure the door of the root cellar is in the shade (since that is one area not insulated with the dirt). Any wood should be a cedar or other rot resistant wood (not chemically treated as it can affect the taste of the vegetables). Spread a 1-foot-deep bed of three-quarter-inch-diameter crushed stone beneath the excavated site for drainage. You will want at least 1-2' of soil, with the ultimate being 10' of soil, on all sides. Concrete or concrete block makes for a good wall maker. I saw where some use concrete culverts and even septic tanks.

If you have a basement that is insulated by the dirt, you can use your basement as a root cellar.
























What would you do if you didn't have a refrigerator? How would you store milk? If you lived on a farm, you were probably dealing with not just a gallon of milk at a time but milking a cow(s) morning and night. What would you do with leftovers and meat? In the time before refrigeration and before plastic and airtight containers, people would use a spring cellar or spring house or milk house. A spring house was a building built over an underground spring or beside a creek in order to catch the cold water and use it for refrigeration. If it was an underground spring, you could also use it for drinking and cleaning water instead of a well. You built a small shed in order to keep debris and animals out of it. It was best if it was built with some dirt insulation around 3 sides. There would be shelves inside for the buckets, crocks, barrels that were used to keep stuff cool in the spring house or cold in the actual water. Because they are damp places, they tended to rot any wood and is the reason why there aren't that many spring houses left. Once you could have a refrigerator in your kitchen, why use a spring house that was a walk away from the house? People would build these spring houses over a naturally occurring artesian, or underground, spring or close to running water that could be directed into the spring house. The floor was usually dirt or rock and would have a trough to collect the cold water. You submerged your items in the water using crocks.






Rock was used as rock holds cold, and during floods solid rock spring houses did not wash away. Spring houses were made with stone or brick walls and floors. Dampness rotted wood away so the bette spring houses would be built of rock. Farmers usually turned up field stones while working their fields and would collect them to use in building a spring house. Access to water usually dictated where a house and barns would be built. You didn't want to build too close to a creek or river that was prone to flooding. On the other hand, you needed to be close to water whether it was a creek, underground spring or digging a well. Hauling water is heavy work and water is so necessary in everything the farm and his family did from cooking to cleaning, taking baths, washing clothes, watering the livestock and kitchen garden.


You can imagine how labor intensive cooking could be when your kitchen only had a wood stove and a table in it. No electricity, no indoor plumbing! Getting wood from the woodshed, getting items from the root cellar and spring house, meat from the smokehouse and eggs and dairy from the hen house and barns meant leaving the house and walking to the cellars, barns and sheds to get your ingredients. Someone had to draw and carry all the water too. Now imagine having to do all that in bad weather such as snow, rain, heat! Usually jobs like these were for the children. My Dad remembers getting up with his parents, and being the youngest, he was responsible for drawing the water and bringing in the wood so his mother could get started cooking. Then he and his brother and father would take care of the livestock before eating breakfast themselves. Grandma usually did the chickens and milked the cow bringing in eggs and milk.



Notice the hollowed log being used as a pipe.













This large spring house had enough space that I would consider it the size of the largest refrigerator you buy now. LOL!




The natural fresh water springs were ideal because they kept an almost constant temperature year around of about 50-58 degrees. This was cool enough to keep foods fresh in the summer and warm enough, along with the constant flow, to keep foods and water from freezing in the winter. Spring water would hardly ever freeze over. When it did, it was not the spring that froze, but the top water that ran out into the trough or on the ground. You could break the ice and the warmer water was flowing underneath.

A small spring house would be a one room building big enough for 2 people to move around in. Larger springs houses would have 2 rooms and maybe even a 2nd floor. Larger spring houses would have a fireplace. The upstairs could be used for hired hands or tradesmen who would pass by and needed a place to stay the night. In a 2 room spring house, one room had the trough or pool of cold water and would be the coldest room. The other would be for supplies or storing some produce. Adding a fireplace would have made the 2nd room the laundry room.

Weekly blogging prompt through GENEABLOGGERS: Week #52 – Advice Week 52. Advice. Do you have any advice for future generations who may be researching your family?

As concerning cremation versus burial...
Romans 5:12 “Therefore, just as sin entered the world through one man, and death through sin, and in this way death came to all men. . .”

With sin came separation from God. This separation, while initially a spiritual one, affected the body, soul, and spirit. Spiritually, man lost the right to have fellowship and communion with God; he was spiritually dead. But the body also suffered in that it took on the properties of corruption, began to grow old, decay, and counted its existence in time -- culminating in death. God creates every human being and we have the very breath of God's life in us. We were made in His Image. He creates the original DNA that makes us unique and separate from every other human being. The sanctity of the human body, as made by God, is to be protected as much as it lays within our power.

There are situations where Jews/Christians' bodies are so scattered, burned or decayed as to have returned to the dust from which we were created. Things such as airplane disasters, incineration or disposal by a murderer, those drowned and eaten by sea creatures, or the total disintegration into dust by decay over time... these things do not pose a problem to God in re-assembling and re-creating our resurrected bodies. As I said earlier, God created our very DNA, the very building blocks of who we are. We are created from dust and to dust we return. I trust God, who made everything out of nothing, to sort out the molecules. So, in our belief that Jesus will return and resurrect our mortal bodies and convert them into immortal bodies, I am not afraid that my body is too disintegrated to be put back together again.

Here are some background scripture to read that discusses the origin of our earthly bodies and how they will be resurrected in the End Times when Jesus Christ returns:

Genesis 1:26-27 And God said, Let Us make man in Our image, after Our likeness. And let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the heavens, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over all the creepers creeping on the earth. And God created man in His image; in the image of God He created him. He created them male and female.

Genesis 1: 31 And God saw everything that He had made, and behold, it was very good.

Genesis 2: 6-7 But there went up from the earth a mist and watered all the face of the ground. And Jehovah God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul.

Genesis 2: 21-23 And Jehovah God caused a deep sleep to fall on Adam, and he slept. And He took one of his ribs, and closed up the flesh underneath. And Jehovah God made the rib (which He had taken from the man) into a woman. And He brought her to the man. And Adam said, This is now bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh. She shall be called Woman because she was taken out of man.

Genesis 3:19 (God speaking to Adam and Eve after they had sinned) "In the sweat of your face you shall eat bread until you return to the ground, for out of it you were taken. For dust you are, and to dust you shall return."

Genesis 18:27 And Abraham answering said, Truly, I, who am only dust, have undertaken to put my thoughts before the Lord:

Psalm 103: 13-18 As a father pities his children, Jehovah pities those who fear Him.
For He knows our form; He remembers that we are dust.
As for man, his days are as grass; as a flower of the field, so he flourishes.
For the wind passes over it, and it is gone; and its place shall know it no more. But the mercy of Jehovah is from everlasting to everlasting on those who fear Him, and His righteousness is to sons of sons; to those who keep His covenant, and to those who remember to do His Commandments.

Ecclesiastes 12: 7 then the dust shall return to the earth as it was, and the spirit shall return to God who gave it.

Daniel 12: 1-3 And at that time Michael, the chief of the angels, shall stand up, the great ruler who stands for the sons of your people. And there shall be a time of trouble, such as never was since there was a nation; until that time. And at that time your people shall be delivered, every one that shall be found written in the book.
And many of those who sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake, some to everlasting life, and some to shame and everlasting contempt.
And those who are wise shall shine as the brightness of the sky; and those who turn many to righteousness shall shine as the stars forever and ever.

1 Corinthians 6: 19-20 "Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit in you, whom you have of God? And you are not your own, for you are bought with a price. Therefore glorify God in your body and in your spirit, which are God's."

Resurrection Scriptures

John 5: 28-29 Do not marvel at this, for the hour is coming in which all who are in the graves shall hear His voice, and shall come forth, those who have done good to the resurrection of life, and those who have practiced evil to the resurrection of condemnation.



Romans 8:11 But if the Spirit of the One who raised Christ Jesus from the dead dwells in you, the One who raised up Christ from the dead shall also make your mortal bodies alive by His Spirit who dwells in you.

1 Corinthians 15: 35-44 and 51-55 "But someone will ask, 'How are the dead raised? What kind of body will they have when they come back?'
You fool! The seed you plant does not come to life unless it dies, and what you plant is not the form that it will be, but a bare kernel, whether it is wheat or something else.
But God gives the plant the form he wants it to have, and to each kind of seed its own form.
Not all flesh is the same. Humans have one kind of flesh, animals in general have another, birds have another, and fish have still another.
There are heavenly bodies and earthly bodies, but the splendor of those in heaven is of one kind, and that of those on earth is of another.
One kind of splendor belongs to the sun, another to the moon, and still another to the stars.
In fact, one star differs from another star in splendor.
This is how it will be at the resurrection of the dead. What is planted is decaying, what is raised cannot decay.
The body is planted in dishonor but raised in splendor. It is planted in weakness but raised in power.
It is planted a physical body but raised a spiritual body. If there is a physical body, there is also a spiritual body.
...Behold, I speak a mystery to you; we shall not all fall asleep, but we shall all be changed; in a moment, in a glance of an eye, at the last trumpet. For a trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall all be changed.
For this corruptible must put on incorruption, and this mortal must put on immortality.
But when this corruptible shall put on incorruption, and when this mortal shall put on immortality, then will take place the word that is written, 'Death is swallowed up in victory.
O death, where is your sting? O grave, where is your victory?'"

Philippians 3:20 For our citizenship is in Heaven, from which also we are looking for the Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ, who shall change our body of humiliation so that it may be fashioned like His glorious body, according to the working of His power, even to subdue all things to Himself.

In summary, I am fully aware that God can restore our decayed or obliterated bodies and can change them back to being the immortal bodies that He always intended. Adam and Eve were created to be immortal beings but sin brought death. God will raise our bodies and make them immortal, unable to decay or die, incorruptible. When we are saved and accept Jesus as our Savior, we have this to look forward to! God breaths life into our spirit and gives our born-again spirit eternal life. When we die, our spirits go to be with God until Jesus' Second Coming. When Jesus returns, He will raise our bodies, change them to glorious, eternal bodies and our spirits shall rejoin our resurrected bodies.

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Pagan Cremation

If God can do this, even though our bodies are but dust or ashes, why have Christians traditionally chosen burial versus cremation?

Here are how old wills used to begin:
"...being in perfect health mind and memory thanks be unto almighty God and calling to mind the uncertainty of this life and the mortality of my body and knowing that it is appointed for all men once to die do make and ordain this my last will and testament that is to say.
First and principally I give and recommend my soul into the hand of God that gave it and my body I commit to the Earth to be buried in a Christian like manner at the discretion of my Executors nothing doubting but at the day of Resurection I shall receive the same again by the mighty power of God. And as touching such an Estate wherewith it hath pleased God to bless me in this life I give and dispose of in the following manner..."

"In the name of God amen this second day of January seventeen hundred and ninety six I, ______________ ________________ of ________________, Planter, being very sick and weak but of perfect mind and memory, thanks be given to God, therefore calling to mind the mortality of any body of knowing that it is appointed for all men once to die first of all I recommend my soul into the hands of God that gave it and my body to the earth to be buried in a decent Christian burial at the discretion of my executors and as touching such worldly estate as it hath pleased God to bless me with in this life I dispose of in the manner and form following..."

"In the name of God Amen The twelfth day of March in the year of our Lord one thousand seven hundred and fifty nine I ______________ ______________ of _____________ in calling to remembrance the Mortality of My Body and knowing that it is appointed for all men once to die do make and ordain this my last will and testament (that is to say) Principally and first of all I give and recommend my soul into the hands of God and my body I recommend to the Earth to be buried in decent Christian burial at the discretion of my Executors nothing doubting but at the general resurection I shall receive the same again by the Mighty Power of God and as touching such worldly estate wherewith it hath pleased God to bless me in this life I give dismise and dispose of the same inthe following manner and form..."

"I, ____________ ____________ of __________________ being very sick and low in flesh but in perfect sound mind and memory thanks be to God for the same, do make and ordain this to be my last will and testament in manner following-- to with, first of all I resign my soul in the hands of almighty God who gave it and my body to be buried in a Christian like manner at the discretion of my Executors hereafter named"

"In the name of God amen the fifteenth day of May in the year of our Lord one thousand eight hundred and five I ______________ ______________ of _________________ being within body and in perfect mind & memory, thanks be given almighty God for the same, and calling to mind the mortality of my body and knowing principally and first of all I recommend once to die make and ordain this my last will and testament and that is to say principally and first of all I recommend my soul into the hands of God and my body I recommend to the earth to be buried in Christian funeral at the discretion of my executors nothing doubting but at the general resurrection I shall revive the same again by the mighty power of almighty God and as touching such worldly estate where with it hath pleased God to bless me in this life I give dismiss and dispense of the same in following manner and form..."

"In the name of God Amen I, _______________ ____________ of sound and disposing mind and memory but in view of the uncertainty of all human offices do make and declare this my last will and testament in this year of One thousand Eight Hundred and Nine.
Item I. I give my soul to God who gave it and my body to decently buried..."

The Israelites and, after Christ, Christians have always upheld burial as the proper way to take care of the body after death. If it is within our power, we believe in treating the body, given by God, with respect. Families who have lost loved ones, yearn to have their bodily remains returned to the family so they can be decently buried in a place where family and future family can visit. Those who have had loved ones disappear, killed in foreign wars, missing in action, etc. cannot seem to have closure until bodily remains are returned home. There was a time that the cremation of Jews during the Holocaust was considered shocking and horrible but cremation is a "fashion" now. In respect, the ovens of the Holocaust burned Jewish victims alive more often than not so I don't mean to casually refer to that. But cremation was seen as pagan and scandalous up until the last 15 years. It's shocking how casually we treat the magnificent bodies that God, Himself, created. We treat it as so much trash to be burned as though these people never existed. Where is the respect, the honor to the dead and to the One who created those bodies? Those people we loved so much, where is their respect? And where is the honor for the One who will raise them from the dead at the end of time? If at all possible, our bodies should be treated respectfully and left to God. After our body is decently interred, it is in God's Hands.



And, yet, in this day, it seems that cremation is becoming more and more popular. It's cheaper, there is no further maintenance (such as occurs when you have a buried loved one and cemeteries, tombstones and graves must be kept up), and valuable land is not lost to cemeteries so it seems to be more efficient. And, yet, traditionally, Christians are buried. Many are buried on hilltops facing the East as a symbol of their belief in the Second Coming of Jesus Christ who will then raise their mortal bodies to be changed into immortal bodies and so shall they ever be with the Lord, Amen. Some believers have been cremated out of ignorance and God knows that.

Although there is not a scripture, an 11th commandment, that says, "Thus saith the Lord, Thou shalt not cremate your mortal bodies upon death", there are plenty of scriptures that support burial as the proper way for Jews/Christians to dispose of their dead. Let's look at them.

First, let us see how God speaks to satan:
Ezekiel 28:18-19 (In a dialogue about the King of Tyre which most scholars agree is a type or shadow of satan, italics are mine) By the multitude of thine iniquities, in the unrighteousness of thy traffic, thou hast profaned thy sanctuaries; therefore have I brought forth a fire from the midst of thee; it hath devoured thee, and I have turned thee to ashes upon the earth in the sight of all them that behold thee.
All they that know thee among the peoples shall be astonished at thee: thou art become a terror, and thou shalt nevermore have any being.

If we will remember our scripture, satan was created as a perfect angel of light and yet, pride made him desire to be like God. This pride caused him to sin and God tossed him out of heaven along with 1/3 of the angels who had listened to satan. This rebellion against God resulted in satan and his following angels (demons) to be forever separated from God and their end result will be forever to burn in the Lake of Fire along with any who are not written in the Lamb's Book of Life (those who have NOT accepted Jesus Christ as their Savior).

Revelation 20: 10-15 And the Devil who deceived them was cast into the Lake of Fire and Brimstone, where the beast and the false prophet were . And he will be tormented day and night forever and ever.
And I saw a great white throne, and Him sitting on it, from whose face the earth and the heaven fled away. And a place was not found for them.
And I saw the dead, the small and the great, stand before God. And books were opened, and another book was opened, which is the Book of Life. And the dead were judged out of those things which were written in the books, according to their works.
And the sea gave up the dead in it. And death and hell delivered up the dead in them. And each one of them was judged according to their works.
And death and hell were cast into the Lake of Fire. This is the second death.
And if anyone was not found having been written in the Book of Life, he was cast into the Lake of Fire.

It seems that final disposition in fire is more a symbol of punishment. Let's look at some other examples of fire used as punishment.

Genesis 19: 24-25 Then Jehovah rained upon Sodom and upon Gomorrah brimstone and fire, from Jehovah out of the heavens.
And He overthrew those cities, and all the plain, and all the inhabitants of the cities, and that which grew upon the ground.

Joshua 7: 14-15 (the Lord speaking to Joshua) "Tomorrow morning everyone must gather near the place of worship. You will come forward tribe by tribe, and the LORD will show which tribe is guilty. Next, the clans in that tribe must come forward, and the LORD will show which clan is guilty. The families in that clan must come, and the LORD will point out the guilty family. Finally, the men in that family must come, and the LORD will show who stole what should have been destroyed. That man must be put to death, his body burned, and his possessions thrown into the fire. He has done a terrible thing by breaking the sacred agreement that the LORD made with Israel."
...
(It was determined that it was Achan and Achan confessed) Then everyone took Achan and the things he had stolen to Trouble Valley. They also took along his sons and daughters, his cattle, donkeys, and sheep, his tent, and everything else that belonged to him.
Joshua said, "Achan, you caused us a lot of trouble. Now the LORD is paying you back with the same kind of trouble." The people of Israel then stoned to death Achan and his family. They made a fire and burned the bodies, together with what Achan had stolen, and all his possessions. They covered the remains with a big pile of rocks, which is still there. Then the LORD stopped being angry with Israel. That's how the place came to be called Trouble Valley. (italics mine)

Deuteronomy 18:9-11 (God's commandment is that they should NOT sacrifice their child and burn them to death or cremate them unto idols) When you come to the land which Jehovah your God gives you, you shall not learn to do according to the abominations of those nations. There shall not be found among you anyone who makes his son or his daughter to pass through the fire, or that uses divination, an observer of clouds, or a fortune-teller, or a witch, or a charmer, or a consulter with familiar spirits, or a wizard, or one who calls to the dead.

Jeremiah 19:4 The people of Judah stopped worshiping me and made this valley into a place of worship for Baal and other gods that have never helped them or their ancestors or their kings. And they have committed murder here, burning their young, innocent children as sacrifices to Baal. I have never even thought of telling you to do that.

2 Kings 16: 2-3 Ahaz was twenty years old when he began to reign, and he reigned sixteen years in Jerusalem. And he did not do right in the sight of Jehovah his God, like David his father.
But he walked in the way of the kings of Israel. Yes, and he made his son to pass through the fire, according to the abominations of the nations whom Jehovah cast out from before the sons of Israel.

Joshua 11: 10-11 And Joshua at that time turned back and took Hazor (a city), and struck its king with the sword. For Hazor formerly was the head of all those kingdoms.
And they struck every soul in it with the edge of the sword, destroying them. And he left none breathing. And he burned Hazor with fire.

Psalm 11: 6 On the wicked He shall rain snares, fire and brimstone; and a horrible tempest shall be the portion of their cup.

Psalm 21: 9 You shall make them as a fiery oven in the time of Your presence; Jehovah will swallow them up in His wrath, and the fire shall devour them.

Psalm 97: 3 A fire goes before Him and burns up His enemies round about.

Psalm 106:18 And a fire was kindled in their company; the flame burned up the wicked.

Hosea 8: 14 Israel, I created you, but you forgot me. You and Judah built palaces and many strong cities. Now I will send fire to destroy your towns and fortresses.

Jeremiah 16: 1-4 Then again the word of the Lord came to me, saying, "You are not to take a wife for yourself or have sons or daughters in this place.
For this is what the Lord has said about the sons and daughters who come to birth in this place, and about their mothers who have given them birth, and about their fathers who have given life to them in this land:
Death from evil diseases will overtake them; there will be no weeping for them and their bodies will not be put to rest; they will be like waste on the face of the earth: the sword and need of food will put an end to them; their dead bodies will be meat for the birds of heaven and for the beasts of the earth."

Amos 2: 1 The LORD said: "I will punish Moab for countless crimes, and I won't change my mind. They made lime from the bones of the king of Edom..."

As you can see, there are many places in the Word of God that portray fire and burning as a method of punishment. God is so holy that fire goes before Him burning up any unholy thing before Him. We are only made holy by accepting Jesus Christ as our Savior and that is the only thing saving us from eternal burning.

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Now let us look at the history of burial for, first the Jews, and, later, the Christians.

Abraham and Sarah are buried.
Genesis 23: 19 Now the years of Sarah's life were a hundred and twenty-seven.
And Sarah's death took place in Kiriath-arba, that is, Hebron, in the land of Canaan: and Abraham went into his house, weeping and sorrowing for Sarah.
And Abraham came from his dead and said to the children of Heth, I am living among you as one from a strange country: give me some land here as my property, so that I may put my dead to rest. And in answer the children of Heth said to Abraham, My lord, truly you are a great chief among us; take the best of our resting-places for your dead; not one of us will keep back from you a place where you may put your dead to rest.
And Abraham got up and gave honour to the children of Heth, the people of that land.
And he said to them, If you will let me put my dead to rest here, make a request for me to Ephron, the son of Zohar, That he will give me the hollow in the rock named Machpelah, which is his property at the end of his field; let him give it to me for its full price as a resting-place for my dead among you.

Genesis 25: 8-10 And Abraham came to his death, an old man, full of years; and he was put to rest with his people.
And Isaac and Ishmael, his sons, put him to rest in the hollow rock of Machpelah, in the field of Ephron, the son of Zohar the Hittite, near Mamre; The same field which Abraham got from the children of Heth: there Abraham was put to rest with Sarah, his wife.

Isaac's burial.
Genesis 35: 28-29 And Isaac was a hundred and eighty years old.
Then Isaac came to his end and was put to rest with his father's people, an old man after a long life: and Jacob and Esau, his sons, put him in his last resting-place.

The burial of Rachel.
Genesis 35: 16-20 So they went on from Beth-el; and while they were still some distance from Ephrath, the pains of birth came on Rachel and she had a hard time...
And in the hour when her life went from her for death came to her, she gave the child the name Ben-oni: but his father gave him the name of Benjamin.
So Rachel came to her end and was put to rest on the road to Ephrath which is Beth-lehem.
And Jacob put up a pillar on her resting-place; which is named, The Pillar of the resting-place of Rachel, to this day.

Jacob/Israel died in Egypt but he carefully instructed his sons to carry his remains back to Canaan and bury him with his people.
Genesis 49: 29-33 And he gave orders to them, saying, Put me to rest with my people and with my fathers, in the hollow of the rock in the field of Ephron the Hittite,
In the rock in the field of Machpelah, near Mamre in the land of Canaan, which Abraham got from Ephron the Hittite, to be his resting-place.
There Abraham and Sarah his wife were put to rest, and there they put Isaac and Rebekah his wife, and there I put Leah to rest.
In the rock in the field which was got for a price from the people of Heth.
And when Jacob had come to the end of these words to his sons, stretching himself on his bed, he gave up his spirit, and went the way of his people.

Genesis 50:2-3 And Joseph gave orders to his servants who had the necessary knowledge, to make his father's body ready, folding it in linen with spices, and they did so.
And the forty days needed for making the body ready went by: and there was weeping for him among the Egyptians for seventy days.

Genesis 50: 12-14 So his sons did as he had given them orders to do:
For they took him into the land of Canaan and put him to rest in the hollow rock in the field of Machpelah, which Abraham got with the field, for a resting-place, from Ephron the Hittite at Mamre.
And when his father had been put to rest, Joseph and his brothers and all who had gone with him, went back to Egypt.

Joseph's remains were carried back to Canaan for burial.
Joshua 24: 32 And the bones of Joseph, which the children of Israel had taken up from Egypt, they put in the earth in Shechem, in the property which Jacob had got from the sons of Hamor, the father of Shechem, for a hundred shekels: and they became the heritage of the children of Joseph.

Miriam, Moses' sister, is buried.
Numbers 20: 1 In the first month all the children of Israel came into the waste land of Zin, and put up their tents in Kadesh; there death came to Miriam, and they put her body to rest in the earth.

Joshua is buried.
Joshua 24: 29 Now after these things, the death of Joshua, the son of Nun, the servant of the Lord, took place, he being then a hundred and ten years old.
And they put his body in the earth in the land of his heritage in Timnath-serah, in the hill-country of Ephraim, to the north of Mount Gaash.

2 Chronicles 32: 33 So (King) Hezekiah went to rest with his fathers, and they put his body into the higher part of the resting-places of the sons of David: and all Judah and the people of Jerusalem gave him honour at his death. And Manasseh his son became king in his place.

Saul had been chosen by God to be the Israelites first king. But, King Saul, disobeyed and turned away from God. He and his sons were killed in battle and the Philistines mutilated and displayed their bodies on poles. Cremation was only practiced in unusual circumstances, as in the case of Saul's and his sons' mutilated, headless bodies, where regular burial was impossible and there was a possibility of the Philistines coming and mutilating them still more. However, the bones were not burned but buried.
1 Samuel 31: 11-13 And when they heard about it, the people of Jabesh-gilead, what the Philistines had done to Saul, then all the brave men arose, and they traveled all night. And they took the body of Saul and the bodies of his sons from the wall of Beth-shan, and came to Jabesh, and burned them there.
And they took their bones and buried them under the tamarisk tree at Jabesh. And they fasted seven days.

Burial of King David.
Chronicles 29: 28 And he died in a good old age, full of days, riches, and honor. And Solomon his son reigned in his place.

His exact place of burial is unknown today but his tomb, which became the general sepulchre of the kings of Judah, was pointed out in the latest times of the Jewish people. The edifice was known at the times of the Crusades as being on the southern hill of modern Jerusalem commonly called Mount Zion

Nehemiah 3: 16 After him Nehemiah the son of Azbuk, the ruler of the half part of Beth-zur, repaired across from the tombs of David, and to the pool that was made, and to the house of the mighty men.

Act 2:29 "Men, brothers, it is permitted to say to you with plainness as to the patriarch David, that he is both dead and buried, and his tomb is with us to this day."

Burying the dead after battle with Gog. Even enemies received burial.
Ezekiel 38:2 Ezekiel, son of man, condemn Gog, that wicked ruler of the kingdoms of Meshech and Tubal in the land of Magog. Tell him: "I, the LORD God, am your enemy,...
Ezekiel 39: 11-16 After Gog has been destroyed, I will bury him and his army in Israel, in Travelers' Valley, east of the Dead Sea. That graveyard will be so large that it will block the way of anyone who tries to walk through the valley, which will then be known as "The Valley of Gog's Army."
The Israelites will spend seven months burying dead bodies and cleaning up their land.
Everyone will help with the burial, and they will be honored for this on the day the brightness of my glory is seen.
After those seven months, the people will appoint a group of men to look for any dead bodies left unburied. This must be done for seven months to make sure that the land is no longer unclean.
Whenever they find a human bone, they will set up a marker next to it. Then the gravediggers will bury it in "The Valley of Gog's Army" near the town of "Gog's Army." After that, the land will be pure again.

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Even criminals received burial according to the Jewish Laws given by God.
Deuteronomy 21: 22-23 If a criminal is put to death, and you hang the dead body on a tree, you must not let it hang there overnight. Bury it the same day, because the dead body of a criminal will bring God's curse on the land. The LORD your God is giving this land to you, so don't make it unclean by leaving the bodies of executed criminals on display.

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Any lack of proper burial is still regarded as an indignity, even punishment by God. It was seen as the greatest distress that can befall a person.
Jeremiah 15: 3-4 I will punish you in four different ways: You will be killed in war and your bodies dragged off by dogs, your flesh will be eaten by birds, and your bones will be chewed on by wild animals.
This punishment will happen because of the horrible things your King Manasseh did.



2 Kings 9:30-37 Jehu headed toward Jezreel, and when Jezebel heard he was coming, she put on eye shadow and brushed her hair. Then she stood at the window, waiting for him to arrive.
As he walked through the city gate, she shouted down to him, "Why did you come here, you murderer? To kill the king? You're no better than Zimri!"
He looked up toward the window and asked, "Is anyone up there on my side?" A few palace workers stuck their heads out of a window, and Jehu shouted, "Throw her out the window!" They threw her down, and her blood splattered on the walls and on the horses that trampled her body.
Jehu left to get something to eat and drink. Then he told some workers, "Even though she was evil, she was a king's daughter, so make sure she has a proper burial."
But when they went out to bury her body, they found only her skull, her hands, and her feet.
They reported this to Jehu, and he said, "The LORD told Elijah the prophet that Jezebel's body would be eaten by dogs right here in Jezreel.
And he warned that her bones would be spread all over the ground like manure, so that no one could tell who it was."

"For a corpse to remain unburied and become food for beasts of prey was the climax of indignity or judgment (2 Samuel 21: 10, 2 Samuel 21: 11; 1 Kings 13: 22; 1Kings 14: 11; 1 Kings 16: 4; 1Kings 21: 24; 2Kings 9: 37; Jeremiah 7: 33; Jeremiah 8: 1; Ezekiel 29: 5; Psalm 79: 3; Revelation 11:9), and uncovered blood cried for vengeance (Ezekiel 24: 6; Ezekiel 39: 11-16)..." International Standard Bible Encyclopedia

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Now, we look at how profane it was to disturb the graves and remains of the dead.

2 Kings 23: 16-18 And as Josiah turned, he spied the tombs which were there in the mountain. And he sent and took the bones out of the tombs, and burned them on the altar and defiled it, according to the Word of Jehovah which the man of God had proclaimed, who spoke these words. And he said, What monument is that which I see? And the men of the city told him, It is the grave of the man of God who came from Judah and proclaimed these things which you have done against the altar of Bethel. And he said, Let him alone; let no one move his bones. And they let his bones alone, with the bones of the prophet who came out of Samaria.

Jeremiah 8: 1-2 At that time, says Jehovah, they shall bring out the bones of the kings of Judah, and the bones of its rulers, and the bones of the priests, and the bones of the prophets, and the bones of the people of Jerusalem, out of their graves. And they shall spread them before the sun, and the moon, and all the host of the heavens, whom they have loved and whom they have served, and after whom they have walked, and whom they have sought, and whom they have worshiped. They shall not be gathered nor buried; they shall be as dung on the face of the earth.

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In all things we strive to follow the steps of our Lord, Jesus Christ, the Son of God. We try to imitate His example. The term, "Christian", means little Christs. We are His followers, we believe in Him, we are His disciples. We must ask ourselves, "How was Jesus' body treated after it was taken down from the cross?"

His body was treated with respect. Joseph of Arimathea offered to give his own tomb to place Jesus' body. His body was taken down from the cross, wrapped in clean linens, spices were placed around him and he was sealed in Joseph's tomb. After the Jewish Sabbath, the women, who had followed Him, came back to anoint his body with oil and to carefully wrap His body in spices and linen. But He had risen from the dead. His linen wrappings were carefully folded and left in the empty tomb.

John 19: 38-42 Joseph from Arimathea was one of Jesus' disciples. He had kept it secret though, because he was afraid of the Jewish leaders. But now he asked Pilate to let him have Jesus' body. Pilate gave him permission, and Joseph took it down from the cross.
Nicodemus also came with about seventy-five pounds of spices made from myrrh and aloes. This was the same Nicodemus who had visited Jesus one night.
The two men wrapped the body in a linen cloth, together with the spices, which was how the Jewish people buried their dead.
In the place where Jesus had been nailed to a cross, there was a garden with a tomb that had never been used.
The tomb was nearby, and since it was the time to prepare for the Sabbath, they were in a hurry to put Jesus' body there.

John 20: 1-8 On Sunday morning while it was still dark, Mary Magdalene went to the tomb and saw that the stone had been rolled away from the entrance.
She ran to Simon Peter and to Jesus' favorite disciple and said, "They have taken the Lord from the tomb! We don't know where they have put him."
Peter and the other disciple started for the tomb.
They ran side by side, until the other disciple ran faster than Peter and got there first.
He bent over and saw the strips of linen cloth lying inside the tomb, but he did not go in.
When Simon Peter got there, he went into the tomb and saw the strips of cloth.
He also saw the piece of cloth that had been used to cover Jesus' face. It was rolled up and in a place by itself.
The disciple who got there first then went into the tomb, and when he saw it, he believed.
Now to look at a few last things about how we should treat our dead.

If we follow Jesus by participating in the Lord's Supper, repeating the Lord's Prayer, being baptized, following His teachings, then we should be willing to follow Him in the dispensation of His body before it was resurrected.

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Now I will cover just a few last things about this subject.

The rapidity of decomposition in the hot Middle East, and the uncleanness associated with a dead body according to the Jewish Law, made immediate interment necessary. As a genealogist I was amazed at the practice of burying the dead the day after death. This seemed to be the practice up until the middle of the last century. I'm sure it was because of the lack of embalming like they can do today. Today, we take a few days before we bury them. It's the custom for white Southerners to bury someone on the 2nd-3rd day after death. I believe the custom is different for the black Southerners who may take a few more days. In some places it's to allow people who live out of town to get back home in time for the funeral. Some now wait until the weekend.


A napkin was bound around the head, and linen bandages wound round the body (John 11:44; John 19: 40, Mark 14: 8). Costly spices were wrapped up in the linen swathes round the corpse, and also were burnt at the funeral (2 Chronicles 16: 14); so Nicodemus honored Jesus with 100 pounds weight of "myrrh and aloes." This mixture of myrrh and aloes together was a very large quantity, and very expensive in honour and respect to Him. By this they showed the value they had for His person. Myrrh was one of the principal spices in the anointing oil and holy perfume. Christ's garments are said to smell of myrrh, aloes, and cassia in Psalm 45: 8. This is comparable to our embalming practises today.

"In conformity to this example, we ought to have regard to the dead bodies of Christians; not to enshrine and adore their relics, no, not those of the most eminent saints and martyrs (nothing like that was done to the dead body of Christ himself), but carefully to deposit them, the dust in the dust, as those who believe that the dead bodies of the saints are still united to Christ and designed for glory and immortality at the last day. The resurrection of the saints will be in virtue of Christ's resurrection, and therefore in burying them we should have an eye to Christ's burial, for he, being dead, thus speaketh. Thy dead men shall live, Isaiah 26: 19. In burying our dead it is not necessary that in all circumstances we imitate the burial of Christ, as if we must be buried in linen, and in a garden, and be embalmed as he was; but his being buried after the manner of the Jews teaches us that in things of this nature we should conform to the usages of the country where we live, except in those that are superstitious." (Matthew Henry's Commentary on John 19: 39, italics his)

Mark 14: 3-9 And being in Bethany in the house of Simon the leper, as He reclined, a woman came with an alabaster vial of pure, costly ointment of spikenard. And she broke the vial and poured it on His head.
And some were indignant to themselves, and said, Why was this waste of the ointment made?
For it might have been sold for more than three hundred denarii, and be given to the poor. And they were incensed with her.
And Jesus said, Let her alone! Why do you trouble her? She has done a good work towards Me.
For you have the poor with you always, and whenever you desire you may do them good. But you do not have Me always.
She has done what she could. She has come beforehand to anoint My body for the burying.
Truly I say to you, Wherever this gospel shall be proclaimed in all the world, this also that she has done will be spoken of for a memorial of her.

Alabaster was thought to hold such precious perfumes and ointments without it allowing any decay of the contents. It would have been a sealed box and she probably "broke" the seal rather than the entire box. She may have dropped the box to loosen the seal and then poured the contents upon her Savior. She would have scraped all the ointment out so none was left. In her way, she was giving liberally, extravagantly... "The costliness of Mary's offering, (300 pence = $45), may best be seen from the fact that a penny, (denarius, 15 to 17 cents), was, in those days, the day-wages of a laborer (Matthew 20: 2)." - Smith's Bible Dictionary. A token of the highest respect. Where there is true love for Jesus Christ, nothing is too good to bestow upon him. But, in those days, it was not unusual for people to begin, during their lifetimes, preparing for their deaths. Much as we buy life insurance, purchase burial plots, make funeral arrangements ahead of time. Mary would have had this on hand for her own burial but she, instead, used it to anoint Jesus. She was giving her very best and something that meant a lot to her. It was a sacrifice, a gift that cost her. She was anointing Him as her sovereign king and she gave Him her tears and kisses as a sign of love and allegiance. She may or may not have had a word from God that Jesus would die soon. But, consciously or unconsciously, she was doing this prophetically. Jesus would die soon and she would not be there to anoint and prepare His body upon His death. Jesus recognized all of this.

To get back to our discussion...the point is that Joseph and Nicodemus had a tomb and burial spices on hand for their own use, but they busied themselves with using their resources for Jesus. While Joseph went to beg Pilate for Jesus' body, Nicodemus was going home to gather his own burial spices. He and his servants met Joseph and the mourners at the graveyard and they positioned Jesus body in the tomb and sealed it.

In those days hired mourners would weep and wail.

There would be shrill pipes which increased the sound of wailings for the dead (Matthew 9: 23; Jeremiah 9: 17; 2 Chronicles 35: 25). It was a way of announcing the death to the close knit community much as we do with newspaper obituaries, calling friends, and having the greeting before the actual funeral.

They didn't use coffins in those ancient days. Those who were wealthy used sarcophagi and had their own private family tombs.



They began as natural caves in which niches were carved and the dead laid in these niches. The mouth of the caves were sealed with a rock. Later, handhewn tombs were dug. We've all heard of the catacombs under Rome.

Loved ones would often dress in "sack cloth" and put ashes on their heads as a sign of mourning.

When they were in utter despair, there were more than just a few ashes, but later it became a smudge of ashes on the forehead.

Much like those who wore black or a black armband for a certain time period to honor the dead. We don't do that much any more.

The body, without any coffin, was carried to burial on a bier (Luke 7: 12). Much like we carry the dead in the back of the funeral car to the cemetery.










After burial the funeral feast followed (Jeremiah 16: 6-8) like we have receptions and meals at the family's home. Churches today have committees who take food and drink to the homes of the bereaved in the congregation so the family doesn't have to worry about cooking and cleaning during their time of bereavement. It's their way of ministering to a hurting family.

Many times, after the body has had time to decay, the bones were collected into a stone ossuaries.

Ordinary graves were marked by the heaping of crude stones, but hewn stones and sometimes costly pillars were set up as memorials of the dead (Ezekiel 39: 15; 2 Kings 23: 17) much like we set up tombstones today. As a genealogist, I wonder about those who are cremated and their ashes scattered. Will there be a stone or bronze memorial in a cemetery for them? I love going to cemeteries and looking for gravestones of my ancestors. Will someone, in the future, look for a tombstone that is not there? It is the longest lasting memorial someone has that he/she walked this earth. I particularly love to find a gravestone that has all the information (not just "J.Smith, 1834-1867") and has something unusual that represents the deceased such as a saying, scripture, engravings.

I hope this answers your questions about traditional Christian burial.

Spring is here. During the winter we all think of drinks such as hot chocolate, cinnamon and pumpkin spiced coffees, chai teas, mulled cider. In the summer we think of lemonade, iced tea, milkshakes and iced smoothies. Well, what drinks spring to mind for this time of year? Here are some Spring beverages.

Strawberry Nectar
Fresh strawberries and apple juice!

Spring Punch
Use Cranberry Raspberry juice with a packet of Koolaid fruit punch and a liter of lemon/lime carbonated soda

Banana Colada
Take fresh bananas, milk, pineapple juice, cream of coconut, a tad of sugar and some allspice. Place in a blender. Add a little ice for an iced smoothie.

Blueberry Delight
Take fresh blueberries and raspberries. Add to plain yogurt and some pina colada mix in the blender. Voila! Fresh and fruity.

Coconut and Orange Drink
Two cups of coconut water with 4 Tbsp of Orange Crush (or other orange soda). Delicious and refreshing!

Coconut Surprise
Coconut water, a little sugar to taste, some lemon juice and mint leaves. Easy peasy!

Iced Coffee
The coffee of your choice, cooled. Add sugar and cream, stir and pour over ice. Drizzle with some caramel for a little extra.

Have you ever thought about how people preserved and stored food before plastic? No plastic wrap, no cardboard, no paper bags, no plastic bags, no plastic containers... how did they keep food? There are a lot of ways and it depends on how far back you go. In ancient times, it would have been different than 500 years ago or 100 years ago. I looked for things on the Internet that would have been used at least 100 years ago before plastic.


Coopers were people who built wooden barrels, wooden buckets, wooden churns, wooden casks and wooden tubs. It was a craft to make and repair wooden barrels and buckets. It's, unfortunately, an obsolete job with the advent of plastic.















Then there were the tinsmiths. Tin is a low-melting, malleable, ductile metallic element nearly approaching silver in color and luster. A tinsmith was a maker of any boxes, containers, pots, vessels made of tin.



















They used wood for many containers besides buckets and barrels.











Sacks were often used for grains, flour, sugar, etc.






Flour sacks had the advantage of being used for sewing flour sack dresses.





Hoosier cabinets were the kitchen cabinets of yesterday. Many had food storage built in such as flour storage and sifters, sugar storage, jar storage.



Stoneware and pottery crocks were used for many items from beverages to pickles to vegetables.




Pottery was used to make everything from bowls, containers, cookware and serveware.


Glass was used to make bottles and jars for food storage.








As glass manufacturing progressed and got easier, they made  glass containers to use in refrigerators (like these refrigerator dishes) and in the oven.



Baskets were also made for food storage. There are bushel baskets, egg baskets, fish baskets (to hold fish while you continued fishing), produce baskets, fruit baskets, etc.






Dried gourds were often used.









Enamelware


Today, we are so spoiled to plastic containers, plastic ziplock bags, cardboard boxes, styrofoam, etc, that we forget how they did it in the old days before our modern food containers. I was raised during the age of Tupperware and Tupperware food containers were the cadillac of food storage. Last year, after reading about BPA's I decided to clear out my cabinets of old plastic and purchased all new stuff. There are basically food storage, food preparation and food servers. There are mixing bowls, leftover containers, canisters for storage, etc. Our ancestors had these same needs so, practically speaking, they had to come up with ways to do what we do so easily today.

Last night our pastor started a new series called "Digging Deeper" to teach us how to study the Bible for ourselves. If you follow my blog, you know I do my own Bible studies using the common reference materials. I learned how to use them about 25 years ago and have gone through so many Bible studies (with groups, in church and on my own through books, DVD's and Bible study magazines) that I've learned how to do it on my own but it can be a little overwhelming when you first start. It was so exciting to see people pouring over a Bible study and seeing it for themselves. The light goes on in their eyes. I have enough teacher in me to get a thrill seeing others "get it" for themselves.

There are so many in this world who haven't read and studied the Christian's Holy Bible. In a developed country like America where we have a free education system, churches on every corner, Christian books and references available, Bibles of every translation (and translated into every human language)... is there any reason why we haven't read it? And how can we make comments as though we know what we are talking about when we haven't read it?

I've heard people say, "I don't believe the Bible is the word of God. It's just myths and stories. How can you believe in every word? It's just man's interpretation so it can't be word for word from God." Unless you have read it through and done some studies, then you really don't know what you are talking about. I understand why someone would say it if they haven't read it for themselves. But, nonetheless, those comments are empty if you haven't delved into it for yourself. I challenge everyone to pick up the Bible and read it. Start with Genesis 1:1 and go all the way through Revelation 22:21. It doesn't have to be the King James Version (KJV) because that was the first English translation from the original Greek and Hebrew. But that translation was in the English language of 1611. We don't still speak like that. But we have scholars who have formed committees and have studied original texts and then translated it into our modern English. This doesn't make it any less God's Word, it's just using words and speech patterns that we use today.

Let's look at the difference between translations.

Revelation 22:7-9 (KJV)
(7) Behold, I come quickly: blessed is he that keepeth the sayings of the prophecy of this book.
(8) And I John saw these things, and heard them. And when I had heard and seen, I fell down to worship before the feet of the angel which shewed me these things.
(9) Then saith he unto me, See thou do it not: for I am thy fellowservant, and of thy brethren the prophets, and of them which keep the sayings of this book: worship God.

This is the way they spoke in 1611 and someone who read it, would have understood the flow of speech but it's hard for us to understand. Let's look at a couple of translations in modern English.

Rev 22:7-9 (Modern King James Version - MKJV)
(7) Behold, I come quickly. Blessed is he who keeps the Words of the prophecy of this Book.
(8) And I, John, saw and heard these things. And when I heard and saw, I fell down to worship before the feet of the angel showing me these things.
(9) Then he said to me, Behold! See, do not do it! For I am your fellow-servant, and of your brothers the prophets, and of those who keep the Words of this Book. Do worship to God.

Rev 22:7-9 (Contemporary English Version - CEV)
(7) Remember, I am coming soon! God will bless everyone who pays attention to the message of this book.
(8) My name is John, and I am the one who heard and saw these things. Then after I had heard and seen all this, I knelt down and began to worship at the feet of the angel who had shown it to me.
(9) But the angel said, Don't do that! I am a servant, just like you. I am the same as a follower or a prophet or anyone else who obeys what is written in this book. God is the one you should worship.

Rev 22:7-9 (Amplified Version - AMP)
(7) “And behold, I am coming quickly. Blessed (happy, prosperous, to be admired) is the one who heeds and takes to heart and remembers the words of the prophecy [that is, the predictions, consolations, and warnings] contained in this book (scroll).”
(8) I, John, am the one who heard and saw these things. And when I heard and saw them, I fell down to worship before the feet of the angel who showed me these things.
(9) But he said to me, “Do not do that. I am a fellow servant with you and your brothers the prophets and with those who heed and remember [the truths contained in] the words of this book. Worship God.”

The meaning has not changed but it's easier to understand in modern English. Find a translation that you can understand.

We have the luxury of reference books.

Concordance - an alphabetical index of the principal words of a book, as of the Bible, with a reference to the passage in which each occurs. Let's say you want to look up the word "fellowservant". You turn to your concordance and look for that word. The concordance will give you a list of all the Bible verses that include the word, "fellowservant". Here is the list in the King James Version:

Mat 18:29 And his fellowservant fell down at his feet, and besought him, saying, Have patience with me, and I will pay thee all.
Mat 18:33 Shouldest not thou also have had compassion on thy fellowservant, even as I had pity on thee?
Col 1:7 As ye also learned of Epaphras our dear fellowservant, who is for you a faithful minister of Christ;
Col 4:7 All my state shall Tychicus declare unto you, who is a beloved brother, and a faithful minister and fellowservant in the Lord:
Rev 19:10 And I fell at his feet to worship him. And he said unto me, See thou do it not: I am thy fellowservant, and of thy brethren that have the testimony of Jesus: worship God: for the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy.
Rev 22:9 Then saith he unto me, See thou do it not: for I am thy fellowservant, and of thy brethren the prophets, and of them which keep the sayings of this book: worship God.

Strong's Exhaustive Concordance of the King James Version - This LARGE book has 3 sections: a concordance that lists every word in the King James Version of the Bible, a Greek dictionary and a Hebrew dictionary. To use Strong's you would begin by looking up the word "fellowservant" in the concordance but you would see some numbers to the side, like this:

Mat 18:29 And his fellowservant fell down at his feet, and besought him, saying, Have patience with me, and I will pay thee all. G4889
Mat 18:33 Shouldest not thou also have had compassion on thy fellowservant, even as I had pity on thee? G4889
Col 1:7 As ye also learned of Epaphras our dear fellowservant, who is for you a faithful minister of Christ; G4889
Col 4:7 All my state shall Tychicus declare unto you, who is a beloved brother, and a faithful minister and fellowservant in the Lord: G4489
Rev 19:10 And I fell at his feet to worship him. And he said unto me, See thou do it not: I am thy fellowservant, and of thy brethren that have the testimony of Jesus: worship God: for the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy. G4889
Rev 22:9 Then saith he unto me, See thou do it not: for I am thy fellowservant, and of thy brethren the prophets, and of them which keep the sayings of this book: worship God. G4889

Now flip to the Greek dictionary and locate the number, 4889, to see the definition of the word, "fellowservant".

G4889
σύνδουλος
sundoulos
soon'-doo-los (pronunciation)
From G4862 and G1401; a co-slave, that is, servitor or ministrant of the same master (human or divine): - fellowservant.

If the number is H387 then you turn to the Hebrew dictionary and locate the number, 387, to see the definition.

H387
לוּץ
lûts
loots (pronunciation)
A primitive root; properly to make mouths at, that is, to scoff; hence (from the effort to pronounce a foreign language) to interpret, or (generally) intercede: - ambassador, have in derision, interpreter, make a mock, mocker, scorn (-er, -ful), teacher.


Lets look at another example. We studied this last night in our Digging Deeper class. We looked at this passage:

John 21:15-17 (KJV) So when they had dined, Jesus saith to Simon Peter, Simon, son of Jonas, lovest thou me more than these? He saith unto him, Yea, Lord; thou knowest that I love thee. He saith unto him, Feed my lambs. (16) He saith to him again the second time, Simon, son of Jonas, lovest thou me? He saith unto him, Yea, Lord; thou knowest that I love thee. He saith unto him, Feed my sheep. (17) He saith unto him the third time, Simon, son of Jonas, lovest thou me? Peter was grieved because he said unto him the third time, Lovest thou me? And he said unto him, Lord, thou knowest all things; thou knowest that I love thee. Jesus saith unto him, Feed my sheep.

If we look in Strong's Exhaustive Concordance for all the occurrences of "lovest" and "love" in this passage this is what we find.

Verse 15 "lovest" G25
ἀγαπάω
agapaō
ag-ap-ah'-o
Perhaps from ἄγαν agan (much; or compare [H5689]); to love (in a social or moral sense): - (be-) love (-ed).

Verse 15 "love" G5368
φιλέω
phileō
fil-eh'-o
From G5384; to be a friend to (fond of [an individual or an object]), that is, have affection for (denoting personal attachment, as a matter of sentiment or feeling; while G25 is wider, embracing especially the judgment and the deliberate assent of the will as a matter of principle, duty and propriety: the two thus stand related very much as G2309 and G1014, or as G2372 and G3563 respectively; the former being chiefly of the heart and the latter of the head); specifically to kiss (as a mark of tenderness): - kiss, love.

Verse 16 "lovest" G25
Verse 16 "love" G5368

Verse 17 "lovest" G5368
Verse 17 "lovest" G5368
Verse 17 "love" G5368

Now let's look at the passage with the original Greek words:
John 21:15-17 (KJV) So when they had dined, Jesus saith to Simon Peter, Simon, son of Jonas, agapao thou me more than these? He saith unto him, Yea, Lord; thou knowest that I phileo thee. He saith unto him, Feed my lambs. (16) He saith to him again the second time, Simon, son of Jonas, agapao thou me? He saith unto him, Yea, Lord; thou knowest that I phileo thee. He saith unto him, Feed my sheep. (17) He saith unto him the third time, Simon, son of Jonas, phileo thou me? Peter was grieved because he said unto him the third time, Phileo thou me? And he said unto him, Lord, thou knowest all things; thou knowest that I phileo thee. Jesus saith unto him, Feed my sheep.




Now let's unpack it. Our pastor reminded us that this exchange happened after Jesus was crucified and resurrected. If you remember, Peter was the only disciple who followed the crowd who had arrested Jesus. While Jesus was being tortured with beatings and being mocked, Peter was mingling with the crowd just outside. When some of the crowd accused him of being a friend or follower of the Jesus that had been arrested and who was being beaten by the soldiers, Peter denied being Jesus' disciple 3 times (see John 18). In Luke 22, before Jesus was arrested, Peter vowed to Jesus that he would follow Jesus even if it meant jail or death. But Jesus prophesied that Peter would deny him 3 times before the cock crowed (the sun rose).

Luke 22:31-34 (CEV) Jesus said, "Simon, listen to me! Satan has demanded the right to test each one of you, as a farmer does when he separates wheat from the husks. (32) But Simon, I have prayed that your faith will be strong. And when you have come back to me, help the others." (33) Peter said, "Lord, I am ready to go with you to jail and even to die with you." (34) Jesus replied, "Peter, I tell you that before a rooster crows tomorrow morning, you will say three times that you don't know me."

When they first arrested Jesus, Peter did jump in and grab a sword and lopped off the ear of one of the soldiers. But Jesus stopped Peter and put the ear back on the soldier and healed him. But after that, the disciples scattered except for Peter who fearfully followed the crowd and mingled. As we said earlier, sure enough, Peter denied being a disciple of Jesus 3 times.

Luke 22:60-62 (CEV) Peter replied, "I don't know what you are talking about!" Right then, while Peter was still speaking, a rooster crowed. (61) The Lord turned and looked at Peter. And Peter remembered that the Lord had said, "Before a rooster crows tomorrow morning, you will say three times that you don't know me." (62) Then Peter went out and cried hard.

You can imagine how Peter felt at the moment Jesus looked at him. He realized he had denied being a friend and follower of the one he had vowed to follow to death just hours before. I'm sure he felt ashamed, humiliated, devastated. The Greek word for "looked at" (in the King James it's "looked upon") means to stare fixedly with a discerning eye.

Jesus is crucified and 3 days later rose from the dead. Peter is one of the first to go to the tomb and sees it's empty. Jesus meets with His disciples and He specifically talks to Peter and asks him this question 3 times.

Jesus is saying, "Peter do you love me with the totally committed, self sacrificing love of God?" and Peter replies, "You know I love you like a friend." Jesus repeats His question and Peter answers the same way. Then Jesus asks Peter, "Do you even love me as a friend?" Now, remember, Peter had denied being Jesus' follower and friend to the crowd! But Jesus is telling Peter, "I know you denied me. I know you betrayed me by denying me. But I forgive you and love you anyway. I died for you. I love you with the self sacrificing love of God, do you love Me?" How do you think Peter responded? It made me think of this scripture:

Romans 5:6-8 (English Standard Version - ESV) For while we were still weak, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly. (7) For one will scarcely die for a righteous person—though perhaps for a good person one would dare even to die— (8) but God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.

Jesus knew Peter would deny him before he even did it. Jesus caught Peter's eye right after his 3rd denial. Peter knew Jesus knew. But Jesus still loved Peter enough to die for him. Jesus still loved Peter enough to forgive him. Jesus still loved Peter enough to seek him out and speak to him in love! This overwhelming love and forgiveness creates in Peter's heart a response of love and devotion. Jesus reached out to Peter and Peter took His Hand in response. Peter never wavered again. He had been so scared when Jesus was arrested. He denied knowing Jesus. What was he scared of? He was scared of being arrested with Jesus and being tortured and executed with Him. After Jesus' crucifixion, the disciples, including Peter, hid. He even tried going back to his old occupation of fishing. He was afraid, devastated, ashamed, confused. But Jesus sought out Peter (and the other disciples) and He showed Peter His love and forgiveness. The disciples became apostles after Jesus ascended to Heaven and sent the Holy Spirit down to them. Do you know how the Apostle Peter died? He was arrested and executed. Church tradition says he was crucified. He supposedly told his executioners that he was not worthy to die the same death as Jesus so they crucified him upside down. He was afraid before, later he was no longer afraid. The difference? Jesus' willingness to die to save Peter. Jesus' willingness to forgive Peter, Jesus' love and voluntary self sacrifice for Peter (for all of us too). Also, the Holy Spirit came into their hearts and empowered them to act boldly in the service of God.

Now let's apply this to our lives. Jesus knew me and knew I would be born in 1959 and I would be born a sinner (because of the original sin of Adam and Eve). Jesus knew I would act on my sinful nature by sinning. He knew I could not save myself. My sinful nature and my sins would send me to hell for eternity. He still loved me enough to die for me and save me from my sins. "God shows his love for us in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us."

People tend to think, "I've got to get my life right before I start going to church." WRONG! No matter what sins you have committed, Jesus loves you and died to save you. You cannot save yourself. You cannot "get your life right". There is no sin bad enough that Jesus cannot forgive. I don't care if you are the worst person in the world, Jesus can forgive you and set you free. Even if no human being can forgive you, Jesus can. If you think you are too sinful then you are saying Jesus didn't do enough on the cross. But He died for ALL sin. His death defeated ALL sin. All we have to do is accept it.

Once I realize how sinful I am and that I cannot save myself. And once I realize Jesus died for me anyway and accomplished salvation for me despite my sinful self,,, the love rises up in me in response to Jesus' love! He initiates the love and I respond. This is what happened to Peter. Jesus initiates an encounter with Peter and offers him love and forgiveness. Peter responds with a deeper love than he could ever muster on his own. Jesus was telling Peter he was still commissioned to serve God. Peter was still loved, still in a relationship with God and could still be used by God to do a mighty work. He had not lost all. Jesus gave him all!

Meditating on those verses gives me a deeper insight. Do you see how using the Bible and a reference book, like Strong's Exhaustive Concordance, can help you see it more deeply?

What other study aids are there?

Vine's Expository Dictionary of New Testament Words - much like Strong's but even more. It takes the important words (not every single word like Strong's) and defines them. It is only the New Testament, but you can look up the word from the King James in Vine's and see the definition. Our pastor said that while Strong's may give you a short meaning, Vine's gives you a paragraph. Let's look at an example.

If we look up the word "love" in Vine's this is what you will see (much more detail than Strong's):

A — 1: ἀγαπάω
(Strong's G25 — Verb — agapao — ag-ap-ah'-o )
and the corresponding noun agape (B, No. 1 below) present "the characteristic word of Christianity, and since the Spirit of revelation has used it to express ideas previously unknown, inquiry into its use, whether in Greek literature or in the Septuagint, throws but little light upon its distinctive meaning in the NT. Cp., however, Leviticus 19:18; Deuteronomy 6:5 .

"Agape and agapao are used in the NT (a) to describe the attitude of God toward His Son, John 17:26; the human race, generally, John 3:16; Romans 5:8; and to such as believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, particularly, John 14:21; (b) to convey His will to His children concerning their attitude one toward another, John 13:34 , and toward all men, 1 Thessalonians 3:12; 1 Corinthians 16:14; 2 Peter 1:7; (c) to express the essential nature of God, 1 John 4:8 .
"Love can be known only from the actions it prompts. God's love is seen in the gift of His Son, 1 John 4:9,10 . But obviously this is not the love of complacency, or affection, that is, it was not drawn out by any excellency in its objects, Romans 5:8 . It was an exercise of the Divine will in deliberate choice, made without assignable cause save that which lies in the nature of God Himself, Cp. Deuteronomy 7:7,8 .
"Love had its perfect expression among men in the Lord Jesus Christ, 2 Corinthians 5:14; Ephesians 2:4; 3:19; 5:2; Christian love is the fruit of His Spirit in the Christian, Galatians 5:22 .
"Christian love has God for its primary object, and expresses itself first of all in implicit obedience to His commandments, John 14:15,21,23; 15:10; 1 John 2:5; 5:3; 2 John 1:6 . Self-will, that is, self-pleasing, is the negation of love to God.
"Christian love, whether exercised toward the brethren, or toward men generally, is not an impulse from the feelings, it does not always run with the natural inclinations, nor does it spend itself only upon those for whom some affinity is discovered. Love seeks the welfare of all, Romans 15:2 , and works no ill to any, 13:8-10; love seeks opportunity to do good to 'all men, and especially toward them that are of the household of the faith,' Galatians 6:10 . See further 1 Corinthians 13 and Colossians 3:12-14 ." * [* From Notes on Thessalonians, by Hogg and Vine, p. 105.]
In respect of agapao as used of God, it expresses the deep and constant "love" and interest of a perfect Being towards entirely unworthy objects, producing and fostering a reverential "love" in them towards the Giver, and a practical "love" towards those who are partakers of the same, and a desire to help others to seek the Giver. See BELOVED.

A — 2: φιλέω
(Strong's G5368 — Verb — phileo — fil-eh'-o )
is to be distinguished from agapao in this, that phileo more nearly represents "tender affection." The two words are used for the "love" of the Father for the Son, John 3:35 (No. 1); 5:20 (No. 2); for the believer, John 14:21 (No. 1); 16:27 (No. 2); both, of Christ's "love" for a certain disciple, John 13:23 (No. 1); 20:2 (No. 2). Yet the distinction between the two verbs remains, and they are never used indiscriminately in the same passage; if each is used with reference to the same objects, as just mentioned, each word retains its distinctive and essential character.

Phileo is never used in a command to men to "love" God; it is, however, used as a warning in 1 Corinthians 16;22; agapao is used instead, e.g., Matthew 22:37; Luke 10:27; Romans 8:28; 1 Corinthians 8:3; 1 Peter 1:8; 1 John 4:21 . The distinction between the two verbs finds a conspicuous instance in the narrative of John 21:15-17 . The context itself indicates that agapao in the first two questions suggests the "love" that values and esteems (cp. Revelation 12:11 ). It is an unselfish "love," ready to serve. The use of phileo in Peter's answers and the Lord's third question, conveys the thought of cherishing the object above all else, of manifesting an affection characterized by constancy, from the motive of the highest veneration. See also Trench, Syn., xii.
Again, to "love" (phileo) life, from an undue desire to preserve it, forgetful of the real object of living, meets with the Lord's reproof, John 12:25 . On the contrary, to "love" life (agapao) as used in 1 Peter 3:10 , is to consult the true interests of living. Here the word phileo would be quite inappropriate.
Note: In Mark 12:38 , AV, thelo, "to wish," is translated "love" (RV, "desire").

You can see it goes into much more detail. Just studying one word can be so interesting and uplifting!!!

Nave's Topical Bible - is a topical concordance of the Bible, and contains Biblical references to over 20,000 topics. If we pick the topic of "love" then Nave's shows us where that word is used and in what context. Here is Nave's on "love":

Love
Of children for parents
See Children Of God
See God, Love of
Of man for God
Exo_20:6; Deu_5:10; Deu_6:5; Deu_7:9; Deu_10:12; Deu_11:1; Deu_13:3; Deu_30:6; Deu_30:16; Deu_30:20; Jos_22:5; Deu_11:13; Deu_11:22; Jos_23:11; Psa_18:1; Psa_31:23; Psa_37:4; Psa_45:10-11; Psa_63:5-6; Psa_69:35-36; Psa_73:25-26; Psa_91:14; Psa_97:10; Psa_116:1; Psa_145:20; Pro_8:17; Pro_23:26; Isa_56:6-7; Jer_2:2-3; Mar_12:29-30; Mar_12:32-33; Mat_22:37-38; Luk_11:42; Joh_5:42; Rom_5:5; Rom_8:28; 1Co_8:3; Phi_1:9; 2Th_3:5; 2Ti_1:7; 1Jo_2:5; 1Jo_2:15; 1Jo_3:17-18; 1Jo_4:12; 1Jo_4:16-21; 1Jo_5:1-3; 2Jo_1:6; Jud_1:21
Of man for Jesus
General references
Mat_10:37-38; Mat_25:34-40; Mat_27:55-61; Mar_9:41; Luk_2:29-30; Luk_7:47; Joh_8:42; Joh_14:15; Joh_14:21; Joh_14:23; Joh_14:28; Joh_15:9; Joh_16:27; Joh_17:26; Joh_21:17; Act_21:13; 1Co_16:22; 2Co_5:8; 2Co_5:6; 2Co_5:14-15; Gal_5:6; Gal_5:22; Gal_6:14; Eph_3:17-19; Eph_4:15; Eph_6:24; Phi_1:9; Phi_1:23; Phi_1:20-21; Phi_3:7-8; Col_1:8; 2Th_3:5; 2Ti_1:13; 2Ti_4:8; Phm_1:5; Heb_6:10; Jam_1:12; Jam_2:5; 1Pe_1:8; 1Pe_2:7; Rev_2:4
Instances of love for Jesus:
Mary
Mat_26:6-13; Joh_12:3-8; Luk_10:39
Peter
Mat_17:4; Joh_13:37; Joh_18:10; Joh_20:3-6; Joh_21:7
Thomas
Joh_11:16
The disciples
Mar_16:10; Luke 24:17-41; Joh_20:20
Mary Magdalene and other disciples
Mat_27:55-56; Mat_27:61; Mat_28:1-9; Luk_8:2-3; Luk_23:27; Luk_23:55-56; Luk_24:1-10; Joh_20:1-2; Joh_20:11-18
A man of Gadara out of whom Jesus cast an evil spirit
Mar_5:18 Joseph of Ari
mathaea
Mat_27:57-60
Nicodemus
Joh_19:39-40
Women of Jerusalem
Luk_23:27
Of man for man
General references
Lev_19:18; Lev_19:34; Deu_10:19; Psa_133:1-3; Pro_10:12; Pro_15:17; Pro_17:9; Pro_17:17; Son_8:6-7; Mat_5:41-47; Mat_10:41-42; Mat_19:19; Gal_5:14; Mat_25:34-40; Mar_9:41; Mar_12:30-33; Luk_6:31-35; Mat_7:12; Luk_10:30-37; Joh_13:14-15; Joh_13:34-35; Joh_15:12-13; Joh_15:17; Rom_12:9-10; Rom_13:8-10; 1Co_8:1; 1Co_13:1-13; 1Co_14:1; 1Co_16:14; 2Co_8:7-8; Gal_5:13; Gal_5:22; Gal_5:26; Eph_5:2; Phi_1:9; Phi_2:2; Col_2:2; Col_3:12-14; 1Th_1:3; 1Th_3:12; 1Th_4:9; 1Ti_1:5; 1Ti_1:14; 1Ti_2:15; 1Ti_4:12; 1Ti_6:2; 1Ti_6:11; 2Ti_2:22; Tit_3:15; Phm_1:12; Phm_1:16; Heb_10:24; Jam_2:8; 1Pe_1:22; 1Pe_2:17; 1Pe_3:8-9; 1Pe_4:8; 2Pe_1:7; 1Jo_2:9-11; 1Jo_3:11; 1Jo_3:14; 1Jo_3:16-19; 1Jo_3:23; 1Jo_4:7; 1Jo_4:11-12; 1Jo_4:20-21; 1Jo_5:1-2; 2Jo_1:5
Exemplification of the love of man for man
General references
Exo_32:31-32; Psa_133:1-3; Pro_24:17-18; Mat_5:41-42; Mat_10:41-42; Mat_25:34-40; Mar_9:41; Luk_10:25-37; Act_20:26-27; Act_20:31; Act_26:29; Rom_1:12; Rom_5:7; Rom_9:1-3; Rom_12:15-16; Rom_14:19; Rom_14:21; Rom_15:1-2; Rom_15:5; Rom_15:7; Rom_15:14-15; Rom_15:24; Rom_15:32; Rom 16:1-16; Rom_16:19; Col_4:7; 1Co_1:4; 1Co_4:14-16; 1Co_8:13; 1Co_10:24; 2Co_1:3-6; 2Co_1:14; 2Co_1:23-24; 2 Cor 2:1-17; 2Co_3:2; 2Co_4:5; 2Co_6:4-6; 2Co_6:11-13; 2Co_7:1-4; 2Co_7:7; 2Co_7:12; 2Co_11:2; 2Co_12:14-16; 2Co_12:19-21; 2Co_13:9; Gal_4:11-20; Gal_6:1-2; Gal_6:10; Eph_3:13; Eph_4:2; Eph_4:32; Eph_6:22; Eph_6:24; Phi_1:3-5; Phi_1:7-8; Phi_1:23-26; Phi_2:19; Phi_3:18; Phi_4:1; Col_1:3-4; Col_1:24; Col_1:28-29; Col_2:1; Col_2:5; 1Th_1:3-4; 1Th_2:7-8; 1Th_2:11-12; 1Th_2:17-20; 1Th_3:5; 1Th_3:7-10; 1Th_3:12; 1Th_5:8; 1Th_5:11; 1Th_5:14; 2Th_1:4; 1Ti_1:5; 1Ti_5:9-10; 1Ti_6:2; 1Ti_6:11; 2Ti_1:3-4; 2Ti_3:8; 2Ti_2:10; Phm_1:8-9; Phm_1:12; Phm_1:16-21; Heb_5:2; Heb_6:9-10; Heb_13:1-3; Heb_13:22; Jam_1:27
See Fraternity
Instances of:
Abraham for Lot
Gen_14:14-16
Naomi, Ruth, and Boaz
Ruth 1-3
David's subjects
2Sa_15:30; 2Sa_17:27-29
Obadiah for the prophets
1Ki_18:4
Jehoshabeath for Joash
2Ch_22:11
Nehemiah for Israelites
Neh_5:10-15
Mordecai for Esther
Est_2:7
Job's friends
Job_42:11
Centurion for his servant
Luk_7:2-6
Roman Christians for Paul
Act_28:15
Of money:
The root of evil
1Ti_6:10
See Riches
Of parents for children
See Parents; Brother; Fraternity; Friendship


Easton's Bible Dictionary - is a reference work on topics related to the Christian Bible compiled by Matthew George Easton. Many of the entries in Easton's are encyclopedic in nature, though there are also short dictionary-like entries. Let's look at Easton's definition of "love":

Love
This word seems to require explanation only in the case of its use by our Lord in his interview with “Simon, the son of Jonas,” after his resurrection (John 21:16, John 21:17). When our Lord says, “Lovest thou me?” he uses the Greek word agapas; and when Simon answers, he uses the Greek word philo, i.e., “I love.” This is the usage in the first and second questions put by our Lord; but in the third our Lord uses Simon's word. The distinction between these two Greek words is thus fitfully described by Trench: “Agapan has more of judgment and deliberate choice; philein has more of attachment and peculiar personal affection. Thus the 'Lovest thou' (Gr. agapas) on the lips of the Lord seems to Peter at this moment too cold a word, as though his Lord were keeping him at a distance, or at least not inviting him to draw near, as in the passionate yearning of his heart he desired now to do. Therefore he puts by the word and substitutes his own stronger 'I love' (Gr. philo) in its room. A second time he does the same. And now he has conquered; for when the Lord demands a third time whether he loves him, he does it in the word which alone will satisfy Peter ('Lovest thou,' Gr. phileis), which alone claims from him that personal attachment and affection with which indeed he knows that his heart is full.”
In 1 Cor 13:1-13 the apostle sets forth the excellency of love, as the word “charity” there is rendered in the Revised Version.

Commentaries - Written by well-known and popular theologians, Bible commentaries aid in the study of Scripture by providing explanation and interpretation of Biblical text with background information on authorship, history, setting, and themes. There are quite a few to choose from: Matthew Henry's (MH and MHCC which is Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary, a shorter condensed version), Adam Clarke's (Clarke), David Guzick's (Guzick), Jamieson, Fausett and Brown's (JFB), Kiel and Delitzsch's (KandD).

Here is what David Guzick's Commentary says about our verses:

He said to him the third time, “Simon, son of Jonah, do you love Me?” Peter was grieved because He said to him the third time, “Do you love Me?” And he said to Him, “Lord, You know all things; You know that I love You.” Jesus said to him, “Feed My sheep.
a. Do you love Me . . . Lord, You know all things: This time, Jesus asks if Peter does in fact have a friendly devotion (phileo) to Jesus. Peter leaves the question with Jesus’ omniscience.

b. Peter was grieved because He said to him the third time: What really grieved Peter was the three-time repetition, because it was a plain reminder of his previous three-time denial.
  i. Jesus restores us by causing us to face squarely our point of failure, then challenging us to set our eyes on the work ahead.
  ii. Jesus doesn’t ask “are you sorry?” nor “will you promise never to do that again?” “Jesus Christ asks each one of us, not for obedience primarily, not for repentance, not for vows, not for conduct, but for a heart; and that being given, all the rest will follow.” (Maclaren)
c. Jesus allowed Peter a three-fold public affirmation of love to replace a three-fold denial, and gave him a three-fold challenge to feed My sheep.

This is what Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary says about these verses:

Our Lord addressed Peter by his original name, as if he had forfeited that of Peter through his denying him. He now answered, Thou knowest that I love thee; but without professing to love Jesus more than others. We must not be surprised to have our sincerity called into question, when we ourselves have done that which makes it doubtful. Every remembrance of past sins, even pardoned sins, renews the sorrow of a true penitent. Conscious of integrity, Peter solemnly appealed to Christ, as knowing all things, even the secrets of his heart. It is well when our falls and mistakes make us more humble and watchful. The sincerity of our love to God must be brought to the test; and it behoves us to inquire with earnest, preserving prayer to the heart-searching God, to examine and prove us, whether we are able to stand this test. No one can be qualified to feed the sheep and lambs of Christ, who does not love the good Shepherd more than any earthly advantage or object. It is the great concern of every good man, whatever death he dies, to glorify God in it; for what is our chief end but this, to die to the Lord, at the word of the Lord?


All these reference materials were done by scholars who diligently searched the Bible and studied it in it's original languages and have offered their work and study to us in the form of their reference books. Back in the old days, before mass paper production, printing presses and free education, most people didn't have the option to study these books. Only the rich could afford the education to be able to read and study. Only the rich could afford books. It's how the Catholic church had so much power. The priests were the only ones in the local villages who had education and access to the Bible so they interpreted the Bible to the congregation when they preached. So the only way the regular people could learn about God was through their local church and the priest. This gave the Catholic church too much power and it had problems with corruption. The people believed everything their priests told them and believed their salvation rested on what the priest said. For instance, if a priest had told them they would lose their salvation and suffer eternal damnation if they didn't paint their house blue, then the people would paint their house blue. And, of course, human beings being what they are, some used that power in an evil way. Eventually, the protestant movement broke away from the Catholic church but protestant denominations often fall into the same type of corruption if they aren't careful.

But my point is, for the first time in human history, America has every advantage. There is no reason for us to remain in ignorance of the Word of God! We have a free education system so that all who apply themselves can learn to read. We have easy access to paper, pens and pencils. We have indepth reference materials at our fingertips. We have access to books, magazines, Christian television, DVD's, Christian radio stations. We have churches on every corner with educated ministers who are trained in Bible study and communicating and teaching it. We have Bibles in every language and in easy to read translations and paraphrases. And we have the Internet. If you can't afford these reference books and Bibles, guess what!?! They are free on the Internet! Yep, all the Bible translations and study aids are available on your computer for free. Try BibleGateway.com and see what's available.

You can also download Bibles and study aids to your tablet and smart phones. I have a favorite Bible study program for my laptop. It is E-sword. Esword is a free program with all the study aids for free. You download the kernel program to your laptop and install the program. Then you start Esword and begin to select the Bible translations and study aids you want and download them. In this program, you not only can see the verses in different translations and study it using the study aids, but you can take notes in the program. I use this for all my at-home Bible studies. And it's all FREE!


If someone asks me, "Do you really believe every word in the Bible is true?", I can say, "YES!" I've read it for myself! I've studied it! I know what I'm talking about. I've sat under some wonderful teachings. I've taken advantage of what's available to me. I've parked my behind, focused, studied, listened and meditated on the words. I've taken notes and journaled. I've prayed and worshipped at His Feet. God has poured into me and caused what I've learned to grow in me so that it lives out in my life. I make myself available in an environment of study and learning and God causes it to be etched in my heart and causes me to grow in grace. Sort of like preparing the soil. I prepare the soil and wait expectantly. God plants the seed and causes it to sprout and causes it to grow and mature into a fruitful plant.

Hebrews 8:8-12 (International Standard Version - ISV) but God found something wrong with his people when he said, "Look! The days are coming, declares the Lord, when I will establish a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah. (9) It will not be like the covenant that I made with their ancestors at the time when I took them by the hand and brought them out of the land of Egypt. Because they did not remain loyal to my covenant, I ignored them, declares the Lord. (10) For this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after that time, declares the Lord: I will put my laws in their minds and write them on their hearts. I will be their God, and they will be my people. (11) Never again will everyone teach his neighbor or his brother by saying, 'Know the Lord,' because all of them will know me, from the least important to the most important. (12) For I will be merciful regarding their wrong deeds, and I will never again remember their sins."

2 Peter 3:17-18 (Easy To Read Version - ERV) Dear friends, you already know about this. So be careful. Don't let these evil people lead you away by the wrong they do. Be careful that you do not fall from your strong faith. (18) But grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Glory be to him, now and forever! Amen.

Easter - a Christian religious holiday to celebrate the death and resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ. It is described in the New Testament as having occurred on the third day of his burial after his crucifixion by Romans at Calvary c. 30 AD. It is the culmination of the Passion of Christ, preceded by Lent, a forty-day period of fasting, prayer, and penance. The week before Easter is called Holy Week, and it contains the days of the Easter Triduum, including Maundy Thursday, commemorating the Maundy and Last Supper, as well as Good Friday, commemorating the crucifixion and death of Jesus. In western Christianity, Eastertide, the Easter Season, begins on Easter Sunday and lasts seven weeks, ending with the coming of the fiftieth day, Pentecost Sunday.


Easter Tridium - Easter Triduum, Holy Triduum, Paschal Triduum, or The Three Days - is the period of three days that begins with the liturgy on the evening of Maundy Thursday (the vigil of Good Friday) and ends with evening prayer on Easter Sunday. As such, the Easter Triduum runs from the evening of Maundy Thursday (excluding most of Thursday) to the evening of Resurrection Sunday. It recalls the passion, death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus, as portrayed in the canonical Gospels.




Maundy Thursday - also known as Holy Thursday, Covenant Thursday, Great and Holy Thursday, Sheer Thursday, and Thursday of Mysteries - is the Christian holy day falling on the Thursday before Easter. It commemorates the Maundy and Last Supper of Jesus Christ with the Apostles as described in the Canonical gospels. It is the fifth day of Holy Week, and is preceded by Holy Wednesday and followed by Good Friday.








Maundy (from Latin mandatum or mendicare) - Washing of the Feet - is a religious rite observed by several Christian denominations. John 13:1–17 mentions Jesus performing this act. Specifically, in verses 13:14–17, He instructs them: 14 "If I then, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also ought to wash one another’s feet. 15 For I have given you an example, that you should do as I have done to you. 16 Most assuredly, I say to you, a servant is not greater than his master; nor is he who is sent greater than he who sent him. 17 If you know these things, blessed are you if you do them." It is a ceremony practiced in the Catholic, Orthodox and Protestant churches. In the protestant denominations, some literally practice this and some rarely do. Among groups that do not observe foot washing as an ordinance or rite, the example of Jesus is usually held to be symbolic and didactic. Among these groups, foot washing is nevertheless sometimes literally practiced. First, some reserve it to be a practice of hospitality or a work of necessity. Secondly, some present it as a dramatic lesson acted out in front of the congregation.




Last Supper - is the final meal that, in the Gospel accounts, Jesus shared with his Apostles in Jerusalem before his crucifixion. It was at this meal that Jesus washed His disciples feet. Jesus taught, prayed and prophesied to His disciples in that last meal. It was His last words and actions with them before He was arrested, tortured and crucified. The Lord's Supper (aka Communion or Eucharist) was instituted by Jesus Christ during his Last Supper. Giving his disciples bread and wine during the Passover meal, Jesus commanded his followers to "do this in memory of me" while referring to the bread as "my body" and the wine as "my blood". Through the Eucharistic celebration, Christians remember Christ's sacrifice of himself once and for all on the cross. For us, today, taking the Lord's Supper (Communion or Eucharist) is a sacrament that we do in remembrance of what Jesus did for us. His words are read and we partake in a yeastless cracker (yeast was used by Jesus to represent sin in one of His teachings, because it spreads and grows) and the juice of the grape (either wine or grape juice). The cracker represents the body of Christ which was sinless and broken for us. The juice represents the blood of Christ that was slain on our behalf.


Good Friday - is the religious holiday we have to remember Jesus was arrested, tortured, mocked, beaten with 39 lashes, a crow of thorns cruelly mashed on his head. He was slapped, mocked, made fun of. Then He was paraded back and forth before the soldiers, people and leaders.











Luke 23:13-25 (Contemporary English Version - CEV) Pilate called together the chief priests, the leaders, and the people. (14) He told them, "You brought Jesus to me and said he was a troublemaker. But I have questioned him here in front of you, and I have not found him guilty of anything that you say he has done. (15) Herod didn't find him guilty either and sent him back. This man doesn't deserve to be put to death! (16) I will just have him beaten with a whip and set free." (17) (SEE 23:16) (18) But the whole crowd shouted, "Kill Jesus! Give us Barabbas!" (19) Now Barabbas was in jail because he had started a riot in the city and had murdered someone. (20) Pilate wanted to set Jesus free, so he spoke again to the crowds. (21) But they kept shouting, "Nail him to a cross! Nail him to a cross!" (22) Pilate spoke to them a third time, "But what crime has he done? I have not found him guilty of anything for which he should be put to death. I will have him beaten with a whip and set free." (23) The people kept on shouting as loud as they could for Jesus to be put to death. (24) Finally, Pilate gave in. (25) He freed the man who was in jail for rioting and murder, because he was the one the crowd wanted to be set free. Then Pilate handed Jesus over for them to do what they wanted with him.

Jesus took the place of the criminal Barabbas who was a rioter and murderer. Jesus, who was without sin, took the place of the sinner, Barabbas. Jesus was forced to carry His own cross (or at least the crossbeam) to the hill of Calvary and He was crucified which is a slow, hideously torturous way to die. This all is represented on Good Friday.

The eight-day festival of Passover is celebrated in the early spring, from the 15th through the 22nd of the Hebrew month of Nissan. It commemorates the emancipation of the Israelites from slavery in ancient Egypt. After many decades of slavery to the Egyptian pharaohs, God saw the people’s distress and sent Moses to Pharaoh with a message: Set my people free! But Pharaoh refused so God sent 10 plagues to change his mind. After each plague, Pharaoh still refused until the last one. The last one was the worst. The Angel of Death went throughout the land killing every firstborn child. God told the Israelite slaves to kill a perfect lamb and paint their doorposts and lintel with the blood of a lamb, one without a spot or blemish. When the Angel of Death saw the blood of the lamb on the door post and lintel, he "passed over" that household without killing the firstborn. After this horror, Pharoah let the Israelites leave. They not only were given the green light, but they gave such gifts and donations to the Israelites to take with them because they were now afraid of them. But it happened so fast, that they were unable to spare the time to let bread rise before baking it. So their bread had no yeast and was flat. It was their version of our "fast food"! How many Israelite slaves were set free that day? The estimates are 600,000 adult males! When you add the females and the numerous children, it would have been well over a million, maybe MILLIONS! God commanded them to set aside a religious holiday in remembrance of this event in their history. The Jewish calendar year begins in late September or early October with the celebration of Rosh Hashana. Unlike our calendar which is based on the solar year, the Jewish calendar uses twelve lunar months of 29 to 30 days in length. The new moon marks the beginning of each month with the full moon occuring halfway through the month. The seventh month in a normal Jewish calendar year is the month of Nisan (also called Abib in the Old Testament). Passover is based on the Jewish calendar, a lunar calendar with twelve 28-day months. Every two or three years, there is a thirteenth month called Adar II included in the calendar. Jewish holidays begin at sundown the day before the date specified for the holiday. Hebrew days begin and end at sundown, Passover begins at sundown on the preceding day.

Leviticus 23: 5-8
In the first month, on the fourteenth day of the month at twilight (*when God says a new day begins) is Yahweh's Passover. Then on the fifteenth day of the same month there is the Feast of Unleavened Bread to Yahweh; for seven days you shall eat unleavened bread. On the first day you shall have a holy convocation; you shall not do any laborious work. But for seven days you shall present an offering by fire to Yahweh. On the seventh day is a holy convocation; you shall not do any laborious work.

This passage tells us that the Passover is on the 14th and the Feast of Unleavened Bread begins the 15th; back-to-back. The first day (and the last day) of the Feast of Unleavened Bread is a Sabbath. This is a “special” Sabbath, also called a “high Sabbath”. Therefore, the Sabbath for which Jesus had to be removed from the cross was the first day of the Feast of Unleavened Bread, not the weekly Sabbath. Unlike the weekly Sabbath that is every Friday night to Saturday night, this special Sabbath can fall on any day of the week.

Passover is not a Sabbath. It is the day of preparation for the High Sabbath (the first day of the Seven Day Feast of Unleavened Bread. Jesus died on Passover, but was removed from the cross before sunset, which began the High Sabbath, the first day of the Feast of Unleavened Bread.

John 19:31-34 (CEV) Since it was Friday and the next day was an especially important day of worship, the Jews didn't want the bodies to stay on the crosses. So they asked Pilate to have the men's legs broken and their bodies removed. (32) The soldiers broke the legs of the first man and then of the other man who had been crucified with Jesus. (33) When the soldiers came to Jesus and saw that he was already dead, they didn't break his legs. (34) However, one of the soldiers stabbed Jesus' side with his spear, and blood and water immediately came out.

According the the scripture, the Jews wanted Jesus crucified and killed before the Passover Feast began. So it happened on the day of the Jewish Passover holiday. His body was taken down from the cross and carried to a tomb. The Jews were not allowed to do "laborious" work or to handle a dead body and be "unclean" during their High Sabbath.

Luke 23:32-46 (CEV) Two criminals were led out to be put to death with Jesus. (33) When the soldiers came to the place called "The Skull," they nailed Jesus to a cross. They also nailed the two criminals to crosses, one on each side of Jesus. (34) Jesus said, "Father, forgive these people! They don't know what they're doing." While the crowd stood there watching Jesus, the soldiers gambled for his clothes. The leaders insulted him by saying, "He saved others. Now he should save himself, if he really is God's chosen Messiah!" (35) (SEE 23:34) (36) The soldiers made fun of Jesus and brought him some wine. (37) They said, "If you are the king of the Jews, save yourself!" (38) Above him was a sign that said, "This is the King of the Jews." (39) One of the criminals hanging there also insulted Jesus by saying, "Aren't you the Messiah? Save yourself and save us!" (40) But the other criminal told the first one off, "Don't you fear God? Aren't you getting the same punishment as this man? (41) We got what was coming to us, but he didn't do anything wrong." (42) Then he said to Jesus, "Remember me when you come into power!" (43) Jesus replied, "I promise that today you will be with me in paradise." (44) Around noon the sky turned dark and stayed that way until the middle of the afternoon. (45) The sun stopped shining, and the curtain in the temple split down the middle. (46) Jesus shouted, "Father, I put myself in your hands!" Then he died.



Easter Sunday - is the religious holiday to celebrate Christ's rising from the dead. He died but that was not the end of the story! He rose from the dead. After the Jewish Passover observance, there were women disciples of Christ who went to the tomb to begin preparing Jesus' body for permanent burial. When they got there, they discovered Jesus was no longer dead but had risen. They ran to tell the others and some of the disciples, including Peter, ran to the tomb to see for themselves.

This is the most sacred and exciting event to us as Christians! Jesus, the Son of God, was not only born; not only lived a sinless life; not only ministered and taught; not only was arrested, tortured and killed; but HE AROSE FROM THE DEAD IN VICTORY! We need to look at this part of the story with awestruck eyes!

Luke 24:1-12 (CEV) Very early on Sunday morning the women went to the tomb, carrying the spices that they had prepared. (2) When they found the stone rolled away from the entrance, (3) they went in. But they did not find the body of the Lord Jesus, (4) and they did not know what to think. Suddenly two men in shining white clothes stood beside them. (5) The women were afraid and bowed to the ground. But the men said, "Why are you looking in the place of the dead for someone who is alive? (6) Jesus isn't here! He has been raised from death. Remember that while he was still in Galilee, he told you, (7) 'The Son of Man will be handed over to sinners who will nail him to a cross. But three days later he will rise to life.'" (8) Then they remembered what Jesus had said. (9) Mary Magdalene, Joanna, Mary the mother of James, and some other women were the ones who had gone to the tomb. When they returned, they told the eleven apostles and the others what had happened. (10) (SEE 24:9) (11) The apostles thought it was all nonsense, and they would not believe. (12) But Peter ran to the tomb. And when he stooped down and looked in, he saw only the burial clothes. Then he returned, wondering what had happened.

John 20:1-25 (CEV) On Sunday morning while it was still dark, Mary Magdalene went to the tomb and saw that the stone had been rolled away from the entrance. (2) She ran to Simon Peter and to Jesus' favorite disciple and said, "They have taken the Lord from the tomb! We don't know where they have put him." (3) Peter and the other disciple started for the tomb. (4) They ran side by side, until the other disciple ran faster than Peter and got there first. (5) He bent over and saw the strips of linen cloth lying inside the tomb, but he did not go in. (6) When Simon Peter got there, he went into the tomb and saw the strips of cloth. (7) He also saw the piece of cloth that had been used to cover Jesus' face. It was rolled up and in a place by itself. (8) The disciple who got there first then went into the tomb, and when he saw it, he believed. (9) At that time Peter and the other disciple did not know that the Scriptures said Jesus would rise to life. (10) So the two of them went back to the other disciples. (11) Mary Magdalene stood crying outside the tomb. She was still weeping, when she stooped down (12) and saw two angels inside. They were dressed in white and were sitting where Jesus' body had been. One was at the head and the other was at the foot. (13) The angels asked Mary, "Why are you crying?" She answered, "They have taken away my Lord's body! I don't know where they have put him." (14) As soon as Mary said this, she turned around and saw Jesus standing there. But she did not know who he was. (15) Jesus asked her, "Why are you crying? Who are you looking for?" She thought he was the gardener and said, "Sir, if you have taken his body away, please tell me, so I can go and get him." (16) Then Jesus said to her, "Mary!" She turned and said to him, "Rabboni." The Aramaic word "Rabboni" means "Teacher." (17) Jesus told her, "Don't hold on to me! I have not yet gone to the Father. But tell my disciples that I am going to the one who is my Father and my God, as well as your Father and your God." (18) Mary Magdalene then went and told the disciples that she had seen the Lord. She also told them what he had said to her. (19) The disciples were afraid of the Jewish leaders, and on the evening of that same Sunday they locked themselves in a room. Suddenly, Jesus appeared in the middle of the group. He greeted them (20) and showed them his hands and his side. When the disciples saw the Lord, they became very happy. (21) After Jesus had greeted them again, he said, "I am sending you, just as the Father has sent me." (22) Then he breathed on them and said, "Receive the Holy Spirit. (23) If you forgive anyone's sins, they will be forgiven. But if you don't forgive their sins, they will not be forgiven." (24) Although Thomas the Twin was one of the twelve disciples, he wasn't with the others when Jesus appeared to them. (25) So they told him, "We have seen the Lord!" But Thomas said, "First, I must see the nail scars in his hands and touch them with my finger. I must put my hand where the spear went into his side. I won't believe unless I do this!"

Matthew 28:1-20 (CEV) The Sabbath was over, and it was almost daybreak on Sunday when Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went to see the tomb. (2) Suddenly a strong earthquake struck, and the Lord's angel came down from heaven. He rolled away the stone and sat on it. (3) The angel looked as bright as lightning, and his clothes were white as snow. (4) The guards shook from fear and fell down, as though they were dead. (5) The angel said to the women, "Don't be afraid! I know you are looking for Jesus, who was nailed to a cross. (6) He isn't here! God has raised him to life, just as Jesus said he would. Come, see the place where his body was lying. (7) Now hurry! Tell his disciples that he has been raised to life and is on his way to Galilee. Go there, and you will see him. That is what I came to tell you." (8) The women were frightened and yet very happy, as they hurried from the tomb and ran to tell his disciples. (9) Suddenly Jesus met them and greeted them. They went near him, held on to his feet, and worshiped him. (10) Then Jesus said, "Don't be afraid! Tell my followers to go to Galilee. They will see me there." (11) While the women were on their way, some soldiers who had been guarding the tomb went into the city. They told the chief priests everything that had happened. (12) So the chief priests met with the leaders and decided to bribe the soldiers with a lot of money. (13) They said to the soldiers, "Tell everyone that Jesus' disciples came during the night and stole his body while you were asleep. (14) If the governor hears about this, we will talk to him. You won't have anything to worry about." (15) The soldiers took the money and did what they were told. The people of Judea still tell each other this story. (16) Jesus' eleven disciples went to a mountain in Galilee, where Jesus had told them to meet him. (17) They saw him and worshiped him, but some of them doubted. (18) Jesus came to them and said: I have been given all authority in heaven and on earth! (19) Go to the people of all nations and make them my disciples. Baptize them in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, (20) and teach them to do everything I have told you. I will be with you always, even until the end of the world.

Mark 16:1-11 (CEV) After the Sabbath, Mary Magdalene, Salome, and Mary the mother of James bought some spices to put on Jesus' body. (2) Very early on Sunday morning, just as the sun was coming up, they went to the tomb. (3) On their way, they were asking one another, "Who will roll the stone away from the entrance for us?" (4) But when they looked, they saw that the stone had already been rolled away. And it was a huge stone! (5) The women went into the tomb, and on the right side they saw a young man in a white robe sitting there. They were alarmed. (6) The man said, "Don't be alarmed! You are looking for Jesus from Nazareth, who was nailed to a cross. God has raised him to life, and he isn't here. You can see the place where they put his body. (7) Now go and tell his disciples, and especially Peter, that he will go ahead of you to Galilee. You will see him there, just as he told you." (8) When the women ran from the tomb, they were confused and shaking all over. They were too afraid to tell anyone what had happened. (9) Very early on the first day of the week, after Jesus had risen to life, he appeared to Mary Magdalene. Earlier he had forced seven demons out of her. (10) She left and told his friends, who were crying and mourning. (11) Even though they heard that Jesus was alive and that Mary had seen him, they would not believe it.

During the 40 days Jesus lived in His resurrected body before ascending into heaven, He met with His disciples.

1 Corinthians 15:3-7 (CEV, this book was a letter written by Apostle Paul to the Corinthian church) I told you the most important part of the message exactly as it was told to me. That part is: Christ died for our sins, as the Scriptures say. (4) He was buried, and three days later he was raised to life, as the Scriptures say. (5) Christ appeared to Peter, then to the twelve. (6) After this, he appeared to more than five hundred other followers. Most of them are still alive, but some have died. (7) He also appeared to James, and then to all of the apostles.





Ascension - the resurrected Jesus was taken up to Heaven in his resurrected body, in the presence of eleven of his disciples (from thence forward, they are referred to as His Apostles), occurring 40 days after the resurrection. In the biblical narrative, an angel tells the watching disciples that Jesus' second coming will take place in the same manner as his ascension.

Acts 1:1-15a (Easy to Read Version - ERV) Dear Theophilus, The first book I wrote was about everything Jesus did and taught from the beginning (2) until the day he was carried up into heaven. Before he went, he talked to the apostles he had chosen. With the help of the Holy Spirit, he told them what they should do. (3) This was after his death, but he showed them that he was alive, proving it to them in many ways. The apostles saw Jesus many times during the 40 days after he was raised from death. He spoke to them about God's kingdom. (4) One time when Jesus was eating with them, he told them not to leave Jerusalem. He said, "Wait here until you receive what the Father promised to send. Remember, I told you about it before. (5) John baptized people with water, but in a few days you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit." (6) The apostles were all together. They asked Jesus, "Lord, is this the time for you to give the people of Israel their kingdom again?" (7) Jesus said to them, "The Father is the only one who has the authority to decide dates and times. They are not for you to know. (8) But the Holy Spirit will come on you and give you power. You will be my witnesses. You will tell people everywhere about me--in Jerusalem, in the rest of Judea, in Samaria, and in every part of the world." (9) After Jesus said this, he was lifted up into the sky. While they were watching, he went into a cloud, and they could not see him. (10) They were staring into the sky where he had gone. Suddenly two men wearing white clothes were standing beside them. (11) They said, "Men from Galilee, why are you standing here looking into the sky? You saw Jesus carried away from you into heaven. He will come back in the same way you saw him go." (12) Then the apostles went back to Jerusalem from the Mount of Olives. This mountain is about a half mile from Jerusalem. (13) When they entered the city, they went to the upstairs room where they were staying. These are the ones who were there: Peter, John, James, Andrew, Philip, Thomas, Bartholomew, Matthew, James (the son of Alphaeus), Simon, the Zealot, and Judas (the son of James). (14) The apostles were all together. They were constantly praying with the same purpose. Some women, Mary the mother of Jesus, and his brothers were there with the apostles. (15) After a few days there was a meeting of the believers. There were about 120 of them.

How important is our speech? Some believe that our words create our environment becoming a self fulfilling prophecy. Others believe our words are merely words with no power. I happen to be firmly in the balance between the two. I believe our self talk and our spoken words are very important to control and use wisely but I'm not superstitious. I don't believe I can somehow jinx myself with my words or that my words are more powerful than God's grace. Let's look at it from a balanced point of view.

Psalm 19:14 (Modern King James Version - MKJV) Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be pleasing in Your sight, O Jehovah, my Rock and my Redeemer.

God is our Creator. He planned and designed us from the first cell to the last hair on our head. He planned our DNA, He knows when and to whom we will be born. He knows how long our days will be and when our last breath will usher us into His presence. He created this world for us. He provided everything we would need in this world to live. Oxygen, space, gravity, food, drink, healing properties (such as the vitamins in foods, plants, etc). He provided all that we need. This earth was made for us and we were made for this earth.

There is none like our God! We are His Creation! If we have accepted Jesus Christ as our Savior, then we are His Children! He is intimately aware and involved in every second of our lives. For those who are lost, He is everywhere present through the Holy Spirit, trying to lead them to the salvation knowledge of His Son so they can be saved. Even to their last breath, the Holy Spirit pleads with them to be saved! For those of us who are saved, the Holy Spirit is within us to teach us and grow us into the people God wants us to be. He lovingly crafts us from the inside out, empowers us to live better. With the Holy Spirit living in our hearts, we have power to live a better life!

This sets the stage for our subject about our words and our self talk. It is important for us to realize two things to be in balance:
1) God is the only all powerful Being. I am NOT God.
2) As a flawed human being, I am susceptible to negativity in my mind and in my environment.


If I say to a child, "You are stupid and always will be stupid," I am saying something that will hurt the child's feelings and self esteem. If I say it often enough, the child will begin to believe they are truly stupid. If you call someone names and make fun of them, verbally bullying them, it could result in a someone believing they are worthless and even lead to suicide.

On the other hand, if you tell your children you love them and are proud of them, they feel good about themselves. Do it often enough and they begin to believe they are lovable and valuable, with a healthy self image. If you compliment someone and give words of affirmation, encouragement, and support, the result could be a well adjusted adult who perpetuates the positive cycle with their own children.

So are words important? YES! Of course our words are important. We can tell ourselves (in our thought life) how ugly, awful, stupid, worthless we are and we will feel ugly, awful, stupid, and worthless. We can say the same to others and they may believe they are ugly, awful, stupid and worthless.

With our words we can be a peacemaker or stir up trouble. With our words we can give wisdom and direct others towards God or we can destroy budding faith and lead them away from God. With our words we can curse and with our words we can bless. We can lie or we can tell truth.

Proverbs 10:18-21 (King James Version - KJV) He that hideth hatred with lying lips, and he that uttereth a slander, is a fool. (19) In the multitude of words there wanteth not sin: but he that refraineth his lips is wise. (20) The tongue of the just is as choice silver: the heart of the wicked is little worth. (21) The lips of the righteous feed many: but fools die for want of wisdom.

Proverbs 10:18-21 (MKJV) He who hides hatred with lying lips, and he who speaks a slander, is a fool. (19) In the multitude of words, sin is not lacking; but he who holds back his lips is wise. (20) The tongue of the just is as choice silver; the heart of the wicked is worth little. (21) The lips of the righteous feed many; but fools die for lack of wisdom.

Proverbs 10:18-21 (Amplified - Amp) He who hides hatred has lying lips, And he who spreads slander is a fool. When there are many words, transgression and offense are unavoidable, But he who controls his lips and keeps thoughtful silence is wise. The tongue of the righteous is like precious silver (greatly valued); The heart of the wicked is worth little. The lips of the righteous feed and guide many, But fools [who reject God and His wisdom] die for lack of understanding.

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Proverbs 15:1-7 (MKJV) A soft answer turns away wrath, but grievous words stir up anger. (2) The tongue of the wise uses knowledge rightly, but the mouth of fools pours out foolishness. (3) The eyes of Jehovah are in every place, beholding the evil and the good. (4) A wholesome tongue is a tree of life, but crookedness in it is a break in the spirit. (5) A fool despises his father's instruction, but he who listens to correction is wise. (6) In the house of the righteous is much treasure, but in the gain of the wicked is trouble. (7) The lips of the righteous send forth knowledge, but the heart of the foolish is not so.

Proverbs 15:1-7 (Amp) A soft and gentle and thoughtful answer turns away wrath, But harsh and painful and careless words stir up anger. The tongue of the wise speaks knowledge that is pleasing and acceptable, But the [babbling] mouth of fools spouts folly. The eyes of the Lord are in every place, Watching the evil and the good [in all their endeavors]. A soothing tongue [speaking words that build up and encourage] is a tree of life, But a perversive tongue [speaking words that overwhelm and depress] crushes the spirit. A [flippant, arrogant] fool rejects his father’s instruction and correction, But he who [is willing to learn and] regards and keeps in mind a reprimand acquires good sense. Great and priceless treasure is in the house of the [consistently] righteous one [who seeks godly instruction and grows in wisdom], But trouble is in the income of the wicked one [who rejects the laws of God]. The lips of the wise spread knowledge [sifting it as chaff from the grain]; But the hearts of [shortsighted] fools are not so.

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James 3:2-11 (Easy To Read Version - ERV) We all make many mistakes. A person who never said anything wrong would be perfect. Someone like that would be able to control their whole body too. (3) We put bits into the mouths of horses to make them obey us. With these bits we can control their whole body. (4) It is the same with ships. A ship is very big, and it is pushed by strong winds. But a very small rudder controls that big ship. And the one who controls the rudder decides where the ship will go. It goes where he wants it to go. (5) It is the same with our tongue. It is a small part of the body, but it can boast about doing great things. A big forest fire can be started with only a little flame. (6) The tongue is like a fire. It is a world of evil among the parts of our body. It spreads its evil through our whole body and starts a fire that influences all of life. It gets this fire from hell. (7) Humans have control over every kind of wild animal, bird, reptile, and fish, and they have controlled all these things. (8) But no one can control the tongue. It is wild and evil, full of deadly poison. (9) We use our tongues to praise our Lord and Father, but then we curse people who were created in God's likeness. (10) These praises and curses come from the same mouth. My brothers and sisters, this should not happen. (11) Do good water and bad water flow from the same spring? Of course not.
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Proverbs 18:21 (KJV) Death and life are in the power of the tongue: and they that love it shall eat the fruit thereof.

Psalms 10:7 10:7 (MKJV) His mouth is full of cursing and deceit and fraud; under his tongue are mischief and vanity.

In studying the above verses, we can see the power our tongue can have in hurting ourselves, hurting others, hurting nations!

How many leaders have spoken in pride and arrogance and caused great harm to their nation with deceitful words, angry words, artful words, lying words, manipulative words, persuasive words, and hate-filled words?!? How many leaders have spoken with humility and grace and caused healing between nations with truthful words, understanding words, wise words, revealing words, encouraging words?!?

If I use my tongue to give a false witness (lying under oath, lying, deceitful, deliberately concealing), I can send an innocent person to jail. If I use my tongue to tell the truth, I can help bring justice.

If I slander and gossip about someone, their reputation can be harmed to the point of destroying their marriage, family, business. What if that person has done something really wrong? This is where wisdom comes in. We must know when to be truthful and reveal things that need to be revealed. On the other hand, we also need to know when it's none of our business and it's best to keep quiet and let God handle things. If I hear my neighbor arguing in the privacy of their home, it's none of my business and I shouldn't be talking about it to others. It's not for me to gossip about and slander someone's reputation in the neighborhood. But if that argument escalates and I see my neighbor come running out the door chased by the spouse with a gun, I would be remiss if I didn't tell someone (call the police). I would, in no way, think I should keep quiet if I saw my neighbor murdering their spouse. If your pastor said an unkind word to you and it hurt your feelings, should you be telling everyone in the church who will listen? No. Say a prayer, pray and ask God to help you forgive and leave it to God. On the other hand, if you have found out your pastor is having an affair with the church secretary and they are about to abscond with the church's money, it's time to speak up. Be sure you do so with correct motivations and a pure heart, tell only the truth and don't rehearse it to everyone within a thousand mile radius. You use wisdom, discernment and you constantly keep a check on your own heart to try and keep from falling into sin yourself. Believe me, I know, it's a slippery slope so we do well to be careful. There are some things that are egregious enough that something has to be said. But there are many times when it's best to keep quiet, to remain prayerful, to let words be few.

If we argue with our family, it's so easy to pop off and say hurtful things. These things can damage our loved ones and may be hard for them to get over. I've done it, you've done it. We've also been recipients of angry, hateful words and we know how it hurts. In the heat of anger, we can unleash terrible hurt. Those who are on the receiving end will respond in defense, in anger, in hurt. We can lose control and it become a major eruption or lead to a longstanding feud. Some people never forgive. As Christians, we are called to forgive. But if we are the ones on the receiving end, it's one of the hardest things you'll ever do. In fact, in our human-ness, we cannot do it. But, with the Holy Spirit living inside of us, we can pray and let the Holy Spirit work that forgiveness out in us over time. I will confess that in a couple of instances, the hurt was so deep it took some years and much prayer, asking God's help, to reach a place where I felt I had fully forgiven. I didn't do it all right and I'm not superhuman. God had to deal with me, direct my thoughts, lead me to a place of humility and repentance. Then He began to empower me to forgive. Each time the anger and hurt came back, I would try to take it to Him and let Him deal with it in my heart and with the person(s) who hurt me. Sometimes it's harder to forgive those who hurt your loved ones than it is to forgive those who hurt you. I've heard people say, "I will NEVER forgive you and I hope you rot in hell." Knowing their circumstances, I can understand where they are coming from. If someone murdered, raped, tortured, stole from someone in my family, I could understand that sentiment. But God calls us to be forgiving. This sounds impossible but we have a secret weapon that will allow us to do impossible things... the Holy Spirit lives within us! If God calls us to do something, He has given us the Holy Spirit to empower us to do it. Without God's help, I cannot do it, but with Him all things are possible. The Holy Spirit can help me to come to a place where I can finally let it go and forgive so I can live a better and more healthy life. I can eventually let God deal with the murderer/rapist/thief/terrorist's heart so I can be free from the horror that clings to me with unforgiveness and bitterness.

During times of stress, anger, arguments, we would be wise to use self control with our tongue. We don't want it to escalate and we don't want to unleash something we can't put back in the bottle! In anger we tend to call each other names, bring up past hurtful things, make unrealistic comparisons, curse, try to use our words deliberately to hurt because they are hurting us. The Bible teaches us to be wise, use self control and manage your anger so that the result is healing and not destruction. Again, I cannot do this on my own. I'm too human. I'm a sinner and it's what sinners do. But I have my secret weapon. A weapon so powerful that it raised Christ from the dead! Romans 8:11 (KJV) "But if the Spirit of him that raised up Jesus from the dead dwell in you, he that raised up Christ from the dead shall also quicken your mortal bodies by his Spirit that dwelleth in you." The Holy Spirit dwells in me and can enable me to do what God calls me to do. I can be a peacemaker rather than an instigator. God can help me use my words correctly. I will never get it all right every time. But I can get better, do better, speak better, be better as I grow in Christ.

Therefore our words can be used wisely. Sometimes, things need to be said. Truth needs to be told and sometimes that means confrontation. Anyone with a child knows they test your boundaries from the time they begin walking and talking. You can't totally avoid conflict and confrontation if you are a good parent. A bad parent will let things slide and avoid the conflict to the detriment of the child who grows up with no boundaries and no self discipline. A good parent will confront the child wisely and with self control, reveal truth, and help them learn better ways. For instance, let's say a teenager is sneaking out with friends to parties and doing drugs, alcohol, sex. Usually, a good parent has spent time since their children were little to introduce discipline, positive example, teaching, giving wise advice, and setting boundaries with consequences. Even then, some teenagers will still act out and be hard to handle. It's the nature of being a human. But if you ignore and avoid the conflict, in order to have peace... you are doing untold harm to your teenager! A bad parent ignores and avoids destructive behavior just for the sake of some peace. Your peace will be shortlived. There is a time to confront. But do so wisely. You don't confront your wayward teen with name calling, cursing, shouting, belittling, smirking, self righteous smugness, etc. You use your words and your body language to communicate wisely and with self control.

Then there is the importance of self talk. What do we tell ourselves in our thought life? I have really struggled with this and maybe, being human, we all have. I tend to tell myself all the negative and bad things over and over again. "Nobody loves me, I'm unlovable, I'm ugly, I'm stupid, I can't do anything right, I do everything wrong, why is everything my fault, why was I born, I'm fat, I'm too tall, I'm too short, I have big feet, my nose is ugly, no one would ever want to be with me, why didn't I finish college, I'll never have a good job, I'll always be alone...." It is like a repeating mantra in our mind. If we let it continue, it becomes very hard to re-train our mind. I have not mastered this but I want to work on it. All this negative and defeating self talk makes me depressed and overwhelmed. My thoughts run the same rabbit trail every time I get a little down.

Did you know that animals make trails. They go over the same ground again and again to get to food, water, shelter, etc. Over time, those trails can be followed. The Indians followed animal trails, wagons followed the Indian trails, roads came from the trails. They became paved and some are now super-highways. We have a road in our area called Blackstock Road. From what I've heard, original animal trails were followed by Indians. Later these trails were used by white men who drove their livestock down these trails to markets. The trails became roads that were used to drive livestock and at times were so busy that you could see a black line of movement from far away... thus it was called Blackstock Rd. This road is now a paved road cars use all day long. My point is that our thoughts can make trails in our minds and before long we can unconsciously follow these trails and they become roads and highways. It's easy to travel that highway of doubt, negativity, denigration, shame, pain, and defeat because your thoughts have traveled there so often. It's harder to train your mind to go in a different direction through unused areas of positive thinking. It's like pushing through undergrowth the first time in a wilderness. It's a little exhausting but you make yourself do it. The next time the path is a little easier and if you keep at it, the old highway of shame will become overgrown from disuse while the new road to healthy thoughts is easy to navigate. I should work at having faithfilled thoughts instead of faithless thoughts.

Notice all that self talk was "I... I... I..."? It's all about me even if it's critical of myself. One day I realized how self involved I was with all this constant negative babble. I was consumed with ME! I didn't like me. But I could talk bad about me all day long. My world was revolving around me even though it was a self-proclaimed horrible me! And then it hit me! God created me and I was really saying God's handiwork is worthless, God didn't know what He was doing when He created me!?! When I wished I had never been born, I was saying God didn't know what He was doing when He designed, planned and created me. Who was I to say God's creation is worthless, ugly, unlovable?!? I'm His handiwork. Every human being is!

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In studying this, we have seen how important our words are and how powerful they can be for good or bad. But some people can go to the opposite extreme. There are those who make their money on teaching positive thinking and creating your own life through positive words. The power of positive thinking! Religious and secular speakers, alike, have marketed this in neat packages of seminars, books, self help tapes, DVDs, etc. Christian speakers can be called prosperity preachers because they think you can pray for blessings, riches, health and speak these things out with our words and they will come true. I can pray to be healed, speak that I am healed and I will be healed. It's all based on a formula. Pray for it, believe it, speak it, receive it.

As we have seen, there is some truth about how effective and powerful our words can be. But do we have the ability to create a self fulfilling prophecy with our thoughts and words? As we've seen, to some degree, we can. I can tell myself no one loves me and will feel unloved even if I'm surrounded by a loving and supportive family. But there is a limit to our "power".

You see, God is the only ultimate power. He is the only all powerful, all knowing, all seeing, ever present God. I am not. God created the earth by speaking it into being. I did not. God said, Let there be light: and there was light. I cannot do this. I am His Creation and He is the Creator. It's not the other way around. God is the one in control and He is the only one with the wisdom to wield control. Give me that kind of power and I'm gonna do something stupid and make a terrible mess. Thank God, I'm NOT Him!!!!

I have seen people who have become downright superstitious about the power of their words. If someone asks, "How are you?", they will say, "I'm blessed and highly favored" because they think "If I say, I'm not feeling good I'll end up sick". You might as well say, "I'm doing good, knock on wood."

I do not control God with my thoughts or my words! God does not do my bidding. He is not my magic geni who does whatever I say. I cannot manipulate God to bless me or curse me with my words. I cannot persuade God with formulas of speech. When I pray, it is to align myself with God, not align God with me. It is to communicate with my Father and to spend time in His Presence so that I come out of my time, with Him, more like Him. It is not to spend time with God so God comes out of our time more like me. I'm not there to convince God to my way of thinking! Or to make demands of God, Or make deals with God. I pray so that I am moving with God into His Will and His good pleasure. I can make my petitions to God. I can be honest with God and tell Him how I feel and what I want but then I must come to trust Him and His Ways; to lean on Him and not insist in my own desires. I can have honest dialogue with God. He knows it anyway. I can tell Him I'm hurt, frustrated, mad, confused, depressed, overwhelmed, feeling alone and unloved. But prayer is not just a one way street. After I'm honest with my feelings to God, I must allow Him to bring healing and lead my thoughts to higher ways. The result should be faith in Him and what He will do in His Way and His Timing. Prayer is not a list of demands. It is a time of communication and communion where you should come out with a self adjustment... adjusting self out and God in. As we come to understand how much God loves us, we can begin to learn to trust Him and His Love even when things around us are looking bleak. We can know that we know that we know, that He is doing what is best because He loves us and is working good things in and around us for eternal purposes. Trusting in that kind of love takes time getting to know that kind of God and is what prayer is all about.

So, are my words important? Yes. Can they take the place of God and create my own reality? No. Only God's Word is forever and all powerful.

Psalms 12:6 (MKJV) The Words of Jehovah are pure Words, like silver tried in a furnace of earth, purified seven times.

Isaiah 55:10-11 (MKJV) For as the rain comes down, and the snow from the heavens, and does not return there, but waters the earth, and makes it bring out and bud, and give seed to the sower and bread to the eater; (11) so shall My Word be, which goes out of My mouth; it shall not return to Me void, but it shall accomplish what I please, and it shall certainly do what I sent it to do.

Hebrews 4:12 (MKJV) For the Word of God is living and powerful and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the dividing apart of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.

Psalms 33:6 (MKJV) By the Word of Jehovah were the heavens made; and all the host of them by the breath of His mouth.

Mark 13:31 (MKJV) Heaven and earth shall pass away, but My Words shall not pass away.


I am thankful that my many faithless, negative, hurtful, mean words have not created my reality. I am too fallible and will say the wrong things. I am humbled because I know I do it wrong so many times. But God forgives and He is ever faithful. I deserve the negative results of my faithless, shameful and doubting thoughts that are then manifested in my speech. The heart is the fountain, words are the streams.

Matthew 15:18-20 (Contemporary English Version - CEV) But the words that come out of your mouth come from your heart. And they are what make you unfit to worship God. (19) Out of your heart come evil thoughts, murder, unfaithfulness in marriage, vulgar deeds, stealing, telling lies, and insulting others. (20) These are what make you unclean...

Luke 6:45 (CEV) Good people do good things because of the good in their hearts. Bad people do bad things because of the evil in their hearts. Your words show what is in your heart.


But God's grace saves me from them. I will have the consequences to deal with but God is with me and will help me overcome the consequences of a negative thought life and negative words. I may have to eat some humble pie and apologize to those I've hurt with my words. I may have to work hard to re-train my mind with good, healthy thoughts and learn to speak faith-filled and encouraging words. But God will help me. He is with me all the way and will never leave or forsake me because of my sins even the sins of the tongue. He is changing this weak and sinful heart. Out of that old heart came destructive thoughts and words. But I am a new creation through Christ Jesus and the Holy Spirit lives within me. He is teaching me a new way.

Romans 12:2 (MKJV) "And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, in order to prove by you what is that good and pleasing and perfect will of God."

In conclusion, our self talk and our words are important to control and use for good. It is helpful to us and to those around us. But we are fallible and we make mistakes and we do it wrong so many times. Thank God, He is the only one whose words are forever and faithful and true. His Words are the only words that are all powerful and eternal. So is His Grace! He forgives and gives us grace and mercy so that we can change. Let's work on our thought life and our words. It benefits us. But if we fail, and we will, God still loves us and will make a way to redeem our hasty and unwise words if we trust Him.

Colossians 3:15-17 (CEV) Each one of you is part of the body of Christ, and you were chosen to live together in peace. So let the peace that comes from Christ control your thoughts. And be grateful. (16) Let the message about Christ completely fill your lives, while you use all your wisdom to teach and instruct each other. With thankful hearts, sing psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs to God. (17) ;Whatever you say or do should be done in the name of the Lord Jesus, as you give thanks to God the Father because of him.

William Franklin Fore was born about 1853 in Buncombe County, NC to Fidelies Fore (DOB About 1826 in NC; DOD About 1898 in Buncombe County, NC) and Elizabeth Cole (DOB About 1835 in NC; DOD About 1912 in Buncombe County, NC). William Fore was the eldest of 6. His siblings were Gasper Fore (or Jasper Fore), Andrew Fore, Mary Fore (married Leander G. Luther, son of Hamilton A. Luther and Elizabeth Joyce), William Hardy Fore (married Kansas Delilah Edmonds), Jesse Sydney Fore (married Ellen).

1860 U.S. Census of Buncombe County, North Carolina; Ancestry.com, 4/12/2016, Roll: M653_889; Page: 287; Image: 123; Family History Library Film: 803889, Dwelling 336, Family #329, Lines 33-40, "Fidilis Fore" (sic)
Fidilis Fore, 28 yrs old (DOB 1832), M(ale), W(hite), Farmer, Real estate value $0, Personal estate value $0, Born in NC, Cannot read or write
Elizabeth Fore, 26 yrs old (DOB 1834), F, W, Born in NC, Cannot Read
Franklin Fore (William Franklin Fore), 8 yrs old (DOB 1852), M, W, Born in NC, Attends school
Andrew Fore, 2 yrs old (DOB 1858), M, W, Born in NC
Mary Fore, 11/12 mos old (DOB 1859), F, W, Born in NC
Calvin Fore, 73 yrs old (DOB 1787), M, W, Farmer, Real Estate Value $2,000, Personal estate value $226, Born in SC, Cannot read or write
Rosamund Fore, 84 yrs old (DOB 1776), F, W, Born in TN, Cannot read or write
John Fore, 55 yrs old (DOB 1805), M, W, Brick Mason, Real estate value $0, Personal estate value $200, Born in NC

1870 U.S. Census of Sulphur Springs, Buncombe County, North Carolina; Ancestry.com, 4/12/2016, Roll: M593_1125; Page: 204A; Image: 415; Family History Library Film: 552624, Taken 6/27/1870, Family #130, Lines 21-25, "George Penley"
George Penley, 39 yrs old (DOB 1831), M(ale), W(hite), Farmer, $2,500 Real estate value, $772 Personal estate value, Born in NC
Ada Penley, 31 yrs old (DOB 1839), F, W, Keeping house, Born in VA
Robert Penley, 4 yrs old (DOB 1866), M, W, Born in NC
Smith Penley, 1 yr old (DOB 1869), M, W, Born in NC
William Fore, 17 yrs old (DOB 1853), M, W, Farm Laborer, Born in NC, Cannot read or write


William Fore married Malissa Jane Ensley on 10/8/1874 in Buncombe County, NC. Malissie Jane Ensley was born 7/4/1857 in Buncombe County, NC to Samuel Bruce Ensley (DOB 6/19/1829 in Madison County, NC; DOD 9/14/1896 in Madison County, NC) and Rachel Pauline Cassada (DOB About 1835 in Buncombe County, NC; DOD About 1879 in Madison County, NC).

1860 U.S. Census of Leicester, Buncombe County, NC, Roll M653-889, Pg 268, Image 86, Lines 5-9, Dwelling 67, family 67, "Saml Ensley"
Saml Ensley, 30 yrs old (DOB 1830), M(ale), W(hite), Farmer, $300 Real Estate Value, $100 Personal Estate Value, Born in NC
Rachel Ensley, 26 yrs old (DOB 1834), F, W, Born in NC
Sarah Ensley, 4 yrs old (DOB 1856), F, W, Born in NC
Malissie Ensley, 3 yrs old (DOB 1857), F, W, Born in NC
Margaret Ensley, 1 yrs old (DOB 1859), F, W, Born in NC

1870 U.S. Census of Township #6, Madison County, NC, Roll M593_1147, Pg 425, Image 155, Lines 7-15, Dwelling 67, Family 67, "Samuel Crisly" (sic, should be Samuel Ensley)
Samuel Crisly, 40 yrs old (DOB 1830), M(ale), W(hite), Farm Laborer, $0 Real Estate Value, $100 Personal Estate Value, Born in NC, Cannot read or write
Rachel Crisly, 37 yrs old (DOB 1833), F, W, Keeping House, Born in NC, Cannot read or write
Sarah C. Crisly, 14 yrs old (DOB 1856), F, W, At Home, Born in NC, Cannot read or write
Malissa Crisly, 12 yrs old (DOB 1858), F, W, At Home, Born in NC, Cannot read or write
Alice Crisly, 11 yrs old (DOB 1859), F, W, At Home, Born in NC, Cannot read or write
Elmore Crisly, 9 yrs old (DOB 1861), F, W, At Home, Born in NC
Stokley Crisly, 7 yrs old (DOB 1863), M, W, At Home, Born in NC
Harley Crisly, 5 yrs old (DOB 1865), M, W, At Home, Born in NC
Ernia Crisly, 2 yrs old (DOB 1868), M, W, At Home, Born in NC

Wm Fore and Melissa Ensley had one son, Elbert Wiley Fore. He was born 5/21/1876 in Buncombe County, NC. W.F. Fore and Melissa Ensley Fore were separated in the 1880 U.S. Census. He's living with his parents and she and Wiley are living with her parents.

1880 U.S. Census of Upper Hominy, Buncombe County, North Carolina; Ancestry.com, 4/12/2016, Roll: 954; Family History Film: 254954; Page: 23C; Enumeration District: 028; Image: 0048, Family 54, Lines 3-8, "Fidillo Fore" (sic)
Fidillo Fore, W(hite), M(ale), 54 yrs old (DOB 1826), Head, Married, Farmer, Born in NC, Father born in SC, Mother born in NC
Elizabeth Fore, W, F, 45 yrs old (DOB 1835), Wife, Married, Keeping house, Born in NC, Both parents born in NC
William Fore, W, M, 27 yrs old (DOB 1853), Son, Single, Unimploid (sic), Cannot write, Born in NC, Both parents born in NC
Mary Fore, W, F, 21 yrs old (DOB 1859), Daughter, Single, Unimploid (sic), Cannot write, Born in NC, Both parents born in NC
Sidney Fore, W, M, 14 yrs old (DOB 1866), Son, Single, Farm worker, Born in NC, Both parents born in NC

1880 U.S. Census of Marshall, Madison County, NC, Roll T9_971, Family History Film 1254971. Pg 7.1000. ED 123. Image 0185, Lines 37-48, Dwelling 117, Family 118, "Samul Ensely" (sic, should be Samuel Ensley)
Samul Ensely (sic), W(hite), M(ale), 50 yrs old (DOB 1830), Head, Widowed, Born in NC, Father Born in NC, Mother born in NC
Mully J. Ensely (sic, should be Melissa Jane Ensley), W, F, 33 yrs old (DOB 1847), Daughter, Single, Housekeeper, Cannot read or write, Born in NC, Father born in NC, Mother born in NC
Stockly Ensely (sic, should be Stokely Ensley), W, M, 19 yrs old (DOB 1861), Cannot read or write, Born in NC, Father born in NC, Mother born in NC
Harly Ensely (sic, should be Harley Ensley), W, M, 15 yrs old (DOB 1865), Son, Cannot read or write, Born in NC, Father born in NC, Mother born in NC
Ernest Ensely, W, M, 12 yrs old (DOB 1868), Son, Attends school, Cannot read or write, Born in NC, Father born in NC, Mother born in NC
Arthun Ensely (sic, should be Arthur Ensley), W, M, 11 yrs old (DOB 1869), Son, Attends school, Cannot read or write, Born in NC, Father born in NC, Mother born in NC
Charley Ensely (sic, should be Charles Ensley), W, M, 9 yrs old (DOB 1871), Son, Born in NC, Father born in NC, Mother born in NC
Flurance Ensely (sic, should be Florence Ensley), W, F, 8 yrs old (DOB 1872), Daughter, Born in NC, Father born in NC, Mother born in NC
Fonse Ensely (sic, should be Alfonso Ensley), W, M, 6 yrs old (DOB 1874), Son, Born in NC, Father born in NC, Mother born in NC
Lucsten Ensely (sic), W, M, 4 yrs old (DOB 1876), Son, Born in NC, Father born in NC, Mother born in NC
Weyle Ensely (sic, Wiley Fore), W, M, 4 yrs old (DOB 1876), Son (sic), Born in NC, Father born in NC, Mother born in NC
Elizabeth Club (sic, should be Clark), W, F, 23 yrs old, Bond Servant, Born in NC, Father born in NC, Mother born in NC

Elbert Wiley Fore married Polly Loretta Buckner (DOB 3/10/1874 in Buncombe County, NC; DOD 1/29/1945 in McAdenville, Gaston County, NC) on 8/21/1898 in Buncombe County, NC. They had 6 children: Clarence Elmore Fore (married Ruth Baker), Charles Clifford Fore (married Annie Mae Pitman), William Earnest Fore (married Ila Mae Smith), Forrest Fore (married Mary Lucille Fleming), Ada Kate Fore (married John Albert Hunsucker), James Oscar Fore (married Margaret Morgan).

Now here is the story. William F. Fore attended a Turkey Creek Methodist Camp Meeting on 8/26/1889. The camp meeting was a Protestant Christian religious service originating in England and Scotland. It was similar to the revival meetings we know today. It was held for worship, preaching and communion on the frontier during the Second Great Awakening of the early 19th century. The Great Awakening Protestant religious revival movementh occurred from about 1720 to 1780 with the Second Great Awakening starting about 1790 and was past it's peak in the 1850's. Originally camp meetings were held in frontier areas and people would travel from a large region to a camp site for the "camp meeting". They would listen to itinerant preachers, pray, sing hymns. Camp meetings offered fellowship, singing, evangelism, non-stop preaching and a vacation from the hard work of their farms. Typically pentecostal in nature with emotional responses, loud prayers, etc. Camp meetings lasted up to five days and featured revival preaching day and night. Whites, blacks, men, women, and persons of all denominations took turns exhorting would-be converts. Repentant sinners were asked to approach the "anxious bench," where they sat with all eyes on them until they were converted to Christ's cause. Camp meetings induced sensational results: some observers described participants laughing out loud, barking like dogs, falling down as if dead, and experiencing "the jerks." During the so-called Second Great Awakening, from about 1790 through 1830, camp meetings became one of the most popular ways to preach the revival message.


This camp meeting was held in Turkey Creek, Buncombe County, NC at what is now the Leicester Community Center, 2979 New Leicester Hwy, Leicester, Buncombe County, NC. The grounds at the Leicester Community Center have a story to tell. The 21 acres now including the Community Center, Lawter Court, and Camp Forrest were donated to the Methodist Church by James Gudger on March 22nd 1827 this deed is in deed book 13 page 466 at the Buncombe County Register of Deeds. This brought the birth of the Turkey Creek Campground. There was a large arbor with benches, a pulpit, and an altar where many people knelt and came up shouting. There were seperate meetings held for men and women. Around the large arbor were plank tents consisting of four rooms each. The beds were straw covered floors and bedding. The reception room had long benches and the kitchen had a fireplace for food preparation. Each year for about a week to 10 days in August people would come from all over to worship. They came in wagons, on horses and later on in buggies and carriages. Bishop Francis Asbury writes in his diary of visiting the campground in 1806 and preaching to 500 souls. The Holston Methodism Volume 4 mentions a meeting in the fall of 1851 where preaching by Rev William Hicks over 100 people were converted in a 20 hour period. By 1893 the property was in poor condition and interest in the meetings had fallen. The event that would end the camp meetings happened that year. Two men inflamed by a quarrel got into a fist fight. The smaller of the two was taking a beating so he pulled a knife and stabbed the other man to death. Soon after that incident the meetings stopped altogether. The property, still owned by the Methodist Church, was converted into two parsonages, one for the Sandy Mush Charge and one for the Leicester Charge. On May 1, 1957 The Leicester Charge requested that the land be split between the 2 charges. After this split took place the Leicester Charge met at Dix Creek Methodist Church on November 10th 1957 and adopted a resolution to give the parsonage and property to the Leicester Youth Center the parsonage trustees were: Hal Wells, Donald Austin, and J. Fred Hall. The Articles of Incorporation were filed with the state of North Carolina on November 25th 1957.

Guess who the smaller of the two men who stabbed the farmer was? William Franklin Fore! Here are the newspaper articles that I was able to find on this fight and the killing.

Asheville Citizen Times, Asheville, NC, 8/27/1889, Keeping Up The Record
Keeping Up The Record
The Knife Again Gets In Its Bloody Work
Amos Lunsford Fatally Wounded by William Fore in a Quarrel at Turkey Creek Camp-Meeting - A Horrible Sunday Homicide
Another bloody chapter has been added to Buncombe's annals of crime, and, this time, as in three other instances this year, a human life has been taken. How, when and where this sort of thing will stop is beyond the ken of mortal man unless some steps are taken by those who have the right to take them, to put an end to those deeds that have already disgraced the fair name of our county and set law and order at defiance. A halt must be called, and no time lost in effecting adequate ways and means whereby homicides and murders shall be checked. Human life is not safe nor society tenable when the pistol and knife are brought into such ready and fatal play upon the lightest pretext or cause. Law, order, society, humanity appeals for a wiping out of these inhuman, diabolical and hellborn practices of men.

Another homicide has been committed in Buncombe! The victim of of passionate fury has been summoned before his Maker and the slayer now occupies a cell in the common jail of his county. One has lost his life, the other his liberty and must run the chances of life or death in a trial before a jury of his country. Horrible to contemplate is this state of affairs existing in any city, town or community.

The facts connected with Sunday's tragedy, as near as can be ascertained are as follows: William Fore, a white man, who lives in French Broad township near Alexander's, attended the farce, called "camp meeting," at Turkey Creek, eleven miles northwest of this city. He is a tall, well built man, about thirty years of age (DOB 1850), and is regarded as a peaceable citizen. While at the camp grounds he got into a dispute with Amos Lunsford, also white, of Leicester township, a powerfully built farmer, and regarded as one of the best men physically and otherwise, in that end of the county. So far as strength and courage goes bot men were well matched. The trouble grew out of an insult which Fore alleges Lunsford offered to him; Fore had some words with him, and Lunsford invited him to "take a walk down the road and settle it." This Fore refused to do, and leaving Lunsford went to a wagon in which a friend named Ham Luther (remember this name!) and others were seated. Shortly after he took his seat, Lunsford again made his appearance and repeated his invitation to Fore to "settle it." Again Fore declined, when all of a sudden Lunsford drew back his right arm and landed a terrific blow on Fore's right eye. Stunned and half blinded Fore rolled or fell out of the wagon and grappled with his assailant, drawing his knife, an ordinary pocket knife, at the same time.

The two men fought like tigers, until separated by the crown which had quickly gathered. When they were parted it was discovered that Lunsford had been stabbed twice, the first wound being about one inch below the navel, while the second orifice was about two inches below the first stab. His intestines were protruding from the cuts, and Dr. J.C.B. Justice, of this city, who was on the grounds was at once summoned to attend the unfortunate man.

Fore, who in the meanwhile, had been arrested by deputy sheriff King, presented a horrible picture. His eyes and the right side of his face were terribly bruised and blackened, and he was suffering intense agony from a kick in the side administered by Lunsford during the fight. Nor were these all his wounds. In his left thigh was a stab, and the third finger on his left hand was bleeding profusely. Both of these wounds were accidentally inflicted upon himself by Fore in the melee, and gave him much pain.

Lunsford was later taken to his home from where his death was reported yesterday afternoon. Fore waived preliminary examination and was brought to this city yesterday and lodged in jail. The deceased was a married man leaves a wife and several children. Fore is also married, and has one child. Both men have been regarded as upright, peaceable, good citizens previous to the horrible affair Sunday.



The Daily Citizen, Asheville, NC, 8/28/1889
Next on this list comes Jesse Peterson, also white, charged with murder in Madison. He, too, is waiting the result of an appeal to the supreme court, and is in the Buncombe jail for safe keeping.

The last of the trio is William Fore, of this county, who figured in Sunday's tragedy at the Turkey Creek camp meeting. He is awaiting trial at the October term of the criminal court for the slaying of Amos Lunsford, of Leicester township.

Thomas Wright and David Swatzell, the horse-thieves, also occupy a cell on the second floor of the jail..."



The Daily Citizen, 8/29/1889, "The Camp Meeting Was Not A 'Farce'"
Editor Citizen: I had the pleasure of attending the recent camp meeting at Turkey Creek, during the progress of which Amos Lunsford was killed by William Fore, and I desire to state that in your account of the affair in your issue of last Tuesday, you unintentionally cast a slur on one of the leading institutions of the Methodist church in the county of Buncombe. You said: "William Fore, a white man, who lives in French Broad township, attended the farce called 'camp meeting' at Turkey Creek last Sunday." Now it may be, or it may not be, that the necessity for camp meetings has ceased to exist. I shall not discuss that question. But that people have the right to meet at a proper time and in a proper place to worship God according to the dictates of their own conscience and in accordance with the laws of the country is a proposition that no man will question. This is exactly what the good people of Turkey Creek did last Sunday and it is what they have been doing for nearly seventy years. They paid their own money to erect the arbor and tents and they go there from year to year. These people are among the very best citizens of Buncombe. If they desire to do this, whose business is it?

If a bad man, once in a while, goes there and fills himself with liquor and provokes a difficulty and commits a crime, is the camp meeting to be ridiculed by our county paper and held responsible for it? Is the camp meeting of Turkey Creek to be held up to the ridicule of this world as parties to an annual "farce" because William Fore went there, steamed up his passions with the fluid of hell and killed a man? Such characters go to all gathering and they go prepared for mischief. You cannot keep them away.

Up to the time of this unfortunate tragedy, I never saw better order at a religious gathering in my life. All of the people seemed to be in the best of spirits and there was no sign of trouble in any direction. And during all the long years that camp meetings have been held at Turkey Creek, this is the first serious crime that has ever committed there. On the other hand, thousands have been converted there and added to the church of God. It has been a powerful influence for good and it has not yet reached the limit of it's usefulness. It is not a bad institution. I am, therefore, sure, that in view of all the facts in the case you will modify your unfortunate reference to the Turkey Creek camp meeting.
G.C.Rankin



The Montgomery Vidette, Troy, NC, 9/5/1889, Pg 2
Amos Lunsford was stabbed and killed at Turkey creek camp meeting, six miles west of Asheville, Sunday, by William Fore. Both parties were white and were respectable citizens. Fore is in jail. The difficulty was about a woman whom the slayer charged the slain with having insulted.



Asheville Citizen Times, Asheville, NC, 9/21/1889, Pg 1
Mrs. Geo. W. Bell and Mrs. Amos Lunsford have taken out letters of administration upon the estates of their respective husbands-both of whom were recently killed by other men in this county.



Asheville Daily Citizen, Asheville, NC, 10/29/1894, Criminal Court
Criminal Court
The Opening of this Tribunal Yesterday
This court was called on yesterday promptly at 10 o'clock, Hon. Charles A. Moore presiding. His Honor delivered an able charge to the grand jury, which was composed of the following gentlemen: ...

The most of the day was consumed in the consideration of several cases of minor importance, in which the defendants generally submitted...

William Fore was arraigned and pleaded not guilty. This case was also continued to the special term on November 18, to which day the witnesses were discharged.



The Daily Citizen, Asheville, NC, 11/19/1889, Criminal Court
Criminal Court
Business Done and to be Done by this Tribunal
The criminal court convened at 10 a.m. yesterday with Judge Moore on the bench. The greater part of the day was taken up with mere routine matter...

This is an unusually important term on account of the two cases of Berry, who is charged with killing George Bell, and of William Fore, who is charged with the murder of Amos Lunsford. The sheriff has been ordered to summon a special venire of 175 men in the case of the latter.



Asheville Citizens Times, 11/20/1889, Criminal Court
Criminal Court
Business Transacted Yesterday - Fore Murder Trial Today
The court resumed it's sitting yesterday morning at 10 o'clock. In the case of Harper Slite and Baily, the jury returned the verdict of guilty and a fine of $25 and costs was imposed...

The trial of William Fore begins this morning and the sheriff has summoned a special venire of a hundred men to report today at 10a.m...



Asheville Citizens Times, 11/21/1889, Criminal Court
Criminal Court
Clemency Asked By The Jury For Honeycutt
An Application Made For Postponement in the Murder Case of the State vs. Wm. J. Fore - The Matter To Come Up Today
An array of solid men of Buncombe filled the court room yesterday morning composing the special venire, which had been ordered for the trial of William Fore, for the killing of Amos Lunsford, which sad event occurred on the 26th day of August last, while the parties were in attendance at a camp meeting in Leicester township.

Before entering upon this case, the jury which up to midnight of the preceding day, had been patiently hearing the evidence and arguments in the case of the State vs. Mart Huneycutt, brought up their verdict, finding the defendant guilty of the crime of larceny and receiving stolen goods...

The prisoner, Fore, was brought into court, attended by his counsel. Messrs. J.M. Gudger and M.E. Carter. The solicitor called over his witnesses, some twenty-five in number, and announced that the State was ready. Mr. Gudger, in behalf of the defendant, said, that he wished time to prepare an affidavit, praying a continuance, and stated as the ground thereof, the absence of a material witness, Mr. Ham A. Luther, of Hominy. Mr. Luther had been summoned by the State, and therefore, the defense had not procured a subpoena for him until yesterday, when they learned that the Solicitor would not introduce him, and in consequence of his absence from home, this subpoena could not be served. The counsel intimated quite broadly that Mr. Luther had absented himself, because of his wish to avoid summons; saying, that he had in a previous case done the same.

The court granted time to prepare the affidavit, which was soon presented in the following words:

North Carolina, Buncombe County } Inferior Court
State vs. Wm. Fore - Murder } November Term '89
William Fore, the prisoner at the bar, being duly sworn, deposes and says he cannot come safely to the trial of this cause now, for the lac of the evidence of H.A. Luther. That said Luther was and is under subpoena issued for him and the same has not been served.

By said witness defendant expects to prove that prisoner drew his knife from his pocket and opened it after deceased had knocked and pulled prisoner down. This testimony is necessary to meet testimony which, as prisoner is advised, will be offered by the State, tending to show that the prisoner prepared a knife for the fight; that there is no witness by which he can supply this testimony; he expects to have the benefit of this testimony at another time; that the absence of this witness is a surprise to the prisoner; that this affidavit is not mode for delay, but to obtain a fair trial.
(Signed) W.J. Fore
Sworn to and subscribed before me,
J.R. Patterson, Clerk C.C.

Mr. Gudger argued skillfully in favor of a continuance. The solicitor opposed the motion which much logic, saying that the defense acknowledged that they knew weeks ago what Mr. Luther would swear, and that they could have secured his presence had they wished to do so. Capt. Carter replied to the solicitor ably and at length, refuting the charge that the prisoner's counsel had been guilty of negligence-that they had a right to suppose that witness would be produced by the State, and so soon as they discovered that he had been released by the solicitor they had made all due effort to secure his attendance.

At this point the solicitor was informed that Mr. Luther was probably at home at this time, and said that he would consent to this case being laid over until next Monday, in order to afford all facility to the defense to procure his evidence.

The court ordered the clerk to issue several capiases for Mr. Luther, and directed the sheriff to detail as many deputies as might be necessary to secure his attendance, and the case was continued until this morning at 10 o'clock, to which hour the venire was discharged.

Sentence was then passed upon Mart Honeycutt, whose term is three years in the penitentiary.



Asheville Citizen Times, The Daily Citizen, Asheville, NC, 11/22/1889, Fore On Trial
Fore On Trial
The State Will Only Have One More Witness
Dr. Justice Describes the Wounds - J.B. West Gives a Full Description of the Fight - Considerable Interest Manifested
Once more the court room was filled on yesterday, and the one hundred good and true men who had been summoned as a special venire were present, their countenances showing the deep interest they felt in their position and their determination to do their duty fairly and impartially, in case it should fall to their lot to pass judgment upon their fellow-man in a matter of his life or death.

The solicitor again called over his witnesses and announced that the State was ready. Mr. Gudger, for the defence, said that the witness Luther had not been found; and his Honor stated that it appeared that he was willfully absenting himself to avoid the process of this court and requested the solicitor to take such steps as the case required, an on motion of this officer, rule was issued upon said Luther, to show cause why he should not be held in contempt.

The court then announced the decision that the affidavit tendered by the defence was not sufficient ground for continuance, and after the prisoner had been placed upon his guard, the regular panel was called over and from them four were accepted.

The calling of the special venire was then begun and after fifty-seven had been drawn, the remaining eight were chosen. The jury in this case is composed of the following gentlemen: J.H. Foster, J.M. Israel, T.R. James, W.O. Wolfe, J.B. Ingle, G.H. Starnes, W.E. Pownders, Thos F. Wilson, M.G. Coffee, R.L. Shook, W.M. Weaver, John Brown.

The jury box being filled, the court discharged the regular panel until next Monday morning at 10 o'clock.

The prisoner was then required to stand up, and the bill of indictment was read to the jury, with the impressive words that "The defendant has placed himself upon God and his country, which country ye are."

The witnesses for the State were then sworn, and the court, took a recess until 2 p.m.

It may be here remarked as evidence of the good will prevailing in this county that one of sixty-eight men who were examined as to qualifications to act as jurors, only two were exempted on account of having a suit pending in court. This is rather a bad outlook for the legal fraternity, but shows that there gentlemen attend to their client's interests rather than their own.

The first witness introduced by the State was Dr. J.C.B. Justice, who attended Amos Lunsford. He described the various wounds, especially the fatal stab in the abdomen; said he had not seen the deceased until twenty minutes after the wound had been received, and that he then considered his patient to be past human help and almost in a dying condition. The Doctor had no doubt that this wound was the cause of death; he judged the knife blade to have been two and a half or three inches long.

J.B. West was the next witness. He was in attendance at camp meeting on the fourth Sunday in August, 1889. Was attracted by someone saying: "They will fight yet." Witness then approached the place where a number of persons were collected. Here he saw prisoner seated on a wagon, and saw deceased approach and heard a quarrel ensue, when the prisoner said, "I am not afraid to say again that you are a damned liar," whereupon deceased struck the prisoner in the face and pulled him down from the wagon. Deceased drew his right hand from hjs pants pocket, and witness saw that the prisoner had in his hand an open knife; a fight ensued, the deceased striking prisoner on each side of the face, using both hands, the prisoner striking back with his knife, sometimes striking deceased in front of body and sometimes around so as apparently to hit in the back. Witness produced the knife, a large pocket knife, which he had taken from prisoner immediately after the fight, and had preserved since that time. The location of the contending parties changed to some fifteen feet from the wagon, then back again, and finally to the banks of a large spring at which point deceased gave prisoner a very severe kick, and both combatants fell into the spring, a distance of some four feet. At this point witness seized the prisoner's right hand, in which the knife was with the blade half closed, and witness demanded the knife, which the prisoner at once surrendered. Other parties took hold of the deceased and helped him out of the spring.

By direction of the court the witness and the sheriff assumed the positions relatively of the deceased and the prisoner showed to the jury that the prisoner was in front of deceased, and with his back to the deceased, who was striking him continuously when the fatal blow was given by prisoner, striking backwards. The counsel for the defence objected to this illustration, which was noted by his honor. Witness arrested prisoner, who smelled of whiskey. Prisoner asked why he was arrested. Witness said, "Because you have probably killed Amos Lunsford." Prisoner replied, "I did not have any knife."

The cross examination showed that prisoner had his back to deceased most of the time of the fight, and consequently was moving from deceased, who was following and striking prisoner severely; that prisoner was on his knees when deceased kicked him very severely; that prisoner did not seem trying to escape from deceased.

R.F. Lee was next called to the witness stand. He, too, was at campground on day in question, and gave an account which corresponded quite closely with that of the first witness, the chief points of difference being that this witness saw prisoner draw a knife from his pocket before deceased struck him or pulled him off the wagon, and that deceased gave prisoner three kicks, the last of which knocked prisoner into the spring, deceased falling in with him. Witness thought that the fatal wound was given while both were in the spring.

Thaddeus Sams was next called. Saw the difficulty. After prisoner came off the wagon he followed deceased some five feet before they both turned in direction the spring; that deceased either kicked or pushed prisoner off a bank and prisoner came back at deceased with knife drawn; then deceased struck him again and at that time prisoner struck him more than once in the abdomen; afterwards Lunsford pushed prisoner into the spring. Witness also stated that during the fight deceased had seized prisoner's arm, which was wrenched from him and requested cuts made by prisoner.

The witness was subjected to a severe cross-examination, which developed the fact that witness lived on land of the deceased; also that someone had said to witness, "Don't interfere; Lunsford has taken enough off of Fore already."

Morris Fowler had seen the quarrel at an earlier stage than the other witnesses. Prisoner had taken hold of a halter by which a little boy was lending a horse and refused to give it up. The boy asked him to give it up. Lunsford told prisoner to let horse alone. Prisoner asked deceased what business it was of his, to which Lunsford replied that he would protect the boy. Several bitter curses were applied by prisoner to deceased, and witness saw deceased take a knife from his pocket, open the blade and return it to his pocket. Witness then left the ground in company with his wife and children, remarking that there would be a fight and someone might be killed.

J.E. Sumner saw the trouble with boy and horse, but did not see knife drawn. Then after a lapse of five minutes saw Lunsford return from direction of spring and in direction of wagon, on which prisoner had taken a seat by the side of H.A. Luther. Witness heard prisoner say to Luther that deceased was -- -- -- --; thereupon Lunsford approached and demanded its retraction, which was refused, and a blow was struck by deceased. Witness could not testify as to the facts of the fight after this.

Burton Ford's evidence was not materially different from that of the two first witnesses and he was not cross examined.

Here the solicitor announced that with one more witness the State would probably rest its case, and this would be done this morning, and the jury were allowed to retire.

John Berry, who is charged with the murder of George Bell, was brought into court, attended by his counsel, Maj. W. H. Malone and W.W. Jones.

The solicitor reported that the State was ready. The defence submitted an affidavit of the accused, stating that he could not safely come to trial at this time, owing to the absence of Charles Harkins, who had heard threats made by Bell against the accused; the Harkins was in the State of Washington but would be present at the next term of court.

His honor declined to grant a continuance, holding that the affidavit was not sufficient.

A venire of 125 men was drawn from the box and ordered to be in attendance at 10 o'clock on Monday morning.



The Asheville Citizen Times, Asheville, NC, 11/23/1889, Criminal Court
Criminal Court
Trial Of Fore Continued And Evidence Closed
The Evidence Closed-Fore Testifies in His Own Behalf-The Speeches Will be Made To-day and Probably A Verdict
The examination of the evidence for the State was continued by the testimony of Mr. --- Butler, who saw a number of persons assembled and heard loud talking, and heard Fore say to some person who had taken hold of his arm and asked him to go away. "No, if it comes I'll cut some d--d man. That is what I came here for."

Fore then went to wagon and took a seat thereon. Lunsford approached and demanded retraction of epithet which Fore had applied to him. Fore refused to retract and again called him a d--d liar. Lunsford then struck Fore, and at same instant Fore made an overhanded blow with an open knife in his hand. The fight then moved some eight feet from wagon, Lunsford backing and both parties striking furiously. Then Lunsford struck Fore a blow which caused him to turn his back to deceased, and in this position witness saw knife strike Lunsford in abdomen. Lunsford then knocked and kicked Fore off of the bank of the road, and Fore partly turned and seemed about to come back at Lunsford, when latter struck and kicked him again and they both fell into the spring. Fore did not get into the water; Lunsford did do so, and there kicked Fore again. Then they were separated.

On cross examination witness acknowledge that on last evening, when being examined by counsel for defence, he made no such statement as he now does in regard to threat made by Fore prior to the fight. Also that witness lived on land of a brother-in-law of Lunsford.

On redirect examination, witness stated that he made same statement of Fore's words to another person, whom he named.

Mr. Weaver repeated vile epithets which he heard Fore apply more than once to Lunsford. He did not see beginning of fight at wagon, but saw that at the spring, and gave an account very similar to that of the first State's witnesses. He was no cross-examined.

Mr. Rogers heard sounds indicating that a fight was imminent, and took hold of Lunsford, when Fore, who was on wagon, said, "Let him loose; I am not afraid of him." Lunsford replied, "I don't want you to be afraid of me. Will you repeat what you said?" Then Fore again called Lunsford a d--d liar, and fight ensued, of which this witness testified as the others had done.

H.B. Ray gave a description of the fight in a concise manner, his testimony being very similar to that of Mr. West and Mr. Lee. This witness was not cross examined.

Mr. Webb had a conversation with Butler, the witness first examined, and repeated what Butler said, very much the same as the testimony given by Butler. Witness also heard Sumner say to Thad. Sams, who was holding Lunsford, "Let him go; he has taken too much off of this man already." The statement of this witness was not materially different from that of the others.

Mr. Dockery heard same words as stated by last witness, used by Sumner to Thad. Sams, and saw fight, without any material point of difference, except that he thought Fore had hold of Lunsford just before the parties fell into the spring.

Here the State rested, and the defence asked a recess of half hour, which was granted.

On reassembling, the prisoner was sworn, and took the witness stand. He said:
"On Sunday evening I was walking towards spring. A horse ran against me, and I caught it and asked boy to be more careful. At this moment a man came up and said, 'Talk to a man, not to a boy.' I said, 'I have no talk for either, but I do not want a horse to run over me.' Then he said, 'You are too big a coward.' Then he said, 'You are a coward and a --- --- ---.' My recollection is that I replied 'You are a liar.' He walked up the road, saying 'Come up here; I will do you up.' I said, 'I will not go.' and started down the road. He overtook me and said 'Go down the road and I will do you up.' I said, 'I will not go anywhere to take a whipping.' About this time I saw Mr. Ham Luther sitting on the wagon, and thought I would go there to avoid a difficulty. I went and got on the wagon. At this time I saw Mr. Lunsford standing off talking with others, one of whom I learn to be Mr. Sumner. Lunsford and others came to me. He had hand down by his side; I thought he had a rock in his hand. Then Mr. Sumner spoke to Mr. Sams, saying, 'Let him alone; he has already taken more than I would have taken.' Then Lunsford asked me to repeat what I said. I replied that I wished to have no more to say about it. He said I was too much of a coward, and said, 'You are a coward and a --- --- ---.' I said "You are a liar.' and began to open my knife. Lunsford then struck me just above the right eye. I cannot tell how I got off the wagon, but when I came to myself I had knife in hand partly open, and blows were coming on me from every side. I discovered that my knife was not fully open and struck it against my thigh and cut it in my effort to open it. The blows continued very fast, and I returned them until I came near to spring where I was partly down, and received a terrible kick, which knocked me into the spring and Lunsford jumped in on me. I was not able to recover until helped out of the spring.

"The fatal blow was given when I was kicked off of bank of road, near the spring. This was not the first kick I had received. I did not open my knife at the horse transaction; I did not open it on wagon until I was struck. Had never seen Lunsford until that day; did not know him. Said no words of opprobrium to Lunsford after leaving horse until he came to me on the wagon. (Knife shown.) This is my knife. I struck first with my knife because I thought he had something with which he could kill me. I struck afterwards because it seemed to me that I would be killed. Blows on my head were very severe; kicks were also very severe. When I reached the spring I was badly beaten up. I never saw deceased from wagon to spring, because my back was towards him. I had taken two drams of whiskey that day. There was no cause of trouble between me and Lunsford prior to that day."

Cross-examination: "I do not think he told West that he had no knife. Think witnesses are mistaken on points where they differ with me. I was trying to get away from Lunsford during the fight. He had hold of me; I did not have hold of him. I was trying to kill him because I felt sure that otherwise he would kill me."

Then the court took a recess till 2 p.m.

D.A. Shook saw a fight at wagon. Lunsford struck Fore, who had an umbrella in his lap, and pulled him off wagon. As Fore reached the ground he struck at Lunsford with knife. Witness called to Lunsford with knife. Witness called to Lunsford, 'Look out! He has a knife.' Lunsford was a very heavy man and one of his blows would have knocked. Fore down, had not Lunsford supported him by his left hand grasping his collar. Saw Lunsford take hold of Fore's right hand, which was wrenched loose. Lunsford then seized both of Fore's elbows and gave him a severe kick, which caused sufficient distance between them to enable Fore to strike his adversary's front, and it was then that the fatal wound was delivered.

Cross examination: Witness knew the prisoner some five years ago, and at that time his general character was not good.

Mr. Jamison, the jailer, saw prisoner a few days after the affray, when he was delivered into his custody. At that time prisoner had ugly bruises on face and side, and a cut in shape of the figure 7 on his right thigh.

C.C. Crook said that Sumner, one of the witnesses for the State, had told him that he had said to Lunsford that he would not take what Fore had put upon him.

Dr. J.C.B. Justice was put on standby defence. Said that in attending deceased he noticed that he had been drinking and smelled whiskey on his breath. The solicitor objected and the court allowed the question.

Dr. Starnes was at camp meeting, but did not see the fight. Examined prisoner soon after fight. Examined prisoner soon after fight. Found several severe bruises on face, and a cut, not serious, on his right thigh. Afterwards found a very severe bruise on his back.

This closed the evidence for the defense.

The State recalled Mr. West, the first witness, who said that he had seen Fore holding Lunsford with his left hand, grasping his left leg, and striking backwards with his knife in his right hand. Witness also gave several of the State's witnesses a good general character.

G.A. Greer had heard quarrel about horse; heard prisoner call Lunsford a liar and say, "You men who smoke fine cigars, if you want to whip me you must do it on the spot," which he heard repeated after Fore had taken seat on wagon; in other respects this witness agreed with the preceding one.

James Hunter knows general character of prisoner which is bad. No developments of new matter in connection with the res-gestae, was made by this witness, nor by the testimony of Anderson Bailey, except that the latter gave a stronger statement of epithets used by prisoner to deceased.

Mr. J.W. Starnes, superintendent of public schools, was called and testified to the general good character of many of the State's witnesses.

Sam Rector was the boy who had the horse when prisoner interfered. The horse belonged to James Hunter. Prisoner demanded horse, saying that Hunter had told him, prisoner, to take horse. Lunsford interfered and prisoner released horse and turned on Lunsford. Witness did not hear what was said and went away with horse.

W.J. Worley, ex-sheriff, testified to good character of several State witnesses; which was also proven by several other witnesses and the evidence was closed.

The solicitor made a short address and the court adjourned until this morning.



The Charlotte Observer, Charlotte, NC, 11/24/1889, Pg 1, Wm Fore Convicted of Murder
Wm Fore Convicted of Murder
(Special to The Chronicle)
Asheville, NC, Nov, 23 - For two days the Criminal Court has been occupied with the trial of William Fore, charged with the murder of Amos Lunsford, on August 24th.

At a camp meeting near here the two men got into an altercation, in which Fore was struck in the face by Lunsford with his fist, and thereupon the former drew a huge knife and while being repeatedly struck, stabbed his antagonist to death.

The jury after a conference of two hours have returned a verdict of guilty.



The Morning Star, Wilmington, NC, 11/28/1889, Pg 3, Spirits Turpentine
Asheville Journal: The conviction of Wm Fore for murder on Saturday was a surprise to many. It is being talked over by most everyone and it also adds additional public interest in the trial of John Berry, which began this morning.



Asheville Citizen Times, Asheville, NC, 11/28/1889, Pg 1
When a man is on trial for his life, no one (meaning Hamilton A. Luther) should withhold their testimony. They may think that they can add nothing to what is already known, but theirs might be the missing link in the chain of evidence. Several young men refrained from letting people know that they had been witnesses of the fight when William Fore killed Amos Lunsford. Such action is very blame-worthy, and would be severely criticised by those who desire justice to be fairly meted out and realize the importance of having all the witnesses of such a scene relate what they have seen and heard to the jury.

Apropos of the number of hotels which are in process of erection....



Asheville Citizen Times, Asheville, NC, 11/30/1889
A Letter From Mr. Wolfe, one of the Fore Jurymen
Editor Citizen: I being one of the twelve unfortunate men who were selected to try Wm Fore for the murder of Amos Lunsford, deem it my duty to answer the rather unjust criticism which appeared in your paper last Sunday morning.

Knowing that your reporter heard all the case, for he was regularly in his place through the entire trial, and if he heard that charge of the Judge to the jury giving them the law; then, I think your criticism was most unjust to the jury-unjust to the peace and dignity of society and the laws of North Carolina.

I don't know what part of the community The Citizen voices, when it says, it thinks the community expected a verdict of manslaughter; but I do know that several of the good people of the community have approached me, unsolicited, and told me that ours was a most righteous verdict.

I was not sworn, however, to please the public, but to hear the evidence and the law, and render a just verdict. This I feel I have done, however painful it may have been to me.

I did not make the law that is to punish Wm. Fore, but simply did my sworn duty as a juror, and am ever ready to lend whatever aid is in my power in any direction the condemned man may be entitled to for clemency.

I do not blame The Citizen for not concurring in my views. Of course not; but, it seems to me, the comments of Sunday's paper were rather far-reached; the jury feel they were the only twelve persons in the universe who believed the prisoner, Fore, to be guilty of murder.

I write this over my own signature, but in so doing, I feel certain I voice the sentiments of the entire jury.
W.O. Wolfe

Editor Citizen: I am happy to have had my attention drawn to the above communication by my excellent friend, Mr. Wolfe. It only goes to convince me, that I was correct in the position I took before the trial, during the trial, and after the trial, that he and all other members of the jury were "absolutely conscientious." That we differed in opinion, is no evidence that either doubts the honesty of the other. I am glad to learn from Mr. Wolfe, that he is ready to join me in application to the Governor for clemency to Wm. Fore. In this effort, I hope sincerely, that Mr. Wolfe and I will receive the cooperation of the other members of the jury, of the judge and of the solicitor, because I hope that they will concur with us in the opinion that the circumstances of the case warrant such an application.
T.W. Patton



The Daily Citizen, Asheville, NC, 12/1/1889
Criminal Court
A Mistrial In The Case of John Berry
An Appeal for a New Trial in the Case of Wm. Fore - Some Startling Affidavits Presented for the Consideration of the Court.
At 5 o'clock the court was called to order, and the weary jury in their box, while the room was filled with men anxious to know the result of their long deliberations.

Mr. J.M. Step answered the clerk's question with the assurance that they had not agreed, and his honor again required them to retire in charge of their officer until they did agree.

So soon as this was done and order restored, Clerk Patterson warned all present to observe silence, and in prescribed form asked the prisoner, Wm. Fore, whether he had anything to say why judgment of death should not be pronounced upon him. In reply to this Mr. J. M. Gudger made an earnest appeal to the court for a new trial, basing the same first, upon new evidence which had come to his knowledge which would go far towards mitigating the offense. The most remarkable part of this was a statement which the counsel averred would be made by Mr. Alexander, a kinsman of the deceased. Amos Lunsford, that he had talked with Lunsford a short time before his death and that he said then distinctly, "I pushed that man Fore too far. I know I must die, and at this moment, I say deliberately that Fore is not to blame for my death."

This remarkable statement was supplemented with the further assurance that in selecting the jury the prisoner's counsel had received no assistance except from two persons who were not named, who advised them to take three men who were their kinsmen, assuring the counsel that these men were untrained and would be fair both for the State and defense, and in consequence of this assurance, the three men were taken on the jury. Since the close of the trial, however, the counsel had been informed that one of these persons, had proposed to help lynch Fore. Another had said "he ought to be hung" and the third a few moments before he was called to the jury box, had said that "Fore was guilty of murder."

The court here suggested to Mr. Gudger that these charges were of too serious a character to be presented in this irregular manner, and that court would be adjourned for one hour to enable them to prepare the affidavits necessary to bring it properly before the court and to get its ruling thereon.

At 7 o'clock, the court was again called to order, and the jury in the case of the State vs John Berry being in the box, still asserted that it was impossible to reach an agreement. The Solicitor and Mr. Shuford, for defendant, then agreed that the jury should be polled, and each asked, whether it would be possible for them to agree. This was done, and the question was asked each juryman, and in reply, each gave the opinion "Impossible;" and thereupon, one of the twelve, Mr. J.M. Stepp, was withdrawn and a mistrial ordered.

We were informed by one of the jury that they stood to the last, nine for murder and three for manslaughter.

The consideration of Fores case was then resumed, and the following affidavits were presented:

M.W. Carter being duly sworn, says that "Mr. D.H. Shook, father of Robert Shook, who served as a juror on the trial of the prisoner at the bar, came to affiant as one of the counsel of the prisoner, and volunterred the statement to him, that his said son, Mr. Coffee, who was also on the jury, and a Mr. Rogers who was on the special venire, were all without prejudice against the prisoner, and would give him a fair trial, if they were chosen on the jury, and both Messrs. Shook and Coffee were chosen by the prisoner's counsel in consequence of this information.

Affiant further swears, "that the said D.H. Shook, being a witness for the prisoner, led affiant to believe that he was in sympathy with the prisoner; but affiant has since been informed, and now believes, that he was, at the same time, an active friend of the prosecution.
(Signed) M.E. Carter
Sworn to and subscribed before me
J.R. Patterson, Clerk

J.D. Redmon being duly sworn says that he was in the courthouse the day the jury was chosen in this case, and while Robert Shook, he was afterwards chosen as a juror, sat by his side, in a conversation with Shook, he told this affiant that Lunsford was a nice man, and that Fore had imposed on him, and ought to be hung. Shook was sworn afterwards, and on being sworn said that he had not formed and expressed the opinion that the prisoner was guilty. Affiant remembers distrinctly that Shook was sworn and answered as above stated. Before Shook was chosen, a man not known to affiant, who had sandy beard, leaned over in front of affiant, and whispered to Shook and told him that he would be chosen as a juror sure.

Affiant told his brother and brother-in-law the same day that Fore would either he hung or there would be a mistrial, and he then explained to them his conversation with Shook. The affiant is not of kin nor related in any way to the parties, and has no interest in the case, and is besides unable to state how defendant's counsel obtained the information that he had the said conversation with Shook
J.D. Redmon "X" his mark
Sworn to and subscribed J.R. Patterson, Clerk

M.L. Culbertson being duly sworn says that the week following the killing of Lunsford by Fore, he heard Mr. Coffee, who served as a juror in this trial of Fore, say that Fore ought to be hung. This was said at Coffee's spring near his residence.
(Signed) M.S. Culbertson
Sworn to and subscribed, J.R. Patterson, Clerk

The solicitor stated distinctly that he disbelieved the truth of statements made by Redmon and Culbertson; that if convinced that they stated facts he would readily agree to a new trial, and asked that the matter be postponed until Monday next to enable him to introduce evidence. This request his honor very properly granted, and the court was adjourned until tomorrow morning at 9 o'clock.



Asheville Citizen-Times, Asheville, NC, 12/3/1889, Pg 1, Criminal Court
Criminal Court
Verdict Against William Fore Set Aside - A New Trial Granted
In pursuance of its adjournment on Saturday night, the court was convened at 9 o'clock yesterday, and the consideration of affidavits published in our Sunday's issue was taken up.

The defense introduced a farther affidavit of R.L. Lee to the effect that D.S. Shook had said to him, "I have beaten out Melvin Carter," referring to certain men who had been taken on the jury.

Two of the jurymen, Messrs Coffee and Shook were introduced by the State, and each asserted that he had not been questioned as to his opinions of the prisoner's guilt, but had the question been asked he would have replied that he had formed and expressed such an opinion. The counsel for the defendant insisted that the usual question had not been asked because of the assurance given them in private by D.L. Shook, and the court held that there was reason to doubt that the defendant had received a fair and impartial trial, and therefore the verdict should be set aside.

Many witnesses were introduced to establish the character of the two jurymen, and the evidence was thoroughly satisfactory to them both. We have also heard many comments of approval of young Mr. Lunsford, the son of the slain man, who naturally assisted the solicitor in the prosecution; his demeanor was entirely free of all that vindictive feeling which is often seen in like cases, his deportment was quiet and dignified and his evident wish was only to secure a fair trial for the State, and to vindicate his father's character.



The Semi Weekly Citizen, Asheville, NC, 2/6/1890, Pg 1
...
William Fore, who was sentenced to fifteen years in the penitentiary for manslaughter, will not be taken to the prison until after the present term of the court. ...



News and Observer, Raleigh, NC, 1/28/1890, Pg 4
Asheville Citizen: The officials believe that it will be a difficult matter to get a jury in Buncombe county for either the Berry or Fore murder cases. Nearly everybody of intelligence within the boundaries has formed and expressed an opinion...



The Morganton Herald, Morganton, NC, 2/13/1890, Pg 1
..At Buncombe Superior Court William Fore, charged with the murder of Amos Lunsford, has submitted to manslaughter and has been sentenced to fifteen years imprisonment in the penitentiary.



The Semi-Weekly Citizen, Asheville, NC, 2/13/1890, Pg 1
Six prisoners were taken to Raleigh by Sheriff Reynolds yesterday. Berry and Fore were among them.



Asheville Citizen Times, Asheville, NC, 10/29/1894, Page 1, Wm Fore Escapes
Wm Fore Escapes
Buncombe Man Gets Out of the State Penitentiary
A letter to Chief W.H. Deaver of the Pinion Detective agency, from Warden John M. Fleming of the North Carolina penitentiary, states that William Fore, a convict from Buncombe, escaped Friday night from the pen, and that $100 reward is offered for his capture.

Fore was sent to the penitentiary in 1890 for manslaughter, having killed Lunsford at Turkey Creek camp meeting. He was a 15 years man. Fore is 41 yrs old (DOB 1853), six feet tall, weights 175 pounds, has brown eyes and dark hair, a dimple in the chin and sharp nose.



And that's the last I could find on William Fore. Did they ever re-capture him? Did he get away? Did he die in prison? What happened to William Franklin Fore? And I made a note in the newspaper articles of the missing eye witness, Ham A. Luther.

Who was Ham A. Luther? Hamilton A. Luther was born 12/13/1830 in Buncombe County, NC; DOD 3/16/1900 in Buncombe County, NC) married Elizabeth Joyce (DOB 9/5/1830 in Buncombe County, NC; DOD 10/9/1860 in Buncombe County, NC). Ham Luther and Elizabeth Joyce had a son named, Leander G. Luther (DOB 10/17/1859 in Buncombe County, NC; DOD 3/21/1932 in Bucombe County, NC). Then Ham Luther married Levada Morgan (DOB 10/2/1842 in Buncombe County, NC; DOD 11/26/1904 in Buncombe County, NC). They had Eugenia Louise Luther, Martha "Mattie" O. Luther, Walter A. Luther, Watson Lenoir Luther. Hamilton A. Luther would have been 59 yrs old and William Fore was 37 yrs old when the fight occurred at Turkey Creek camp meeting. They knew each other because William Franklin Fore's sister, Mary Fore, married Ham Luther's son, Leander "Lee" G. Luther on 7/1/1902 in Buncombe County, NC. Wm Fore and Lee Luther would have eventually been brothers-in-law. Fidelies Fore and Ham Luther would have been contemporaries and were from the same area. So the family had to have known each other. From the newspaper articles, it would seem that they were on friendly terms. So why did Hamilton A. Luther refuse to be a witness in the murder trial. Why did he run away and hide? He is mentioned in the newspaper later in glowing terms. He was a Confederate Veteran. Maybe he took an oath ("duly sworn") seriously and was afraid his testimony would be damning? I would love to know! Here are his obituaries:

Wilmington Messenger, Wilmington, NC, 3/20/1900, Page 3, Obituary of Hamilton A. Luther, parenthesis mine
Hamilton A. Luther, of Hominy, died this morning at 8 o'clock. Mr. Luther was about 60 years old (more like 70 yrs old) and a veteran of the Confederate army.

The Asheville Register, Asheville, NC, 3/23/1900, Pg 3
H.A. Luther, a prominent citizen of Hominy, died last Friday morning after a lingering illness. Mr. Luther was about sixty years of age and had held several responsible positions in the county. The funeral was held Sunday morning from Hominy Baptist church at 11 o'clock.

The Asheville Register, Asheville, NC, 3/23/1900, Pg 3, Obituary of H.A. Luther
H.A. Luther, a prominent citizen of Hominy, died last Friday morning after a lingering illness. Mr. Luther was about sixty years of age and had held several responsible positions in the county. The funeral was held Sunday morning from Hominy Baptist church at 11 o'clock.

The Observer, Charlotte, NC, 3/17/1900, Pg 8, Obituary of Hamilton A. Luther
Hamilton A. Luther, of Hominy, died this morning at 8 o'clock. Mr. Luther was about 60 years old and a veteran of the Confederate army.



As for Melissa Jane Ensley Fore, she continued on in the area. But let's look at Wiley Fore.

I could not find her or her son, Wiley E. Fore, in the 1900 U.S. Census.

North Carolina, Marriage Records, 1741-2011
Name: Wiley Fore
Gender: Male
Race: White
Age: 22
Birth Year: abt 1876
Marriage Date: 21 Aug 1898
Marriage Place: Buncombe, North Carolina, USA
Spouse: Polly Buckner
Spouse Gender: Female
Spouse Race: White
Spouse Age: 23
Event Type: Marriage

Madison County Record, Marshall, NC, 8/30/1907, Pg 4, Local News
Wiley Fore has resigned as policeman and George Hensley has been elected to fill the position.

Madison County Record, Marshall, NC, 2/14/1908, Pg 4, Local News
Wiley Fore has moved into the Shelton house recently vacated by A.C. Gilbere.

1910 U.S. Census of Main Street, Marshall, Madison County, North Carolina; Ancestry.com, 4/12/2016, Roll: T624_1107; Page: 1B; Enumeration District: 0082; FHL microfilm: 1375120, Taken 4/15/1910, Family 26, Lines 80-91, "Wiley Fore"
Wiley Fore, Head, M(ale), W(hite), 29 yrs old (DOB 1881), 1st marriage, Married 11 yrs (DOM 1899), Born in NC, Both parents born in NC, Agent freight, Can read and write
Polly Fore, Wife, F, W, 36 yrs old (DOB 1874), 1st marriage, Married 11 yrs, 6 children with 4 still living, Born in NC, Both parents born in NC, Can read and write
Clarence Fore, Son, M, W, 10 yrs old (DOB 1900), Single, Born in NC, Both parents born in NC
Clifford Fore, Son, M, W, 8 yrs old (DOB 1902), Single, Born in NC, Both parents born in NC,
Earnest Fore, Son, M, W, 5 yrs old (DOB 1905), Single, Born in NC, Both parents born in NC,
Forrest Fore, Son, M, W, 1 yr 11/12 mos old (DOB 1908), Single, Born in NC, Both parents born in NC,
Nora Ensley, Cook, F, W, 30 yrs old (DOB 1880), Single, Born in NC, Both parents born in NC, , Cook boarding house, Can read and write
Mark Felmet, Baorder, M, W, 28 yrs old, Single, Born in NC, Both parents born in NC, Laborer odd jobs
Roy Fox, Boarder, M, W, 21 yrs old, Single, Born in NC, Both parents born in NC, Laborer odd jobs
Gurs Case (sic), Boarder, M, W, 23 yrs old, 1st marriage, Married 1 yr, Born in NC, Both parents born in NC, Laborer odd jobs
Lula Case, Boarder, F, W, 26 yrs old, 2nd marriage, Married 1 yr, 4 children with 4 still living, Born in NC, Both parents born in NC, Frame hand in cotton mill
Jim Reed, Boarder, M, W, 34 yrs old, 1st marriage, Married 16 yrs, Born in NC, Both parents born in NC, , Laborer odd jobs

U.S. WWI Draft Registration Cards
Registration State: South Carolina; Registration County: Greenville; Roll: 1877664; Draft Board: 2, Serial #4411, Order #1516, Albert Wiley Fore, DOB 5/21/1876
Serial #4411, Order #1516
Albert Wiley Fore
333 Henderson St, Greenville, Greenville County, SC
42 yrs old, DOB 5/21/1876
White
Occupation: Cotton mill operator at Saluda Mfg, Greenville, Greenville County, SC
Nearest relative: Wife, Pollie Fore, 333 Henderson St, Greenville, SC
39-2-10-C
Tall, Slender Build, Blue Eyes, Black Hair
Signed by him 9/12/1918 in Greenville, Greenville County, SC

1930 U.S. Census of State Hwy 20, French Broad, Buncombe County, NC, Roll 1676, Pg 7B, ED 47, Image 638.0, Lines 52-55, Dwelling 131, Family 136, "Harley Ensley" (Wiley's maternal uncle)
Harley Ensley, Head, Owns farm, no radio set, M(ale), W(hite), 64 yrs old (DOB would be About 1866), Can read and write, Born in NC, Father born in NC, Mother born in NC, Farmer of general farm
Cornelia Ensley, Wife, F, W, 63 Yrs old (DOB would be About 1867), Can read and write, Born in NC, Father born in NC, Mother born in NC
Bonnie Ensley, Daughter, F, W, 24 yrs old (DOB would be About 1906), Single, Can read and write, Born in NC, Father born in NC, Mother born in NC
Wiley Fore, Nephew, M, W, 53 yrs old, Married (?, where is his wife), Can read and write, Born in NC, Father born in NC, Mother born in NC, Labor on Farm

1930 U.S. Census of Office St, Hartsell Mill Village, Township 11, Cabarrus County, North Carolina; Ancestry.com, 4/12/2016, Roll: 1678; Page: 18B; Enumeration District: 0021; Image: 203.0; FHL microfilm: 2341412, Taken 4/15/1930, Family #364, Lines 92-97, "John Honeysucker" (sic)
John Honeysucker, Head, Rents home for $2, M(ale), W(hite), 23 yrs old (DOB 1907), Married at age 19 yrs old (DOM 1926), Cannot read or write, Born in NC, Both parents born in NC, Doffer in cotton mill
Ada K. Honeysucker, Wife, F, W, 19 yrs old (DOB 1921), Married at age 17 yrs old, Can read and write, Born in NC, Both parents born in NC
Mable L. Honeysucker, Daughter, F, W, 7/12 mos old (DOB 1929), Born in NC, Both parents born in NC
Polly Fore, Mother-in-law, F, W, 57 yrs old (DOB 1873), Married at age 25 yrs old (DOM 1898), Can read and write, Born in NC, Both parents born in NC
James A. Fore, Brother-in-law, M, W, 17 yrs old (DOB 1913), Single, Can read and write, Born in NC, Both parents born in NC, Laborer in cotton mill

1940 U.S. Census of Main St, McAdenville, Gaston County, North Carolina; Ancestry.com, 4/12/2016, Roll: T627_2915; Page: 11A; Enumeration District: 36-56, Family #173, Lines 1-9, "John Hunsucker"
John Hunsucker, Head, M(ale), W(hite), 33 yrs old (DOB 1907), Married, Did not attend school, Born in NC, Lived in Belmont, Gaston County, NC in 1935, Foreman cotton mill, Income $(illegible)
Ada Hunsucker, Wife, F, W, 29 yrs old (DOB 1911), Married, Attended school thru 7t grade, Born in NC, Lived in Belmont, Gaston County, NC in 1935, Winder hand in cotton mill, Income $360
Mabel Hunsucker, Daughter, F, W, 11 yrs old (DOB 1929), Attends school, Born in NC, Lived in Belmont, Gaston County, NC in 1935
Kenneth Hunsucker, Son, M, W, 9 yrs old (DOB 1931), Attends school, Born in NC, Lived in Belmont, Gaston County, NC in 1935
Lyndal Hunsucker, Daughter, F, W, 7 yrs old (DOB 1933), Attends school, Born in NC, Lived in Belmont, Gaston County, NC in 1935
Gary Hunsucker, Son, M, W, 3 yrs old (DOB 1937), Born in (blank)
Polly Fore, Mother-in-law, F, W, 66 yrs old (DOB 1874), Widowed, Attended school thru 4th grade, Born in NC, Lived in Belmont, Gaston County, NC in 1935, No occupation
Sara Maxwell, Laborer, F, W, 22 yrs old, Single, Attended school thru 7th grade, Born in NC, Winder hand in cotton mill, Income $500

I could not find Wiley Fore in the 1940 U.S. Census and I could find no death records on him. I assume he must have died between 1930-1940 and probably in Buncombe County, NC or Madison County, NC. But I couldn't find a record for it.

His wife, Polly Buckner Fore died in McAdenville, NC in 1945.

NC Death Certificate #4760, Registration District #36-30, Certificate #1, Mrs. Polly Loretta Fore, DOD 1/29/1945 in McAdenville, Gaston County, NC
Female, White, Married to Elbert Wiley Fore (68 yrs old on 1/29/1945), DOB 3/10/1874 in Buncombe County, NC, 70 yrs old
Occupation: Textile
Father: Morgan Buckner, born in Buncombe County, NC
Mother: Louise Kykendall, born in Buncombe County, NC
Informant: W.E. Fore, McAdenville, NC
DOD 1/29/1945 at 7:00am
Cause of death: Carcinoma of lung (duration 6 mos)
Buried: 1/30/1945 in Lowell Cemetery, Lowell, NC


Melissa Ensley Fore

1910 U.S. Census of Asheville, Buncombe County, NC, Roll T624_1099, Pg 6A, ED 163, Image 120, Lines 27-34, Dwelling 104, Family 106, "William B. Amstin" (sic, could be Austin)
William B. Amstin, Head, M(ale), W(hite), 35 yrs old, First marriage, Married 12 yrs, Born in NC, Father born in NC, Mother born in NC, Labor common, Rents home
Sorrak E. Amstin, (sic), Wife, F, W, 33 yrs old, First marriage, Married 12 yrs, 6 children with 5 still alive, Born in NC, Father born in NC, Mother born in NC
Oro Amstin, Daughter, F, W, 11 yrs old
Lardo Amstin, (sic), Daughter, F, W, 9 yrs old
Clyde Amstin, Son, M, W, 6 yrs old
J.G. Amstin, Son, M, W, 4 yrs old
Andie Amstin, Son, M, W, 2 yrs old
McLlisie Faye, (sic, looks like Mallisie Fore), Servant, F, W, 52 yrs old, Widowed, 1 child with 1 child still living, Born in NC, Father born in NC, Mother born in NC, Cannot read or write, Servant personal home

NC Death Certificate #694284, Registration District #11-5135, Certificate #3, Malissa Fore, DOD 1/5/1919 at Reems Creek, Buncombe County, NC
Female, White, Married
DOB 4/?/1857 (sic, should be 7/4/1857) in NC, "About 62 yrs old"
Father: Sam Ensley, born in NC
Mother: Rachel Cassida (sic), born in NC
Informant: D.C. Ward of Weaverville, NC
DOD 1/5/1919. Physician last saw her alive on 9/15/1918
Cause of death: Influenza Pneumonia
Dr. Z.V. Roberson of Weaverville, NC
Burial 1/6/1919 at Clark's Chapel
Undertaker: Roberts & West of Weaverville, NC

NC Death Indexes, 1908-2004
Name: Malissa Fore
Race: White
Age: 62
Date of Birth: 1857
Date of Death: 5 Jan 1919
Death County: Buncombe
Death State: North Carolina
Source Vendor: NC State Archives. North Carolina Deaths, 1908-67

Findagrave.com
Melissa Jane Ensley Fore
Birth: Jul. 4, 1857, North Carolina, USA
Death: Jan. 6, 1919, Buncombe County, North Carolina, USA
Aka Malissa or Mallissie, Melissie
Daughter of Samuel Bruce Ensley (1829-1896) and Rachel Pauline Cassada (Abt 1835-Abt 1879)
Spouse was William Fore
This is from her death certificate (#6942 or 84, both numbers are on it)
Family links:
Parents:
Samuel Bruce Ensley (1829 - 1896)
Rachel Pauline Cassada Ensley (1835 - 1879)
Siblings:
Sarah Catherine Ensley Ward (1855 - 1938)
George Stokley Ensley (1862 - 1952)
Arthur V Ensley (1864 - 1937)
James Harley Ensley (1865 - 1956)
William Ernest "Ernie" Ensley (1866 - 1957)
Charles M Ensley (1871 - 1946)
Louester Elmira Ensley Reese (1875 - 1948)
Herbert Alphonso Ensley (1875 - 1949)
Burial: Clarks Chapel Cemetery, Clark's Chapel United Methodist Church, 4173 Clarks Chapel Rd, Weaverville, Buncombe County, North Carolina, USA
Maintained by: George Ensley
Originally Created by: Momtodogs
Record added: Nov 15, 2009
Find A Grave Memorial# 44360909

Melissa Jane Ensley Fore was an elder sister of my great great grandmother, Margaret Alice Ensley Conner.

If anyone has any corrections, any further information or can solve the mystery of what happened to William Franklin Fore, please contact me at Mom25dogs@gmail.com