Prodigal: What a good lookin crowd.

Me: They have to be, there family.

This is from A Spiritual Clinic by J. Oswald Sanders

Two families from the state of New York were studied very carefully, One was the Max Jukes family and the other was the Jonathan Edwards family. The thing that they discovered in this study is remarkable: like begets like.

Max Jukes was an unbelieving man and he married a woman of like character who lacked principle. And among the known descendants, over 1,200 were studied. Three hundred and ten became professional vagrants; 440 physically wrecked their lives by a debauched lifestyle; 130 were sent to the pen for an average of thirteen years each, 7 of them for murder. There were over 100 who became alcoholics; 60 became habitual thieves; 190 public prostitutes. Of the 20 who learned a trade, 10 of them learned the trade in a state prison. It cost the state about $1,5000,000 and they made no contribution whatever to society.

In about the same era the family of Jonathan Edwards came on the scene. And Jonathan Edwards, a man of God, married a woman of like-character. And their family began and they became a part of this study that was made. Three hundred became clergyman, missionaries, and theological professors; over 100 became college professors; over 100 became attorneys, 30 of them judges; 60 of them became physicians; over 60 became authors of good classics, good books; 14 became presidents of universities. There were numerous giants in American industry that emerged from this family. Three became United States congressmen and one became the vice president of the United States.

And the sons of Elioenai were, Hodaiah, and Eliashib, and Pelaiah, and Akkub, and Johanan, and Dalaiah, and Anani, seven. 1 Chronicles 3:24 (KJV)

Jennifer Van Allen

www.theprodigalpig.com

www.faithincounseling.org