Did you ever wonder where you came from? Where your roots are? Who your ancestors are or what their lives were like?

My wife and I just spent 10 days in Ireland, visiting towns like Kinsale, Killarney, Dingle, Doolin, Galway, Spiddal, and Ennis. We saw things like the Ring of Kerry, the Dingle Peninsula, and the Cliffs of Moher. Instead of hotels, we stayed in Bed and Breakfasts, mostly out in the country, where the views were second only to the hospitality, including the traditional Irish breakfast.

You’ve heard the expression, “when in Rome….” Well….when in Ireland, we ate more fried food, especially fish and chips, than you can imagine. It’s amazing how good it is when it’s fresh caught fish and hand cut fries. The fish chowder was excellent as well. In addition, the restaurants we went to for dinner, where we had specially prepared fresh catch fish dishes, were wonderful, each more so than the last.

Lastly, although never going to bars back home, we made it a habit to go hear live Irish music at the local pubs on several nights. We became quite fond of Irish coffee, Irish Whiskey included.

     

Finding Your Roots

As great as the sites and the food, it was equally enjoyable trying to figure out our roots, tracing them back to parts of Ireland. As it turns out, my wife’s great, great grandmother was a Quinn. My mother’s maiden name is Logan. From what we could determine, the Logans came from Derry. It will be interesting to compare that against what my Aunt Gen found in constructing our family tree years ago.

Many, many of us in the US (and many parts of the world), due to long-time immigration, are now a combination of nationalities. My brothers and I are Lebanese, German, and Hungarian, in addition to being Irish. Our kids can add to that list being English.

While all the above can give us some context, it doesn’t inform us as to who we are.

So we all come from different places, with different foods, cultures, climates, and customs. That said, we have incredible commonalities:

• While no two of us are identical, our anatomies are consistent, female and male
• Our basic needs are the same…food, clothing, shelter
• We all have dreams and desires, talents and gifts, each wired differently than the other

Your Real Identity

What makes us most alike and most unique is not where we are from, but how we were created and who created us. It was God our Father who conceived of us thousands of years ago, making each of us very uniquely and with our own individual gifts and talents. He put each one of us on this earth for a very specific purpose, to do great things. God made us (you) for Greatness!!!

While it’s neat to see where you came from, who your ancestors were, what the culture and customs were like, what’s most important is who you are, what your identity is:

• You are a child of God, loved unconditionally
• As exemplified by His Son’s death on the Cross
• Through Jesus’ resurrection, you are made to live in His glory.

Remember….it’s not where you’re from (although that’s neat to know), but who you are that really matters. You’re a child of God, made for Greatness!!!

Please get to me with questions or comments at [email protected].

God Bless you on your Path to Peace, Joy, and Fulfillment!!!

Mark Joseph