Legacy
"Since my youth, O God, you have taught me, and to this day I declare your marvelous deeds. And even when I am old and gray, do not forsake me, O God, until I declare your power to the next generation, your might to all who are to come."
- Psalm 71:17-18
We saw a cardinal today. It was perched in a tree right outside the window. We were at my nephew's house for his wife's baby shower. His house that used to be my mom's house. We were missing mom. She would have liked to be at this shower.
It was the first time my daughter had been in this house since mom has been gone. She was recalling lots of memories that took place in that house. The cardinal in the back yard (my mom's favorite bird) reminded me that she would have loved to have seen this new baby - the second born since she's been gone. And although her house looks completely different as my nephew's house, the memories still popped up left and right throughout the morning.
Memories. such a powerful, emotional force. Memories create legacies, and lately I've been thinking alot about that very subject. Like everyone else, as I look back on 64 years passed, I have lots of memories. Some good, some not. In my memories there is a demarcation line. Before Christ......after Christ. On the before side, there are both kinds of memories. On the before side, much more time passed. There are many dark memories there....some so dark it is painful to look at them. There are some good ones on that side of course, but they are often overwhelmed by the darkness.
On the 'after' side, it is much brighter. More light than dark. Much more. Some dark memories too, but on this side of the line the dark is overtaken by the light.
So today, I'm thinking about legacy - what we leave behind when we are gone. Which side will my family remember the most? It is my wish that they remember that although it took a long time, my life after Christ was different. Better. Worth it for a change.
More than anything, I want my kids and grandkids to learn about relationship with Him, BEFORE. Before much of their lives have passed. Before they create so many dark memories. Before they finally have to surrender because nothing else is left. These verses are in my prayer journal. I pray them often. Their truth is my greatest desire:
"Praise the Lord. Blessed is the man who fears the Lord, who finds great delight in his commands. His children will be mighty in the land; the generation of the upright will be blessed."
-Psalm 112:1-2
and
"Know, therefore that the Lord your God is God; he is the faithful God, keeping his covenant of love to a thousand generations of those who love him and keep his commands."
_Deuteronomy 7:9
Paul talked about the legacy left to Timothy by his grandmother Lois and mother Eunice in 2 Timothy. The faith they handed down remained a strong force in Timothy's life. So much so that he became a trusted helper to Paul. I suspect Lois and Eunice were very deliberate in their desire to hand down their faith to Timothy.
Are we? Are we deliberately showing our families the way to REAL happiness? Are we demonstrating what it's like to place Christ first and everything else second? I have to admit I fail miserably at this much of the time. I sometimes wonder if my legacy will be more about stuff and events than it will be about Christ.
So, although I don't usually make resolutions, I want to resolve something this year. Resolve to do what I can, with what time I have left, to leave a true legacy for my family. A legacy of reliance on and dedication to Christ.
What will your legacy be?
“The choices we make about the lives we live determine the kinds of legacies we leave.”
― Tavis Smiley, The Other Wes Moore: One Name, Two Fates
My meaning is, that no man can expect his children to respect what he degrades.”
― Charles Dickens, Martin Chuzzlewit
"An inheritance is what you leave with people. A legacy is what you leave in them."
- Craig D. Loundsbrough
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