Leaving a Legacy

​Have you ever asked yourself, "What is the most significant legacy I can pass on to the next generation?" Strategic advisor, Peter Strople, says, "A legacy is not leaving something for people; it is leaving something in people." Isn't this an interesting way to look at legacy? Jesus, when He walked the earth, had a mandate to glorify His Father in heaven and draw others to Him. He completed His assignment and said, "I have glorified You on the earth. I have finished the work which you have given Me to do." (John 17:4 - NKJV) An inheritance can be a physical transfer of wealth to descendants that may include property or financial gain. A legacy could include a shared identity, cultural tradition, work ethic, or spiritual distinctiveness. In my opinion, one of the most impactful legacies we can leave is our generational faith. This is left through a demonstration of faith that consistently shows others a worshipful and respectful attitude and lifestyle of glorifying God. This would be done as we live a life like Jesus lived.
 
A legacy focuses on what will endure and passes on to the next generation something of lasting value. Recently, August 18 to be specific, my husband remembered the legacy that his first wife left to her family and friends. Maggie, I understand, quietly lived her life of faith before others. She carried the peace of God that made those who surrounded her sense a deep faith. While visiting her "sweet spot," relaxing on the huge rocks along the coast of Maine, she slipped and feel to her death. My husband found the journals she kept where she shared her deepest thoughts with her Lord and Master. The last sentence she wrote, eight hours before her death, was, "May I glorify You while I still have time."
 
Maggie's family agrees that with this one sentence she left them a legacy that will never be surpassed by any other inheritance that she left. She placed in one sentence the core reason for life. All of us were placed on earth to glorify God. Each of us was given unique qualities and characteristics meant to exemplify our Lord, Jesus, and draw others into relationship with our Father in heaven. This legacy is so simple and yet so profound!
 
The Bible has some things to say about generation transfer. "One generation shall praise Your works to another and shall declare Your mighty acts."  (Psalm 145:4 - NKJV) "We will tell the next generation the praiseworthy deeds of the Lord, His power and the wonders He has done." (Psalm 78:46) When the apostle Paul was writing to Timothy, he wrote, "And the things you have heard me say in the presence of many witnesses, entrust to reliable people who will also be qualified to teach others."  (2 Timothy 2:2) The instructions God gave to Moses for His people show the importance of leaving a legacy to the next generation: "Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one! You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your strength. And these words which I command you today shall be in your heart. You shall teach them diligently to your children, and you shall talk of them when you sit in your houses, when you walk by the way, when you lie down, and when you rise up.” (Deuteronomy 6:4-7 - NKJV)
 
We live in a world filled with uncertainty, chaos, and destruction. I must ask, "What kind of world will our grandchildren and great grandchildren live in?" How can we impart stability and love of the Lord to the next generation? I believe Isaiah 33:5 and 6 give us help in answering this question. "The Lord is exalted, for He dwells on high; He has filled Zion with justice and righteousness. He will be a sure foundation for your times, a rich store of salvation and wisdom and knowledge; the fear of the Lord is the key to this treasure." The responsibility to leave the next generation a legacy of loving the Lord belongs to us. It can be done very simply, as Maggie demonstrated: "May I glorify you while I still have time."