What are you leaving behind? How do you think other people will remember you? It may not be what you think. If you don’t know, I am talking about leaving a legacy. One’s legacy is not always monetary. In this instance, your legacy is defined by your character, your faith, and your personal history with family and friends.
A legacy is not something that one think of when they are old. From what I am discovering, there is a growing # of young people who are concerned with leaving a lasting impact. I can readily understand it because I’m part of a community that is told, “Stick to sheltered work programs. You have no real value!” Oh really? This claim is far from the truth. That’s not how God sees it. The same thing applies to you.
Young or old, we each have the ability to leave something behind. In the eyes of God, my life does have value and a purpose. According to Psalms 139, each person is fearfully and wonderfully made in our mother’s womb.
Please watch this short video. My goal is to challenge you to give honest thoughts to what impact you are having in life and family. Don’t be afraid to ask Jesus for help. As I’ve pointed out, it is easy to fool ourselves.
I’d suggest asking close friends and family to give you feed back. It does take courage to do it, though. Keep in mind, I am talking about your family and close friends; not the ones on Facebook.
I will be upfront with you and share the challenge that I’m facing in writing this blog post. On the one hand, it seems to be presumptuous for someone like me to write about “leaving a legacy”. Yet, I do know intellectually that my writings and videos will outlive me. The same thing goes for how family and friends will remember me. I have a reason for repeating that last statement. For your family are the ones who will cherish their memories of you or despise it. Would you like to be cherished or thought kindly?
As for my writings and videos, I will share this simple truth. These contents will still be around and have the potential of helping others, in ways that I do not know. I say this because I’ve been on the receiving end of timely videos that someone posted, a few years ago. I can only trust God to deliver the right video to the right person.
Yes, I know about the YouTube algorithm and how it is designed to serve the viewer’s taste and interest. I will certainly give the programmers credit in do a good job; however, the God of Israel is greater than YouTube’s intent. The same thing applies to my writings and audio podcasts.
Here is the thing. You do not have to be a blogger, YouTuber or have a podcast to have an impact in life. Did you know that a stay-at-home mother can have a powerful impact on the lives of their children? The same thing goes for fathers who spend time with their family. I do understand that it’s a challenging thought; however, I suggest adding God into the equation. What am I talking about?
For one, I read the accounts of three different men. Each one is born in a different point in time and the mother of these men did not have it, easy. In fact, each mother was a committed Christians and desperately wanted their sons to know Jesus and stay away from some unpleasant circumstances. The first one is St. Augustin. Yes, I am talking about the man that wrote “The Confession of St. Augustine”. It is my understanding that he credits his mother for sharing Jesus.
The other man is Charles Spurgeon, and it is his mother’s prayer for her son that prevailed. I read a similar story about a man named John Booko. In his book, John shares how his mother would storm the gates of Heaven for her son and he’d know Jesus. At the time, he was a gambler and had no interest. Yet, it is his mother’s tireless prayers that prove keys to some close calls. In time, John accepted Christ and became senior pastor of Riverside Church in Michigan. The man is retired and still seeking to share the good news of Jesus.
I am sharing the above stories to make a point. You should not underestimate the impact that you can have through prayer or even through simple acts of kindness.
In the above video, I mentioned a message shared by a guest speaker named Darrell Cocup. In sharing this video, it’s my hope that Darrell’s message will be of value to you. Unfortunately, I need to give you a heads up.
This video was shot outside at Veteran’s Park. I have to apologize for the angle and sound. Yet, I would like to encourage you to listen to Darrell and the two speakers, before him. Sorry about the wind noise that you’re hearing.
It is time to wrap this up! Do not underestimate the value of the work that you do or the time spent with your family! For you will be surprised at how you helped someone. It could be through a share video, a poem, a kind word or a simple act of kindness. Yes, this includes giving a cold bottle of water to someone. The same thing applies to the sharing of the Good News of Jesus’ death, burial and resurrection! Don’t be afraid to ask the Holy Spirit to help you.
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