June 20, 2015 LEGACY - ONE DAY AT A TIME
2 Timothy 1:5: “For I am reminded of the sincere faith within you, which first dwelt in your grandmother Lois, and your mother Eunice, and I am sure it is in you as well.”
Joshua 24:15b: “But as for me and my household, we will serve the LORD.”
There is no greater legacy, or inheritance that we could leave other than that of a life spent honoring God our Father. The goal of leaving houses, land, possessions and money fails in comparison to leaving a spiritual heritage. In the verse above, we see that Timothy had a rich heritage that started with his grandmother Lois and it came to him through his mother Eunice. We tend to think that “someday, I will leave an inheritance for my children,” however that though is flawed. The fact is that a legacy is built one day at the time. Even if one does accumulate a lot of material goods to leave as an inheritance, he will still be remembered for the life he lived-what type of a person he was while alive. Let it be understood; leaving a material inheritance is not in violation of scripture as found in Proverbs 13:22: “A good man leaves an inheritance to his children’s children.” As in most cases, it is a matter of what is in our heart. If we come to realize that it is the goal of our heart to accumulate wealth, then we should at that point re-evaluate our heart. On the other hand, if our heart is for the Lord first and foremost, and He gives material blessings, we are to thank Him for the blessings and then be a good steward of all He gives. Proverbs 10:22: “The blessing of the Lord makes rich, and he adds no sorrow with it.” I am sure that each of us have a desire for our life to make a difference in a positive way, and that can and will happen if it is our heart’s desire to know and follow the Lord. Proverbs 4:7: “The beginning of wisdom is: Acquire wisdom; and with all your acquiring, get understanding.” Again, wealth in itself is not a bad thing and it can be used to expand His kingdom, but it is the love of money that is the problem. We are called to be good steward of all that we have, including the money we have-whether it be a small sum or a large sum of money. When our focus is on knowing God and discovering His purpose for our lives, our lives will matter-we will make a lasting difference. When one is living out of the new heart that God has given, his life will be a reflection of God and he will be light in a dark world. With this new heart, we will find ourselves blessing others, loving others, caring for others, encouraging others, forgiving others, and our life will begin to resemble the life that Jesus demonstrated. We will find ourselves being dependable, diligent in all that we do, faithful, full of hope, overcoming, compassionate, and at peace. Let it be our desire to live our lives in such a way that our lives “are portals through which others see into heaven.” Each and every day is a gift from God and we have a choice as to how we will spend the time that we have been given. God has enabled us to soar above, to overcome anything that would cause us to live contrary to the life that God has called us to live. The life that God calls us to live is a supernatural life-we can’t live it in our own strength-but because He lives in us, we can indeed live supernaturally. Just as Lois passed on a spiritual legacy to her children’s children, so can we. We are living our legacy-one day at a time.
Proverbs 19:8: “The one who gets wisdom loves life; the one who cherishes understanding will soon prosper.”
Matthew 7:24: “Therefore everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house upon the rock.”
Blessings,
Buddy
2 Timothy 1:5: “For I am reminded of the sincere faith within you, which first dwelt in your grandmother Lois, and your mother Eunice, and I am sure it is in you as well.”
Joshua 24:15b: “But as for me and my household, we will serve the LORD.”
There is no greater legacy, or inheritance that we could leave other than that of a life spent honoring God our Father. The goal of leaving houses, land, possessions and money fails in comparison to leaving a spiritual heritage. In the verse above, we see that Timothy had a rich heritage that started with his grandmother Lois and it came to him through his mother Eunice. We tend to think that “someday, I will leave an inheritance for my children,” however that though is flawed. The fact is that a legacy is built one day at the time. Even if one does accumulate a lot of material goods to leave as an inheritance, he will still be remembered for the life he lived-what type of a person he was while alive. Let it be understood; leaving a material inheritance is not in violation of scripture as found in Proverbs 13:22: “A good man leaves an inheritance to his children’s children.” As in most cases, it is a matter of what is in our heart. If we come to realize that it is the goal of our heart to accumulate wealth, then we should at that point re-evaluate our heart. On the other hand, if our heart is for the Lord first and foremost, and He gives material blessings, we are to thank Him for the blessings and then be a good steward of all He gives. Proverbs 10:22: “The blessing of the Lord makes rich, and he adds no sorrow with it.” I am sure that each of us have a desire for our life to make a difference in a positive way, and that can and will happen if it is our heart’s desire to know and follow the Lord. Proverbs 4:7: “The beginning of wisdom is: Acquire wisdom; and with all your acquiring, get understanding.” Again, wealth in itself is not a bad thing and it can be used to expand His kingdom, but it is the love of money that is the problem. We are called to be good steward of all that we have, including the money we have-whether it be a small sum or a large sum of money. When our focus is on knowing God and discovering His purpose for our lives, our lives will matter-we will make a lasting difference. When one is living out of the new heart that God has given, his life will be a reflection of God and he will be light in a dark world. With this new heart, we will find ourselves blessing others, loving others, caring for others, encouraging others, forgiving others, and our life will begin to resemble the life that Jesus demonstrated. We will find ourselves being dependable, diligent in all that we do, faithful, full of hope, overcoming, compassionate, and at peace. Let it be our desire to live our lives in such a way that our lives “are portals through which others see into heaven.” Each and every day is a gift from God and we have a choice as to how we will spend the time that we have been given. God has enabled us to soar above, to overcome anything that would cause us to live contrary to the life that God has called us to live. The life that God calls us to live is a supernatural life-we can’t live it in our own strength-but because He lives in us, we can indeed live supernaturally. Just as Lois passed on a spiritual legacy to her children’s children, so can we. We are living our legacy-one day at a time.
Proverbs 19:8: “The one who gets wisdom loves life; the one who cherishes understanding will soon prosper.”
Matthew 7:24: “Therefore everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house upon the rock.”
Blessings,
Buddy
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