Legacy
Scripture; Matthew 1:1-17: 1The book of genealogy of Jesus Christ, the son of David, the son of Abraham. 2Abraham was the father of Isaac, and Isaac the father of Jacob, and Jacob the father of Judah and his brothers… 6and Jesse the father of David the king, and David was the father of Solomon by the wife of Uriah… 16and Jacob the father of Joseph the husband of Mary, of whom Jesus was born who is called Christ.
All of us have written, to some degree or depth, in the family Bible or on a note card, our family history. We have listened to stories by our relatives and relayed those stories to our children. Stories about growing up in the country and stories about the origin of our names. Grant and I acquired our middle name, via my great grandfather, from President U.S. Grant. I enjoy telling the story, and he enjoys hearing it. I watch Grant and Josh grow and think to myself, “What am I giving them, what will I leave them, what will be my legacy?” A song on Christian radio which causes me to turn up the volume has this chorus: “I want to leave a legacy, how will they remember me? Did I choose to love, did I point to you enough to make a mark on things? I want to leave an offering, a child of mercy and grace who blessed your name unapologetically and leave that kind of legacy.” Powerful words which certainly give me reason to pause. Am I showing my boys how to act, how to treat others, how to be towards God? The Bible is full of great stories of family and legacy leading to the ultimate legacy God sent us in his Son. A motivational picture I see on posters, coffee cups and office plaques shows a small boys looking out over a field of flowers. The caption reads, “In a hundred years no one will remember how much money I made, the kind of car I drove or the kind of house I lived in, only that I made a difference in the life of a child.” Now there’s something to live up to.
Prayer; Dear Heavenly Father, may we choose this Christmas season to examine our role in other’s lives and to accept the precious gift of your Son, our Savior, as the perfect legacy and example of love. Amen
Steve Matthews
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