THE LEGACY OF YOUR LIFE
Kimberly Lawrence
Today’s Scripture: “Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus, who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied himself, by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men.” Philippians 2:5-7, ESV
Theme: Our greatest legacy is not what we accomplish but who we invest in. Jesus invested His life in people.
LIVING BEYOND YOURSELF
In the movie McFarland USA, at the very end, we are given a scene of the real Jim White, still biking with his team. The young men have now become middle-aged. We are shown their names and their occupations. It is incredible how many of these boys—when they were encouraged and invested in, when they were urged to further their education and dream beyond the fields and harvesting their parents knew—came back home. They became law enforcement officers, teachers, and coaches, in turn pouring back into their community. Jim’s sacrifice influenced others to live beyond themselves.
AN UNEXPECTED LEGACY
Recently, I became an empty nester. For those of you in the midst of constant chaos with little ones, this may seem like light years away. As I struggle to find my new “normal,” the days seem very long and are sometimes filled with menial tasks to pass the time. Just this weekend, I found myself cleaning out and organizing closets. I came across a box of pictures and memorabilia, but one item in particular caught my attention. It was a printout of the eulogy I wrote and delivered at my grandmother’s funeral over 20 years ago. My grandmother was the anchor of our family…strong, nurturing, loving, and faithful. Although my daughter was a baby when my grandmother passed and my son wasn’t even born yet, they both “know” my grandmother. How? Because of the legacy she built that lives on today.
My grandmother wasn’t a scholar. She barely graduated from high school. She wasn’t an accomplished professional. She was a homemaker who raised six kids and never had a driver’s license. She wasn’t rich. She passed away in the same little house where she hosted dozens of family get-togethers. She didn’t cure any diseases, but every sick grandchild was nursed to health on her living room couch with homemade chicken soup, fresh baked bread, and the “Price is Right.” My grandmother was not “worldly,” but she was wise. She spent her life building something that lived long after her body expired, and we continue to share stories of her life more than two decades later. In our movie this past Sunday, Coach White, like my grandmother, made a difference in the young men and their family's lives.
IT’S THE LITTLE THINGS
The world would never have defined my grandmother as “successful.” Sadly, as a young person, I may have even overlooked her wise counsel. She didn’t look like or have the credentials of an accomplished scholar, but she invested in people. Every day, in small but meaningful ways, her hands would bake, rock babies, provide for, work, and pray.
During His life on earth, some of Jesus’ seemingly every-day activities became cornerstone stories of the Bible. Not all of His ministry was defined by grandiose sermons or the feeding of thousands. Jesus washed feet, dined with sinners, healed commoners, and told stories. Over 2,000 years later, we seek His example on how to pray, behave, sacrifice, give, and love from how He lived His life. Jesus wasn’t rich, beautiful, or powerful in the traditional sense, but His life on earth was spent building the legacy that saved all of humanity.
Make It Personal: If someone were writing a TRUTHFUL eulogy about you today, what would they say? Take an honest inventory of your life. Where are you investing and what are you building? Will it all end when your time on earth is over, or will you create something that lives far beyond you and yours? A legacy can be built through kind and encouraging words to strangers, care for the sick or struggling, forgiveness for the unlovable, or patience with the persistent. One of my favorite quotes is from D. Elton Trueblood: “It takes a noble man to plant a seed for a tree that will someday give shade to people he may never meet.” Today, make it a priority to take time to invest in what matters…what will persist. Those are, coincidentally, the things that matter most to God, too.
Pray: God, forgive me when I have focused on selfish, temporary, and worldly accumulation. I want my life to be pleasing to You, above all. Please help me allocate my time and resources according to Your will alone, seeing and investing in the needs of Your people. Thank you, God, for sending Your Son as the supreme example of selflessness. I love You, Lord, and want to serve You in every way possible. Amen.
Read: 1 Peter 4:9; 1 Corinthians 10:31-11:1; Luke 22:27; Matthew 25:35-36
Weekly Memory Verse: “Whoever says he is in the light and hates his brother is still in darkness. Whoever loves his brother abides in the light, and in him there is no cause for stumbling. 1 John 2:9-10, ESV