4. A Lasting Legacy: Well Done

Did you leave an inheritance for your children? How about your children's children?

What is an inheritance? It is "something that is inherited," a "valuable possession," or "the acquisition of a trait." An inheritance can be the foundation you help your children build their lives upon, the values they observe you holding dear, the standards by which you live your life, and what or whom you choose to worship. These are all an inheritance you are leaving for your kids; these are all a legacy you leave behind for those who were watching you and will speak of you when you are no longer here on earth.

We spend our lives coveting what other people have—their wealth, their house, their fancy clothes, their accomplishments, their carefully designed and masqueraded online social media lives, their perceived success, fame, and status. We covet what we do not have and never knew we might even want because, most often, we don't really want it. Or maybe we just don't want to do the work required to reach what we think we want?

Anyway, I dare say that the world's consensus of legacy (great wealth, fame, stardom, power, and material possessions) is not the only legacy one leaves behind. Sure, it’s nice to be able to leave your children and grandchildren a physical inheritance; it’s even biblical, or if you have no children, then maybe a charitable organization or such. But this is not the only inheritance or legacy, for the wealth of this world will one day crumble and fade away.

Each person, and I am highly confident in saying this, wants to know that life—more precisely, their life—has meaning, that there is a purpose, and that their life means something. But how do we truly deduce if our lives had meaning, were lived with purpose, or meant anything at all?

We do that through faith, courage, and truth.

We do that because of the legacy we choose to leave.

But what is this legacy? 

As we briefly mentioned, to the world, this legacy is the awards, the achievements, and the deeds that can be seen and quantified by our eyes in this world and that are exalted by our public display or announcement of such. This “legacy” does not have to last forever, because it can’t, but it does have to be acknowledged by someone or some organization by whom we put on a pedestal and willingly give such a demanding and monumental obligation in deciding what is and what is not a "legacy."

Isn't it crazy how we willingly hand over the value of our lives to strangers who never even asked for that responsibility?

So, you can do so many great deeds, write so many great books (like I have—yes, I am self-promoting, lol), build so many wells and villages for people, help so many people escape poverty and reach their success, help save many souls, and impart good character and morals to the next generation, but if that person or organization of whom we have willingly, and wrongfully, given this distinction of legacy deemer to does not acknowledge your deeds and life, then your “legacy,” as is defined and known by the world, might very well die with you, if it ever existed in the first place.

Why would we give control of our worth to a complete stranger, let alone a lost and broken one?

So, how is "legacy" defined?

Legacy is defined as "an amount of money or property left to someone in a will,” viewed as a business or creative project or wealth left behind, and as “the long-lasting impact...”

Two of those definitions are what you leave behind on this earth that, as we’ve mentioned, is deemed a legacy by the person receiving whatever the material item was that you left but which will fade away. Eventually, that type of legacy will be lost in the sands of time, forgotten.

I, personally, think there are two different legacies each of us is building each and every day: the legacy of this world, which will fade one day, and the legacy that will last for an eternity.

The legacy of this world is something worth thinking about, obviously, because we live in this world, but it is not the most important nor is it the most vital "legacy." Remember, it will fade away one day; it will, as in the case of currency (money), slip through your fingers. The legacy of eternity, however, is a life-changing legacy; it is a life-giving legacy; it is a legacy that will last for eternity.

Unfortunately, we will not be able to fully realize how much of a legacy we truly made—that is, the legacy that truly matters, the long-lasting, eternal impact on people—until we get to Heaven, then we will see and know how much of a legacy we truly had.

The truth is the truth, no matter how we might try or want to spin it. And this truth is what will lead to an everlasting legacy of joy, peace, and life.

An earthly legacy to leave as an inheritance is important and worth pursuing, but the best legacy to build, in my opinion, is that of eternal nature.

• How many people’s lives will you touch for the better?

• How many people will you lift up, help find their way out of a dark pit, and help see the light of hope again?

• How many lives will you help save?

• How many lives will you help lead to an eternity of peace and joy?

• How much of your legacy will be eternal?

It takes a patient, humble, and loving spirit to keep building the most important and life-changing legacy, and it takes patience and faith to do so without ever truly knowing the final results in this life. 

We will never truly know how much of a legacy we left with our lives until the very day we help reveal to another their legacy, too.

Will your legacy be that of helping the lost be found? The darkness flees as another sees the light. Helping a troubled soul turn from death to life?

I hope, when it’s all said and done, that each one of us can hear those uplifting and legacy-cementing words, “Well done, my good and faithful servant.”