I am in the process of writing another book on the seven secrets of a lasting Christian Legacy. Before any thought of leaving a legacy for your children, you might want to consider them because they are questions your children will want to know your answers for. Over the next 7 weeks, I am going to help you discover your answers to these seven questions:
Even the Roman historians talk about Jesus and his life on earth. The issue for most non-believers is the Resurrection. Is this important to our belief system? It is the most important fact of our faith! It is only the Christian God that became man and rose from the dead. Budda and Mohammed are dead. Joseph Smith is dead and the Jews are still waiting for a savior. So, the resurrection is the most pivotal event in history and source of all Christian belief.
Abe’s story is the story of God and his ownership of us. He created us and has bought us back at a heavy cost…the death of his son. This is the message of the Bible, but I want to share another message that might resonate more with our children, who in so many cases have rejected the first message.
What does it take to leave a Legacy to our children that is profoundly impactful to them, the grand kids and possibly even generations to come? Is it possible to do so even if your children are currently lost? Can your past mistakes be overcome? Would if you have been divorced once or twice? Is there a time when your efforts to move a God centered Legacy forward should be abandoned?
How would you answer these: The one who became poor so that… The pathway to lasting honor is… At the end of the day… The answers will help you create a legacy that matters. Mark 13 is framed by the introduction of two women. At the end of chapter 12 there is a widow’s offering to which Jesus draws His disciple’s attention. Jesus is demonstrating here the way to measure a gift. It's by sacrifice, not amount. Jesus is trying to pound into the mind of His disciples what it means to be committed to the Kingdom.
I write this blog on Valentine ’s Day. I am a hopeless romantic and I overwhelm my wife with cards, candy, notes, flowers and dinner, but I can’t help but wonder if what I do is just a moment in time and does not reflect what I feel and believe. I wonder if what God calls us to is not much more.
One of the most challenging legacies to communicate to our children is how to model and share how God brings troubles in our lives to test our faith and build endurance and more joy. What an irony that is for someone who does not believe. Joy from trouble? Joy from pain? Children are prone to push back on that type of lesson unless they understand what Jesus is trying to teach us.
As I begin the new year, I set a number of goals for the year for my business and family life. One of the goals is to to share good things with my grown adult kids. They are millenials and that creates a particularly difficult challenge. They don’t accept all that I say about my faith nor do they see the Bible as fact. I am sure this challenge is not just mine. Do any of you have the same challenges?