Sometimes overly passionate religious
people will ask, “What if you die today? Then what?”
That’s an important question regarding eternity but
can also feel a little too aggressive, like a scare
tactic.
Maybe we should be asking ourselves, “What if I wake
up tomorrow?” Who am I going to be?
Am I making the right kind of memories for my
children? Am I being a good spiritual witness to
others? Will I live like I believe Jesus is coming
back? What about my spiritual legacy?
It’s actually the last question I want to talk
about. A basic definition for legacy is, “Something
handed down from generation to generation.” With all
the important questions we ask ourselves, legacy is
easy to overlook. Why? Because time slips away too
quickly.
An 85 year old man was asked what his plans for the
future were. He answered, “Honey, at my age, I don’t
even buy green bananas anymore.”
Leaving a good legacy could be compared to a relay
race. These races are won or lost at the handing of
the baton. To drop the baton means losing the race.
All the hard work, all the training, everything
could be dashed with a single fumble. Rule number
one of relay events is: NEVER DROP THE BATON.
But we all know someone who dropped the baton with
their legacy. We have not successfully finished the
race of life until we have passed on our important
batons to the next generation.
Christian sociologist Tony Campolo tells of a
research project once conducted with people over the
age of 90. The interviewers asked these elderly
people, “As you look back on your life, what do you
wish you had done differently?” Three answers
emerged with a sizeable majority:
1) they wished they had risked more;
2) they wished they had spent more time in
reflection;
3) they wished they had done more to leave a legacy.
Did you catch that? The majority wished they had
something to pass on to the next generation.
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I’m sure you’ve seen the bumper
sticker—usually on the back of an expensive RV or
luxury car—that says, “We’re spending our children’s
inheritance!” Most people slap those things on as a
joke, of course, but behind the humor is the rather
sad picture of people living only for themselves and
their pleasures, oblivious to the needs of the next
generation. But our most important legacy is neither
a legacy of dollars and investments in a will, nor
is it even just a legacy of a good name and moral
life, but it is an eternal legacy of people who will
live eternally in heaven. Our legacy is a
culmination of our efforts and passions for passing
the baton of faith and ministry.
Which brings me to our 2018
large offering. The money you give to the Legacy
Maker offering is not about the money. Instead,
everything given from November 18 to the end of the
year will go to making a stronger spiritual legacy
and enduring impact on the kingdom of God. The
offering collected will be divided between two
important needs:
1.) Half of all collected will go toward LCC’s Appel
Scholarship for students who desire Christian
ministries. Our legacy is to leave as many
preachers, missionaries, and Christian business
leaders as we can to continue the mission of Jesus.
This legacy has always been important to our church
and a vital part of our DNA.
2) The other half collected will go toward
refurbishing the baptismal changing rooms,
bathrooms, and hall area. Baptizing new believers is
another major piece of our DNA and it’s important to
us to welcome our brothers and sisters well.
So, would you join us in being a LEGACY MAKER? The
next generation is counting on us and will be
blessed if we pass the baton successfully.
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