LEGACY

“Our days are numbered. One of the primary goals in our lives should be to prepare for our last day. The legacy we leave is not just in our possessions, but in the quality of our lives. What preparations should we be making now? The greatest waste in all of our earth, which cannot be recycled or reclaimed, is our waste of the time that God has given us each day.”---Billy Graham

When I woke up this morning I stood over my children and watched them as they slept and began to admire their lives, their existence and was astonished by the beauty of their humanity. Even though I've understood the principles of inheritance and legacy for years, it was at that moment that I became even more cognizant of the fact that not only are they my legacy from God, but that I also possess a legacy that must be responsibly and righteously instilled, imparted, and revealed to them. This led me to start really evaluating the legacy I will leave to not only my children, but the world.

In its legal sense, Legacy is the "giving of gifts in the form of property or money; something handed down from an ancestor or predecessor or from the past; something acquired without compensation (Unabridged Cambridge Dictionary)." However, Legacy is so much more than the handing down of possessions, the continuance of monetary status, affluence or social benevolence; for those who inherit a Legacy will never have a need for money because the prominence of Legacy will embody and activate passion, potential and most importantly PURPOSE.

In conjunction to its legal meaning, the definition of Legacy holds true spiritually. Throughout history and scriptural depictions of historical occurrences, we have far too many times seen the heritage of iniquity, the transferal of sin nature or the affects of generational curses. We have heard sermons and speeches on inheritances lost and forfeited, blundered and wasted, misused and spent and yet we have not truly taken into consideration that legacy and inheritance serve eternal purpose and not just historical reference. We have not given credence to what our legacy will be or shall become, because we have been so ensnared by the iniquities of our forefathers (that inheritance of unrighteousness which is inherent in us all since the fall of man-kind).

Much of who we are has been tied up in what we have been willed. Our faults, our misjudged decisions, our fears, even our drive and ambition (fueled by fears of failure or historical repetitiveness) and stumbling blocks have all come from what we've received from observation, assimilation, or mere propensity or proclivity to the nature of our ancestry. Make no mistake, no excuse can be given for the sins that we commit to out of our own volition; however, we must understand the root of our inherent nature so that the Legacy we leave will be one that exhibits that of our esteemed spiritual placement, instead of our down-trodden natural displacement.

Naturally, we view ourselves as leaving a proprietary legacy, which includes: money, land, prominence, high societal status, and a name that is laudable and mentioned among the 'who's who' of history books. But what about the intangible things that we pass up (instead of down) that are of significance (those spiritually imputations that so often go unnoticed or unspoken)?

Have we taken the time to view and implement God's pattern and blue-print for success, significance and legacy, more so, then the familiar and often encompassing ideologies of the world's systems?

Have we found out the true meaning of inheritance and made covenant w/ God to establish His right way of doing things, expelling the patterns that we have inherited and then effortlessly setting up these God-given principles so that they become the pillars of our community, our families, and our relationships?

These are just a few things we as spirit beings should consider as we exist in this chronologically driven plane of humanity...Make your Legacy one of substantial significance...Only you and God know the path for you.

---D. Sherow, Jr.