Legacy

This week marks 30 years since my maternal Grandma passed away.  For those of you that know my age, it's not too hard to figure out that I never knew her.  But my mother and aunts have told me so much about her, and I love her so much even though I never met her.  She loved and served her family and others by cooking and teaching, and even just calming crying babies (she had a way with babies). She loved Jesus so much, and wanted others to know Him as well.  She is most certainly at the top of the list of people I look forward to meeting when I get to heaven.

Two and a half years ago, my paternal Grandma passed away.  It was a very hard time for all of us in the (huge) family she left behind, but a time of many blessing as well. My Grandma's sister shared at her funeral that when she was with Grandma in her last moments, Grandma said "Pray for my family Marilyn.  They will be needing it-- this will be hard for them."  Boy was she right, but could we ever feel the prayers of so many people that knew and loved us and my Grandma.  I was sharing with some girls at work last week that one thing I remember so well from that time was the FOOD.  There was so much of it, and it was so good!  People from the church and community brought a ton of food for our family that had come from all over the country to remember Grandma.  At the funeral there was even more delicious, homemade food to bless us and comfort us at that hard time.  And I told the girls at work that I am sure that my Grandma made food for so many of those people when they were sick or grieving or adjusting to a new move or new baby.  In fact, I feel confident that my Grandma cooked at least as much food as we saw that weekend for other people over the course of her life.

I am going through a Bible study with some women from church called Experiencing God.  (It is an amazing study, and extremely grounded in scripture.  If you are looking for a study to do with a small group, I highly recommend it.  But be warned-- it will probable change your life.)  One of the activities we were supposed to do this week related to spiritual markers.  You know how in the Old Testament when God did something big, or met a person in a clear way, they would set up a monument to remember what God did?  Usually in the Bible it says "and it is still there to this day..."  Often in these times, God would identify Himself to the person by identifying what He had done in the history of their people ("I am the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, who brought your people out of Egypt...").  The assignment was to write out a list of spiritual markers in our lives, including God's history with our families and legacies.

As I thought back on my family histories, there aren't very many people called to be pastors or missionaries overseas, but there have been many that have faithfully served God right where they are.  I especially think of my Grandmas, and how they faithfully loved the people God put in their path and served them as opportunities presented themselves.  They loved the Lord their God with all of their hearts, souls, and minds.  And God used them in so many ways to reach people for His kingdom, including me.

I am so glad that God blessed me with a legacy of people who love Him and who tell the generations of His faithfulness.  It is because of this that I can rest assured in my salvation through Christ, and know that when I die I will be with the Glorious One (and my Grandmas) in heaven.  I truly can't wait for that day.

⁹ Even though we speak like this, dear friends, we are convinced of better things in your case—the things that have to do with salvation. ¹⁰ God is not unjust; he will not forget your work and the love you have shown him as you have helped his people and continue to help them. ¹¹ We want each of you to show this same diligence to the very end, so that what you hope for may be fully realized. ¹² We do not want you to become lazy, but to imitate those who through faith and patience inherit what has been promised.

The Certainty of God’s Promise

 ¹³ When God made his promise to Abraham, since there was no one greater for him to swear by, he swore by himself, ¹⁴ saying, “I will surely bless you and give you many descendants.”^[d] 15 And so after waiting patiently, Abraham received what was promised.

 ¹⁶ People swear by someone greater than themselves, and the oath confirms what is said and puts an end to all argument. ¹⁷ Because God wanted to make the unchanging nature of his purpose very clear to the heirs of what was promised, he confirmed it with an oath. ¹⁸ God did this so that, by two unchangeable things in which it is impossible for God to lie, we who have fled to take hold of the hope set before us may be greatly encouraged. ¹⁹ We have this hope as an anchor for the soul, firm and secure. It enters the inner sanctuary behind the curtain, ²⁰ where our forerunner, Jesus, has entered on our behalf. He has become a high priest forever, in the order of Melchizedek.

Hebrews 6:9-19