Three times in the past five days I have been confronted with this thought: what is the most important legacy I can leave my children?

The first setting took place at the memorial service for a young man, 26 years old. As his father stood to share from his heart about this son whom he dearly loved, he took opportunity to speak his heart to the children present, to the moms and then to the dads.

Sunday morning, during a children’s Christmas program the Children’s Pastor addressed some of the same things. I was left with many thoughts of what does my life speak concerning my priorities, my deepest beliefs about why we do what we do.

The third scenario occurred as I watched a news program on Canadian television. This young man—probably in his early thirty’s, set off to explore Christianity in America. He had seven days to discover what Christians had to say, and if they really are impacting the culture. He went to several nationally known “cutting edge” ministries. He kept asking this question “what do I need to know”? He heard how these Christians were out to “change their world”, but in the end his conclusion was, it wasn’t going to happen. He made the comment, “I would never have known about any of these things, if I hadn’t chosen to join their world.” The interesting thing was that this fellow seemed to be honestly searching for answers. Did the God of America have anything to say to his life in Canada?

You may ask, what does this have to do with the legacy I want to leave behind? It has to do with doing my utmost to impact my culture so that those of the next generation can take it to the next level. Listening to the statistics quoted by that journalist apparently someone has decided that in a few years only 4% of people in America will be Bible believing Christians. This is not my paradigm. I believe God is moving throughout the world, changing lives and cultures. Reading through the Book of Acts we see how a few people turned their world upside down for Jesus. We need to show our children that God is active in our lives. They need to know that He is the God who is present in times of trouble, and will help them overcome. I was told that there are people in public education who want to eradicate boys and girls separate bathrooms. That in a few years there will just be one toilet for them all to share. Even with Christian schools or home schooling, our children will need to be equipped to share Jesus with a generation raised so much differently than we were. The issues are huge.

We need the anointing and power of the Holy Spirit to know how to influence this next generation. It can not be simply in word only. We need to excel in the use of the Gifts of the Holy Spirit. Supernatural wisdom, insight, discerning of spirits, gifts of healing and restoration all need to tools we use competently. A challenge? Of course. Impossible? Not with the help of God. The challenge for my generation is to realize just how different the current generation has been influenced. Piercings and tattoos are so common place. Who would have thought 10 years ago that they there would be TV shows about tattooing?

My heart cry is that my children and grandchildren will be equipped to know that living a holy, righteous life is not in vain. That the blessing of walking in obedience to Him far outweighs the pleasure of sin for a season. That we are not here to simply “endure” life, but to make a difference in those lives with which we interact. That we can love the unlovely, walk in the joy of the Lord during difficult times, and to know that God answers prayer. My best legacy is to live the life of a Believer in their sight, not perfect, but real. . With His help, I can do it—so can you.

Leaving a positive legacy has to be done on purpose. What kind of legacy are you leaving?

Written by: Martha Rodman