WHAT DO I LEAVE

written by Donna (Ensign) Woods

"This is what the Lord God says:

Give careful thought to your ways."

Haggai 1:7

 

As I turn back the pages of my mind

What in the past do I find ?

Did I leave behind a trail of gladness?

....Or was it paved with sadness?

Was conflict laced with forgiveness ?

....Or was it thorn laden with bitterness ?

Of the Legacy I leave behind

What treasures can I find ?

Was there disappointment or joy

For each precious girl and boy ?

Did I leave behind tears or smiles

For all those faded miles ?

Did I plant the seeds of faith ?

...Even when shadows crossed my face....

Does my family know I love them much ?

Are they warmed by memory's touch ?

What witness do I live

What Legacy do I give ??

Do I leave behind treasures

That bless a heart with joyful pleasures

Or has trash littered my life's trail

Did I succeed ? Or did I fail ?

As I travel and journey on

All the yesterdays are gone....

But the Legacy I left continues to live.

Today......What memories shall I create for tomorrow's past to give ??????

Bless Others, Bless Yourself by Susan Shull

Walking with Christ is the most interesting journey! The Lord amazes me time and time again with the blessings of the Christian life. Those blessings often come at unexpected times and from unexpected places. For me, they have often come because others have stepped out of their comfort zones and taken a leap of faith.

Donna Woods has been journaling and writing her prayers for years. These written prayers are a legacy to her children and grandchildren of her Christian life. A few years ago, Donna listened when God tugged on her heart and taught an Introduction to Journaling class on Wednesday nights at church and began organizing journaling retreat.

I thought the cabin sounded really interesting and I like to do new things, so I signed up, never intending to really do anything with it. We headed to Olney on a wintry Friday afternoon and stayed in an adorable cabin in the middle of the woods. We were only a few miles from home, but it seemed as if we were states away. We talked and ate, talked and ate, and eventually settled in with our journals. Donna introduced many types of journaling and then we grabbed our brand new notebooks and pens and began. We put our prayers to paper, following the acronym ACTS- Adoration, Confession, Thanksgiving, Supposition. The words flowed and we wrote until our fingers were about to fall off, and I loved it!

God was also speaking to Julie Short during this time. Julie had discovered after the death of her only child, Kyra, that writing was one way of coping with horrific grief. While attending a Christian writer’s conference, Julie began to sense a need to encourage others to use their words for God’s glory. So, as the journaling class ended, a writing class began, using Write His Word by Marlene Bagnell as our guide. We have been writing ever since.

What fun this has been! Each of us has grown in our individual Christian walks, and we have bonded in a great way. We are learning that words-even our words-can have an impact on others. Each of us has been through some typical and not-so-typical life experiences, and we hope to use the lessons we have learned to help others. We know first-hand the comfort, solace, and encouragement that a sincere word can bring.

None of us may ever write a bestseller or even write something that is read by more than a handful of people. That isn’t the important thing. Perhaps our story will encourage others who are feeling a nudge from above to step out and use their talents. Just one or two people can bring so much joy to the lives of those in their sphere of influence. I am so grateful to Julie and Donna for enriching my life.

Don’t cheat others out of the good things God may have for them by being afraid to follow his nudging in your life. You may be the person God uses to start the snowball that changes everything for an individual or the world. One thing we know for sure, Christ has given the Body of Christ the gifts needed to overcome the “wisdom” of this world.

Maybe God will use you to write something that will make a difference to men and women searching for meaning in all the wrong places. Don’t hold back your gift from those God is waiting to bless when you share what he has given you.

Don't be the Weakest Link by Susan Shull

Disclaimer: Please forgive me if I sound like your nagging great aunt- you know, the one you don’t like very much.

Have you ever considered your importance in God’s big picture? Paul tells us in Acts 17:24-27 that God determined exactly where and when each of us would live. In his wisdom, he knows the best circumstances that might cause people to seek him and reach out for him. He cares about each of us and has a perfect plan for us. We might think our lives aren’t really important, that the decisions we make don’t really affect anyone besides ourselves. But, thinking that way would be wrong.

Each of us is a link in a chain of faith from Adam and Eve into eternity. If the chain breaks with you, who will that impact? Generations and generations of your family members may miss out on eternal life and heaven if you don’t stay close to your heavenly Father, walking through life with Him as your comforter and guide. Kind of scary, isn’t it?

I am so thankful to have been raised in a Christian home. My church-going parents and extended family members have been a great example for me. Since I have turned several pages on life’s calendar, I can better appreciate the sacrifices made in order to be that example. I would love to be able to thank the previous generations for staying true to their commitments to the Lord, thereby making it much more likely that those who followed them would accept Christ as Lord and Savior. Now it is my turn to be the example.

Every generation, I guess, has those who are pillars of the church. You know the type-those who could be counted on to attend regularly, who were “workers” in the church. Some of those worked in a visible, in-front way and others were quiet, behind-the-scenes-prayer warriors. These people were the Sunday school teachers, youth group leaders, and casserole-toters of my youth and adulthood. They came to church and brought their families with them.

WARNING! Here comes the scolding-great-aunt-who-probably-doesn’t- know-the-whole-story-and-who-should- mind- her- own- business part. Where are these families now? It seems many of them are A.W.O.L., attending on holidays or even an occasional Sunday morning, hurrying out the door as soon as the last Amen is said, depriving their children and themselves of Sunday School, church friends, and possibly, heaven forbid, a relationship with Christ.

This just breaks my heart. God doesn’t promise us that just because our parents or grand-parents are Christians, we have a ticket to heaven. Each person must come to the saving knowledge of Christ on his own, but it will be so much easier to see the need if one is sitting in the pew every Sunday and in Sunday School right after that.

So….. when you are tempted to push the snooze button, roll over, and go back to sleep on Sunday morning, DON’T DO IT! The destination of eternity for those who will follow you may depend on your example of being a faithful servant. Please don’t break the chain.

What will be Your Legacy? By Theresa Zuber

I went to the bible to look up the word legacy; to see what God's word had to say about it. But I found nothing. It's just not a word used when God's Holy word is translated to English. However, I found this passage that I believe describes what kind of legacy God wants us to have. It's found in Deuteronomy 6: 4-9:
4 Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God, the LORD is one. 5 Love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength. 6 These commandments that I give you today are to be upon your hearts. 7 Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up. 8 Tie them as symbols on your hands and bind them on your foreheads. 9 Write them on the doorframes of your houses and on your gates.

Make sure that you leave your children more than posessions and memories. Leave them a legacy that will last them into eternity. Make sure they witness a life grounded in God and his word. A life led by the Spirit. A life, modeled after our Savior Jesus Christ.

Abba Father - I pray that you will help me to leave a lasting legacy of faith as an example to my loved ones. Help me to stay grounded in your word and focused on your path for me. I pray for my family that they, too, will seek you diligently, faithfully and tirelessly until we are all with you in heaven!

Legacy by Joyce Schafer

A short while ago I was given a precious gift— a tattered book with my mother's name written in it and dated 1931. It joined a collection of a stained and well-worn notebook filled with my mother's recipes and my first bible, a gift from my parents.

I also have my mother's special pin-a gift from her kids with all the birthstones of her children and grandchildren. My niece's daughter has asked me if she could wear Grandma's pin at her wedding. She is the first of this generation to walk down the aisle. Is she starting a new tradition? Only time will tell.

My favorite gifts from my sister are a Heidi book she gave me Christmas 1960 and a 1970 Home extension cookbook which contains some of her recipes. She would always include pictures of her family in Christmas cards over the years. I remember complimenting the ladies who prepared her funeral dinner on the homemade rolls. My sister was smiling from above when they said this was her recipe.

Even though my mother and sister have been gone for many years the legacy they left for future generations was a love of reading, a love of cooking, a love of family and a love of church and God.

I really had not given much thought to my own legacy until I started writing this paper. What legacy will I leave my family?

My favorite pieces of jewelry are my wedding ring, my mother's ring, and my bracelet with all my grandkids birthstones. My free time is spent attending my grandkids' events, reading, writing, cooking and helping out at church.

It would seem that my legacy will be the same as my family members who have already completed their journey her on earth-a love of family, a love of reading, a love of cooking and above all a love of God and church.

A Written Legacy by Tana LeMay

My family wasn’t big on traditions or the concept of a legacy to intentionally pass on through succeeding generations. My grandmother, however, loved to tell stories of her life growing up in Fairfield. I loved hearing her stories, but can only remember bits and pieces of them. I wish I had had the foresight to put her stories in writing before she passed away. Now, they are lost forever.

Several years ago, a friend of mine tried to turn me on to journaling. I found it to be an interesting idea, but wasn’t driven enough to make it a habit. Fortunately, Donna Woods was led to lead a journaling class, and the rest, as they say, is history.

My main reason for journaling is to have a means of passing along to my children and grandchildren a legacy of sharing my written words. A means to provide them a glimpse into my daily life, my thoughts and most importantly, my relationship with my savior, Jesus.

In today’s busy world, we lose focus of what’s meaningful. We’re just too busy living. I hope my children will read my journals and share them with their children. Maybe, somewhere along the way, one of them will also put pen to paper, sharing a piece of themselves to pass along to future generations. My prayer is that this legacy will reveal to those who come after us the richness and comfort of walking along side Christ and that He will be the common thread of a legacy that will live forever.

Grandma Knows Best by Susan Shull

In my past talk-show-watching-days, I saw an interview with a young audience member who had written her own obituary. Having written down what she wanted others to say about her after her death, she planned to spend the rest of her days living in a way to make that happen.

That really struck a chord with me and got me thinking. What do I want others to say about me after I have taken my last breath? If it is to be good things, I had better start living that way now. I am so lucky because I have had wonderful examples to follow.

Being raised in a Christian family is something for which I am immensely grateful. As kids, my sisters and I always knew what we and our parents would be doing Sunday morning, Sunday night, and Wednesday night. We would be in church. Even though there were times we wanted to stay home and watch Flipper and The Wonderful World of Disney, it wasn’t really an option. Going to church was what we did. It was also what our grandparents did. And that brings me to my grandmothers and the legacy they have left not only to me, but also to each of their grandchildren.

My grandmas both lived close to us and were a huge part of my life. I always thought of Grandma Marrs as my “country” grandma. As a young married woman, she had a couple of unfortunate incidents in her driveway, and she never drove again. Because of this, she was almost always at home. A pink bowl always sat on the kitchen table filled with scrumptious oatmeal cookies-each with 2 precisely placed chocolate chips. Her house always had a lingering smell of fried chicken, mashed potatoes, and gravy, my favorite Sunday foods. Grandma always had time to play a game of Old Maid or to read a book to me. She must have worked 24/7-she even made yummy homemade ketchup-but I remember her best sitting in “her” chair with a stack of books beside her. Her favorite book was her tattered and worn Bible.

Grandma Marrs taught me many valuable lessons, but the one I consider most important was to read my Bible. She read hers from Genesis to Revelation every year and her love for the scriptures was very evident. We had many interesting discussions about the Lord and I am forever grateful for her example.
On the other hand, I considered Grandma Spencer as my “city” grandma, which is a hoot since she lived in Yale! Grandma was widowed twice-The first time when her children were very small and as a result, she became a very independent woman. She raised her kids alone and seemed pretty fearless to me. She drove everywhere, including to St. Louis in her 80’s. For years, she even wrote the Yale Press , which appeared in several area newspapers. Her no-bake cookies and hot rolls were legendary.

She also loved the Lord and showered that love on everyone she met. She taught me that a Christian must live her faith, and she did. The woman was never home. I wish I knew how many visits she made to the nursing homes and hospitals. There is no way to know how many hangers she crocheted and gave away. Her hands were never still since she was always “doing” for someone. She was a big hugger, and I would love to feel her arms around me right now.

Since I am fortunate enough to be a grandma myself, I want to leave a legacy of love for my own grandchildren. I hope some day they can say…..I know my grammie loved the Lord and she loved me!