Daily Devotional for Wednesday January 16, 2002

Honoring Those We Love

(Exodus 20:12)

One of the wonderful parts of our life has to be our memories. It seems the older we get, the more special those memories are to us. As life goes forward, we often experience the death of our grandparents, parents, brothers and sisters, as well as other family members and friends we make along life's journey. While those we love may not be with us any longer, we still have our memories of them. My father passed away from pancreatic cancer in 1974 when I was just 16. Even 28 years later, I still think of him from time to time and have fond memories of my early years growing up with my father. Those fond memories will be with me the rest of my life. I am sure right now, you are reliving some of those wonderful times in the past that you shared with a loved one who is no longer alive.

I have often thought it was appropriate when buildings, bridges, streets, other public places were named after a famous person. There is probably no better way for the memory of someone's life to live on than in the memoralization of their name on a public place. As Christians, our outlook is beyond this life to the eternity we will share one day with our Lord. As wonderful as it is to have a building with your name on it, how much better if your name is living on through the everlasting life of a person you have touched! I have always held that our greatest legacy is in the lives we touch along the way. Someone was faithful and preached the Gospel that was heard by a young man named Billy Graham. The great religious leaders of our day, all at one time in their life, heard the Gospel and responded to it. Their lives and ministries are living testimonies to the faithfulness and legacy of those who led them to that personal relationship with Christ.

Today, my prayer is that no matter how old you are, that you focus on the legacy you will leave behind. The greatest legacy you can leave is in the lives of those people you share the love of Christ with throughout your life. You can leave no more lasting mark than to let God use you to lead someone into an everlasting relationship with His son Jesus. While we hear about the great exploits of golfer Tiger Woods and his incredible accomplishments on the golf course, some feats possibly never repeated again, YOU can do far greater things in your life. Remember, the things we do in this lifetime on earth, will ALL pass away one day. They will cease to exist. Tiger's great records will be meaningless during the Great Tribulation. Golf is not going to be on many people's minds during those terrible last days. But the life you touch for the Lord will be for eternity. I admire what Tiger does on the golf course, but I am in awe at those who touch people's lives for the Kingdom of God!

I will be praying for you as I always do. Praying that today you catch this vision I am trying to share with you, how your life can have incredible significance, even after you're gone, through the lives you touch along the way. Your name may be forgotten, but your impact on a human life can never be erased. Take this challenge and get serious about making an eternal difference in someone's life today.