Legacy

This week’s poem was inspired by a prompt from my friend Bob Nordeman.  He asked if I’d ever written about “legacy”…which I had not…and he mentioned how his daughter Nichole’s song by that name was one of his favorites.  And then in a divine “aha moment”, shortly thereafter, I heard Nichole’s song on KLOVE (you can hear it at this link – Legacy), and I don’t believe in coincidence!

This poem followed as I pondered legacy…it’s a prayerful hope for what God can do with an imperfect, sometimes rebellious, but surrendered life to Him:

“Legacy”

I think much more of legacy,
In this new season now for me,
I wonder what others might think,
When I’m in heaven in that blink.

Will they remember traits in me,
Like integrity and dignity,
And will they say I spoke the truth,
True to God’s word with no rebuke.

Will they remember my good works,
And see beyond my many quirks,
Say I was honest and upright,
That I was worthy in God’s sight.

Will they say that I led with love,
And think of me and point above,
Remember me for some grand gesture,
Or smile and think of holy lectures.

I hope they think of some impact,
Where love compelled my heart to act,
In honor of God’s love for me,
That helped another lovingly.

And then they say that in most things,
I tried to follow God’s teachings,
I humbly shared and loved others,
And offered grace to hearts that suffered.

I used the gifts that God gave me,
To fulfill my purpose faithfully,
I ran the race, I finished strong,
The Lord was with me all along.

It really is as simple as that,
Though flawed I still had an impact,
I shined God’s light for others to see,
And that defined my legacy.

***

Bob has since reminded me that building our legacy starts early in life, even though we often don’t dwell on it until our later years.  And legacy is typically not defined by the big things we get to do or may have done, but is mostly shaped through the small choices we make every day.

This is important too…all the hard times, the missteps, and even the choices we wish we could redo…they all become part of legacy…sometimes a burden we continue to carry with us.

But if we release all that to the Lord, darkness will be turned into light, doubts will be turned into conviction, and adversity can be used for good.

Through our release and from God’s grace, we receive His peace.  Then His light can shine brightly through us, and His love can be shared joyfully by us.

Then…what a legacy that would be…a legacy of light and love…for whatever time we’re blessed to shine and share.

My prayer for each of us.

Stan