A Legacy of Faith
I am sentimental by nature. I love things and pictures that remind me of times and people gone by. But when I hit different milestones myself, I grow even more retrospective. This tendency is not always healthy. It is easy to fall into traps of self-pity and wallow in our perceived loss. However, we can learn from meditating on the lessons passed on by those who have gone before us. These can serve as building blocks for us to build a legacy of faith and dedication to serving our Savior.
If you will indulge me, I would like to reminisce about my mother a bit. Mom graduated to her heavenly home almost 20 years ago. My birthday was a couple weeks ago and I have reflected frequently on the fact that I am roughly the same age as my mom was when she received her cancer diagnosis. A couple of health scares (which God graciously showed to be nothing of concern) gave me some glimpses as to the emotions that my mom would have experienced at being diagnosed at this stage of life. Both of us at this stage in life have/had very young children and a loving husband, which naturally causes us to question God's purposes and ways. I don't know why God chose that path for Mom, but I am keenly aware that each day is a gift and given for a purpose that should not be squandered because of Mom's wise teaching and example.
If there was ever a Titus 2 woman, it was Mom.
Older women likewise are to be reverent in behavior, not slanderers or slaves to much wine. They are to teach what is good, and so train the young women to love their husbands and children, to be self-controlled, pure, working at home, kind, and submissive to their own husbands, that the word of God may not be reviled. Titus 2:2-5
Mom was not "old," (since I am her age now, I feel she was quite young! LOL!) but she was older than my sisters and I, obviously. She was faithful to train us, through word and example, in the Titus 2 foundations for godly living. This gift is priceless to me. However, she did not stop there. She was an influencer (in the days before social media!) to far more women in the church than she may have even realized.
The more I learn of God's Word, the more I value the lessons that Mom and Dad faithfully taught. They truly were carrying out the Great Commission. Making disciples is the calling of each one of us. We are to start at home, then branch out into our other spheres of influence. We find that in Matthew 28:18-20:
And Jesus came and said to them, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”
Our job is simple: Make disciples and teach them to observe all that Jesus commanded. Where are these commands? In His Word, the Holy Bible. Mom taught me a lot of practical things: reading, math, bread baking, sewing, hair braiding, cooking, canning, cake decorating and much, much more. She homeschooled us before it was accepted by our culture, and she did it well. I can't thank her enough for equipping me with those skills. As I age, however, I am coming to appreciate the greater lessons she taught me. Those of loving and living out the Word of God. Lessons of commitment to a God who has a plan of redemption for the ages. Through hard times, my parents showed my eleven siblings and I an unwavering faith in God's provision. They were faithful to give Him the glory for each and every blessing that we were given, not the least of which was life itself. Their example of boldness and living a counter-cultural life to the glory of God is a gift that I cherish more now than I ever did. Their faith still teaches me, even if they are not here to physically teach me today. The secret to their success was making God's Word their handbook for life. This is a blessing and a challenge for each of us.
So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God.
I Corinthians 10:31
This was another lesson my mom taught: everything we do, from the moment our eyes open to the moment we close them at night is to be done for the glory of God. I pray that this is an encouragement to you today to live in God's Word and let it pour out of you to those around you. There is no greater gift that we can leave to our children and grandchildren. It is a command and privilege. The same legacy of godly character and dedication to a calling is possible for you and me, if we choose to take up the mantle. Let's rise up to the challenge and be a church of Christ-followers who live and teach His commands, making disciples everywhere we go, to the glory of God the Father.
Thank you for indulging me in my reminiscing today. May God bless you and may His peace be with you this week.
Soli Deo Gloria!
💓Heather Sparks💓
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