let’s talk legacy.

One of my dearest friends and mentors in this life passed away in July 2020. Cancer stole her away when she was decades younger than one might expect. I woke up to the news on my feed. And suddenly you come to grasp this question: Who am I going to be in a world where someone who so deeply shaped my life is no longer here? And while we can spend the rest of our lives answering that question, I’ve gained so much clarity in the first few months of doing so. 

Mrs. Khristi started out as my Sunday school teacher when I was nine years old. Our relationship extended outside of the church walls when I moved next door to her neighborhood and we started spending afternoons painting together, playing games, running errands, and watching the Andy Griffith show together. She’s the reason I drink coffee and love the historical context of the Scriptures and eventually had the courage to study art in college. I think of her every time I eat ice cream out of the carton or go to a Christian bookstore. Her treasure was in heaven, her joy was found in Christ, she loved others faithfully, she used her creative and teaching gifts to build the Kingdom.

From the description above, how would you share about Mrs. Khristi in one word?

In three words?

In a paragraph?

___

It’s my birthday.

As sentimentality reigns high for me, I have been reflecting on the question of legacy. How can I set up life in even my young adulthood so that my children’s children know I loved Jesus?

There is so much that I don’t know - including my next job, or when we will grow our family, or exactly where we will live. But what I know for sure is what I want to be remembered of me when I’m gone. (Which so beautifully summed up in this song by Steffany Gretzinger: No One Ever Cared For Me Like Jesus) It’s not so much about what we are doing, but how we are walking with God in everything we do. And though I have no idea what my vocation will be a year or five years from now, my purpose is clear.

Here’s the thing: I want that same level of clarity for you. The way you accomplish your purpose will change through the seasons, but your goal will not. Once the goal is set, the rest is sweaty but not aimless. That sounds so good, right?!

No matter what year you’re in, let’s take account. How do you want to be described in one word? If your acquaintance, best friend, and husband has a chance to talk about you for a whole hour, what would you want them to say? Keep these thoughts in the back of your mind as you write.

1) What do you want to be known for above all else?

2) What are the things and interests that make you *you*?

3) How do you spend a typical week?

4) What needs to change in #3 to make #1 come true?

Take some time to journal the answers, and give yourself each day to reorient to this purpose. God is kind and He will be with you every step of the way.

Need a friend to help walk you through these questions? Let’s book a coaching session! Hit that “contact” button and let’s get grooving! Let’s design a legacy that gives God the utmost glory and makes your children smile.