Legacy

I don't mind if you've got something nice to say about me
And I enjoy an accolade like the rest
You could take my picture and hang it in a gallery
Of all who's who and so and so's that used to be the best
At such and such ... it wouldn't matter much

I won't lie, it feels alright to see your name in lights
We all need an 'Atta boy' or 'Atta girl'
But in the end I'd like to hang my hat on more besides
The temporary trappings of this world

I want to leave a legacy
How will they remember me?
Did I choose to love?
Did I point to You enough
To make a mark on things?
I want to leave an offering
A child of mercy and grace who
Blessed your name unapologetically
And leave that kind of legacy

I don't have to look too far or too long awhile
To make a lengthy list of all that I enjoy
It's an accumulating trinket and a treasure pile
Where moth and rust, thieves and such will soon enough destroy

Not well traveled, not well read,
Not well to-do or well bred
Just want to hear instead, "Well Done" good and faithful one

- Nichole Nordeman "Legacy" (Woven & Spun)
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God, in his every increasing faithfulness to me has turned a VERY rough week last week into such a joy this week with amazing news. I am going to Africa this summer!!! I have not been since 2009 and I cannot wait to be in my heartland. This will be different, because I’m going to Northern Africa; which is new to me. Thus far I have only been in the southern region. I am going to Nairobi, Kenya with Mercy House – Kenya, a non-profit that I am interning for this semester. Please check out their website to learn more, it’s amazing what Maureen and Kristen are doing!

So, yesterday was Katie’s funeral and it was amazing. I don’t think it could have oozed more “Katie” than it did. It was as if she planned it herself. Hot pink flowed into every fabric of the service and a proclamation of her faith in Christ is what rang through the mouth of everyone who spoke of her. As was said by her pastor, “Katie lived three lifetimes in her 19 years. She was a worshiper, a woman of the Word, and a woman of prayer.” At the service, 35 people surrendered their hearts to the Lord as a re-dedication or for the first time. Her younger brother, Brandon, put on her Facebook that the people on Katie’s prayer list that she’s been praying salvation for came forward to commit their life to the Lord. WOW! What a legacy this amazing woman is leaving, and I’m so honored to have been able to call her my friend.

As I sat in the service, I couldn’t help but think what my life speaks. Over and over you heard people share of how Katie’s life and the way she lived a life of conviction inspired them to live a life of integrity with purpose for the gospel. It was shared that if you questioned what Katie’s life was about, all you had to do was look at her Facebook and you could see her heartbeat all over the place. So again, as I sat thinking, I started wondering what would be coming out of the mouth of those who know me if I were to die. Would people see me as a worshiper, as a woman of the Word, as a woman of prayer, as someone who lived with conviction of Spirit and proclaimed the gospel? Some days, I think so, but is that a consistent theme of my life.

I think that death, in it’s own way, is a blessing because it makes you realize that there is an end for us all and not to waste what little time God has given us on this earth. What do I want my life to speak of? What do I want my anthem to be? Should God choose to take me home, what is the legacy that I am leaving? I think it’s an interesting question that each person should consider before it’s too late to change the answer. It’s not too late for my life to leave a lasting legacy of faith. It’s not too late to share the gospel with people bound for hell. It’s not too late for me to make a difference in the people around me. I just have to not waste this opportunity.

Thank you Lord that through the legacy Katie leaves, lives are changed for the gospel. Through the 35 who surrendered to you yesterday, and the countless others that will be fruit from this, thank you that Katie is rejoicing the loudest. Thank you for answered prayer and saving souls through her death. God, help me not waste my time on earth. Increase my faith and boldness to live unashamed of the gospel of Christ. Thank you that through death, although for the believer the sting has been taken at the cross, we who are still on this earth are reminded what where our hope lies. Thank you for saving me and giving me confidence that when I breathe my last breath on earth, I will then enter into eternity with the lover of my soul and my Redeemer. Thank you for the cross!