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#4o My Heart Undressed: Living LegaciesJANE PHINNEY: Friends, family, children…all are watching to see if you’re the real deal. Legacy matters…for eternity!
LIVING LEGACIESBy definition, a legacy is money or property passed down by an ancestor or predecessor. I’ve received an inheritance twice in my life. In the world’s eyes, neither would be considered significant on paper. But it wasn’t the gift that mattered most. It was my relationship with the giver. An inheritance goes far beyond the boost to your bank account! Psalm 16:5&6 states, “The Lord is the portion of my inheritance & my cup; Thou dost support my lot. The lines have fallen to me in pleasant places; Indeed, my heritage is beautiful to me.” Truth be told, we are daily processing 2 legacies…one from the past & another that we are building for the future. We can’t always choose the first, but it does, nevertheless, affect our perception of the second…for better or for worse. These 2 legacies are intertwined, much like marriage. The past is either embraced & incorporated, or it’s denied. And the future is determined by building on the foundation of that decision. Practically, the playing field is leveled if we set aside the money component. Then, for all of us, legacy can be redefined as a combination of the personal influences that make you who you are, & your personal ideals that you want to pass down. Whether positive or negative, a legacy results from values that we model as priority #1. 2025 is rapidly coming to an end, time never to be recaptured. As you look back on the year, are your greatest legacy investments in the bank or in the lives of others? Believe me, I’m NOT downplaying the necessity of money as a resource for living. I am, however, addressing the emphasis put on it. At the end of life, it ultimately doesn’t matter to God how much you’re worth in dollars & cents. You will stand before your Creator penniless. And no matter the physical provisions left to your family or friends, they will stand before God in like manner, when they draw their last breath. More important than how much you have is your attitude toward it. If you truly love money, there will no doubt be problems. Because then, it likely takes higher priority than God, or people. Loving it leads to evil—as God defines it... “some by longing for it have wandered away from the faith...” (I Timothy 6:10) When I watch the temptation to succumb to overworking, to the use of technology as a substitute for parental interaction, & to the bad habit of investing mindless leftovers in relationships, I immediately think of I Timothy 5:8. Take note of the word meanings, from the Greek, in parentheses.“ But if anyone does not provide for (to comprehend, take thought, care beforehand) his own, & especially for those of his household (a person belonging to a certain household, or a believer to the Church), he has denied the faith ( belief, confidence in divine truths, especially the gospel), & is worse than an unbeliever (untrustworthy, an infidel, who disbelieves the Gospel of Christ).” I don’t think I’m out of line to say that there’s a whole lot more to provision than bringing home the paycheck. There’s more to provision than sitting in the same room without truly interacting & connecting. There’s a need for pre-planned, unconditional time investments in relationships, to keep them growing, to keep them healthy & to keep them strong. Godly legacies are built intentionally & consistently, over a lifetime. I’ve realized a thing or two with the passing of years. There’s no perfect message-bearer (except God) but that shouldn’t stop you from giving it all you’ve got to create a godly legacy. No matter what your status, you ARE always impacting someone for eternity. When I was a child, we were poor. But I didn’t know it. Zechariah 4:10a says, “For who has despised the day of small things?” Small investments add up overtime & can be life changing. At the time, I wouldn’t have been able to specifically identify investments that my parents made. It was just normal living for me. Now I see that my “small things” really weren’t small in the impact they made, or in the message behind them. Of primary importance was the family table, an almost obsolete event in most homes today. We ate every meal possible, together, & our time was always wrapped up in prayer & Bible reading. We could count on mealtimes, as simple as that sounds, & it brought a measure of security. My parents honored my grandparents & watched over them, until death. They kept their word and modeled integrity in the smallest of opportunities, when no one was watching. I never had to doubt they would break their word on a commitment or change under pressure. Home was a safe place. They were teachable, affectionate, loved music, served others, & practically speaking, gave us the gift of time every day. Looking back, I can see that a lot of these ideals were passed down by my grandparents & my great-grandparents. Kids naturally pick up hypocritical actions & attitudes in little things. My parents didn’t lie. They lived out what they hoped to see in us. Times have changed, it’s true. But you can count on the fact that God hasn’t. (Malachi 3:6; Hebrews 13:8) He will guide you, step by step, hour by hour, day by day. Like it or not, we are all legacy builders. The question is, what messages is your life sending? If you’ve been blessed with a godly (not perfect) heritage, take the time to preserve it, & pass on what you’ve been given. If you didn’t have a secure beginning, you aren’t alone. We are all a work in progress. It’s encouraging to remember that nothing is beyond God’s transforming, restoring power - in a life fully surrendered to Him. Friends, family, children…all are watching to see if you’re the real deal. Legacy matters…for eternity! Visit the iZ Music Channel, hosting both songs and instrumentals HERE. Thank you for reading, My Heart Undressed. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber. Please consider making a small donation to us. We want to extend our eternal gratitude to each of you for taking the time to read our publications and engage with our posts. Your support and interest mean the world to us, and it motivates us to continue creating content that resonates with you.
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