I have taught it, I have lived pursuing it, and I have paid for it.
For me personally, this topic is very fresh because soon I will be concluding a ministry I founded. During this ministry-building journey I burned out in my pursuit to 'press on' and make it a legacy-making endeavor. I blogged about this here.
Of course let's be real - there are people we know and recognize who leave legacies that ripple across history. I think of Paul the apostle. His actions, the records of his pursuits & his personal writings left impact that continues to shape the world. Amazing. But lets be real again. For the vast majority of us there will be no record of our contributions and no universally acknowledged legacy. We move about in simple faithfulness, our contributions known perhaps to a small circle, and to God most certainly.
How do you feel about being mostly unknown to the world?
The answer to that question is found in shifting to a new perspective on 'legacy'. Stop pursuing efforts so that you will be remembered. Think about this...it is through the largely unrecorded and unnoticed faithfulness of Gods' people that the world is changed and the Kingdom of God expands. There was only one Paul. He didn't build the Church we see today. God did, through billions of other followers of Jesus all through history. They were mostly obscure and unknown , but in the hands of the Master, their 'legacy' is a global Kingdom that now permeates the planet.
I now feel this battle between legacy and obscurity more acutely now that I am about to conclude my ministry. In the past it was a hope of mine (no, it was a driver) to "leave a legacy". Admirable in some sense, but I have learned it is a dangerous pursuit.
Living to leave a "legacy" can be a pseudo-spiritual cover for the dangerous game of self ambition. Living for the "well done" shifts perspective and posture to that of a servant.An important question to ask for all who follow Jesus is: Who determines legacy? If it is you, then you better work your ass off and sacrifice everything in the pursuit of that goal. However, if you truly believe that the Kingdom of God is actually Gods' and is therefore built according to His plans, then there is only One who determines the legacy.
Don't work to leave a legacy. The brutal truth is that 50 years from now the world and even your family who are still alive won't remember much about you. But God will leave a legacy through your faithfulness to whatever you put your hand to as His servant.
There is a sense of liberation that comes when you stop striving to leave a legacy. That enables you to do something, and to do it very well.
Work for the 'well done'.
Harv Matchullis
