Dust and Ash

Fact: eventually, the dominion of mankind will end. All the work we've done to build civilizations; everything we've ever done to build a lasting legacy; all the monuments to our conquering of nature, or gravity, or plain ol' adversity... all of it will fade away. Gone. Turned to dust. Everything that has a beginning has an end; this is the way of nature.

But.

For you have been born again, not of perishable seed, but of imperishable, through the living and enduring word of God. For,

“All people are like grass,
    and all their glory is like the flowers of the field;
the grass withers and the flowers fall,

but the word of the Lord endures forever.” (1 Peter 1:23-25a)

It's amazing to think about it, but the Word of God is indeed Eternal. It is without beginning, written by God since before Time began, and breathed into the world of men through the lungs of prophets and sinners. The Word of God, personified by Christ, the Salvation of Man, endures forever. 

Think of the implications of 1 Peter, Chapter 1. God has taken man, finite and small, and lifted him -- lifted us! -- out of our mortal existence, and into His eternal one! 

Those stresses we have day to day? That constant struggle to make something significant of ourselves on this world? Ultimately, it's meaningless. The greatness of nations, the legacy of kings, all of human history is dust and ash when stacked against Eternity with the Creator.

So the question I must ask myself, then, is for what purpose do I strive in my daily life? Am I working for things that are temporary? Or is my focus on the Eternal? Am I building my own glory, which will whither and fall like the flowers of the field; or am I concerning myself with the Glory and Word of the Lord, which endures forever?

Repost: Fathers and Pictures of God

This was originally posted October 17, 2012. It's being reposted in honor of Father's Day.

Pictures of God

I've been thinking lately about legacy. When Jesus talked about the love and care God has for His children, he liked to paint a picture of a loving father. Of course, we all know the story of the Prodigal Son. And there's Luke 11:11-12, in which Jesus reveals the generosity of God: “Which of you fathers, if your son asks for a fish, will give him a snake instead? Or if he asks for an egg, will give him a scorpion?"

Or, in the book of Hebrews, where we are taught about discipline:

Moreover, we have all had human fathers who disciplined us and we respected them for it. How much more should we submit to the Father of spirits and live! They disciplined us for a little while as they thought best; but God disciplines us for our good, in order that we may share in his holiness. (Hebrews 12:9-10)

The point is, when it comes to how our children view God, that picture is painted by how they view us.  When it comes to learning about a relationship with God, they take their cues from our relationship with Him, and our relationship with them.

To this day, I measure myself against the standard set by my father. To love his wife and children, to be a man of integrity, to love and obey and worship his God, to submit to the authorities placed over him, to enjoy the life and the family that God has given him. 

It's a high standard, and it has informed the way I view our Heavenly Father as well. 

The question that keeps me up at night is, when my own son is 35, what will his picture of God look like? 

Leaving Behind A Legacy

Last weekend, George Beverly Shea passed away, at the age of 104. Shea, who led worship for Billy Graham's crusades and appeared regularly on "Hour of Decision," was still singing as he rounded out his 1st century on earth and began a second. His voice and delivery popularized a great many favorite hymns, like a personal favorite, "How Great Thou Art." Shea glorified God with his life, right up until he was finally taken home.

That is a legacy!

Shea's passing can't help but bring to mind that of another great Christian artist, Rich Mullins. Unlike Shea, Mullins was killed in an accident at the age of 41, in 1997. But he, too, had built a legacy on glorifying his Savior. Mullins wrote many popular songs, like the often-sung "Awesome God," and Amy Grant's hit, "Sing Your Praise to the Lord."

These are men whose legacies live on in their music, but more importantly, in the lives they touched.

The truth is, you don't need to be famous to leave behind a legacy for the Kingdom. And, if you do as God asks, your legacy is made no greater or in anyway diminished by the presence or absence of a recording contract. What God cares about -- the legacy that will last -- is, how did you affect those around you? Did you plant seeds for the Kingdom of God? Were you somebody who loved fiercely, who chased God zealously, who gave generously of yourself?

How will you be remembered?

As for me, I know I'll never be remembered as widely as a George Beverly Shea, or a Rich Mullins. But I hope and pray, as God helps me to grow in Him, that when my time comes, I'll be remembered by those who knew me as somebody who loved God -- and through Christ, loved others -- with all my heart.

I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. Now there is in store for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day—and not only to me, but also to all who have longed for his appearing. (2 Timothy 4:7-8)

Pictures of God

I've been thinking lately about legacy. When Jesus talked about the love and care God has for His children, he liked to paint a picture of a loving father. Of course, we all know the story of the Prodigal Son. And there's Luke 11:11-12, in which Jesus reveals the generosity of God: “Which of you fathers, if your son asks for a fish, will give him a snake instead? Or if he asks for an egg, will give him a scorpion?"

Or, in the book of Hebrews, where we are taught about discipline:

Moreover, we have all had human fathers who disciplined us and we respected them for it. How much more should we submit to the Father of spirits and live! They disciplined us for a little while as they thought best; but God disciplines us for our good, in order that we may share in his holiness. (Hebrews 12:9-10)

The point is, when it comes to how our children view God, that picture is painted by how they view us.  When it comes to learning about a relationship with God, they take their cues from our relationship with Him, and our relationship with them.

To this day, I measure myself against the standard set by my father. To love his wife and children, to be a man of integrity, to love and obey and worship his God, to submit to the authorities placed over him, to enjoy the life and the family that God has given him. 

It's a high standard, and it has informed the way I view our Heavenly Father as well. 

The question that keeps me up at night is, when my own son is 35, what will his picture of God look like?