Restoring a Biblical Legacy.

Last fall my mom told all of us that she would like us to enter an essay contest for home-schoolers. Now, I was not terrible excited about this idea. While I may enjoy writing essays, I'm not wonderful at it. So I knew that I didn't stand a chance against all the home-schooled high schoolers in my state. But since it wasn't exactly up for discussion I obviously did write it. Unfortunately, I tend to be a terrible procrastinator, so I didn't actually write the first draft until last Monday. And it had to be post marked today if it was to qualify. So it's definitely not my best work ever. The essay was supposed to answer the question, 'How do you restore a Biblical legacy while living in a secular world?' So I hope it did a decent job of that. I wont find out until March 15 or some time around there. But I decided to post the essay I wrote here.

L. E. G. A. C. Y

How far we as a nation have fallen! By allowing worldly influences to seep into our lives, we Christians have lost sight of what walking with God truly means.Leaving behind the truths of God's word, we seek after all that worldly men have to offer. The Christian legacy on which our nation was founded is in disrepair and must be reconstructed. To repair a legacy, a plan must be contrived and pursued. The necessary steps in restoring a Biblical legacy can be demonstrated by the acronym LEGACY. The renewal of a Biblical legacy requires Looking at and Evaluating God's Word, so as to Grow in faith and learn to Apply this faith to our lives so that we may Coach our children and teach them to Yearn for God.

The L and E of the acronym LEGACY go hand-in-hand. It is impossible to look in-depth at the Bible without also evaluating its words. The psalmist speaks of hiding God's words in his heart in order to eliminate the sin in his life. He indicates that looking isn't enough. It is necessary to memorize scripture so that it can be brought to mind and pondered later. In thoughtfully going back over the words of the Bible, there will doubtless be a measure of evaluation and meditation on them.

The increased time spent studying the Bible is sure to cause a corresponding increase in the understanding of the true meaning of its words. In turn, we also gain a better understanding of God. This will lead to a closer relationship with Him and a greater dependency on Him in every area of our lives. Our faith in and our dependency on Him are really the same thing. That which we put our faith in, we depend on. So as we look at the Bible and evaluate it, our faith will grow.

Once we have a stronger relationship with God and a greater dependency on Him, it is important to apply it in our lives. It is easy to have head knowledge without the actions that should follow. Once we better understand who God is, and we see how the different parts of the Bible fit together, we can't leave it there. This understanding must lead to action. We must live out the Biblical principles in our day-to-day lives. This is what James was saying when he spoke of the relationship between faith and good deeds. While good deeds can in no way save us, they are a sign of our faith to believer and unbeliever alike. James tells us of the importance of bearing fruit in our lives. While trying to rebuild a legacy founded on the Bible, the importance of this fruit is crystal clear. For if our actions do not show others our faith, the reality of this faith will be difficult if not impossible to pass on.

A Biblical legacy is not like that of money or property. It is not a simple matter of writing a will and leaving possessions to a specific person. This legacy is immaterial. No matter how strong the faith of a parent is, it will not automatically be passed to the children. It must be cultivated from the time the children are young. Proverbs 22:6 speaks of this kind of coaching of young children. The phrase, "in the way he should go," leads to Jeremiah 6:16 where Israel was commanded to ask for the ancient paths, the good way, and walk in it. God's promise of rest accompanies obedience to this command. Hence we must instruct our children to yearn for the ways of God so their souls will be at rest, rather than having the turmoil of a soul that is fighting God.

This process of Looking, Evaluating, Growing, Applying, and Coaching to Yearn, does not happen overnight. It is a lifetime task that each Christian must dedicate himself to accomplish. The secular world we live in too easily ensnares the young. So we must do the work necessary in our own lives so that we will have something worth passing on, but then do the work necessary to impress our children with that which has previously impressed us. This will draw us away from the influences that have seeped into our lives, and bring back into focus that which is important. Herein lies the true meaning of walking with God: having Him be the head of our lives.