A legacy

Many people have aspirations in life. Some desire fame and fortune, others beauty, some wish for their names to become unforgettable in history. Some want great athletic ability, some outstanding musicianship or perhaps to write an astounding work of literature. All of those things are wonderful. Many of those achievements would mark you down as a name to remember. You may get a paragraph in a history textbook or maybe a short documentary, depending on the obstacles you overcome.
After you died, the world would remember you.
That isn't wrong or bad in itself, but it isn't my goal.
I want to be remembered for the little things.

I want to be like her.
You probably don't recognize her or know her name.
If you googled her, wikipedia wouldn't have an answer for you.
But if you asked me who she was, I could tell you just a little bit.
She was my grandma, a great-grandma at that.
She was a sister who grew up in a tiny town in the rural midwest.
Her family now outnumbers the amount of people in the town she was born in.
When she was a girl going to school in a one room school house, her teacher took away the end of the school year excursion from the ornery class.
However, in my grandma's words, "She might said there was no picnic this year, but the only one not going on the picnic was her. We all told our parents that the party was on, and we went by ourselves."
 And so they proceeded to pack their lunches, ride on driftwood down the river to a field in a neighboring state and then back home before dark. And nobody ever knew.
During all her years in high school, our country was engaged in WWII.
She didn't have an iphone, instagram, facebook or twitter. (or internet or tv)
She was a worked a teletype (go look it up, I didn't know what it was either)  and traveled all over the country in her late teens with a few other close friends.
She married the only man she ever dated. (or courted)
And they loved each other more than words could ever say.
I hope my marriage is as Christ centered and passionately romantic as theirs was. You rarely ever ever saw one without the other. They were real about their struggles and intentional about forgiving one another.
The few years that my grandmother was a widow were so painful for her. It was like a part of her had died, and she didn't know quite how to continue on.
I hope my legacy and career as a mother is as warm and gracious as hers.
She was an encourager. She teased. She was funny.
She left no impact on the world like Mother Teresa, no social stirrings like Martin Luther King Jr, no great literary works like William Golding.
But she left a legacy.

 She left a legacy of a family who loved music. And a family who loved each other, no matter where they were from, what they had done, or what they looked like.

 She left a legacy of laughter. There is no sorrow in this life that cannot be remedied by a joy that comes from putting our hope in the next one.

 She left a legacy of intimacy and listening. Both my great-grandparents were listeners. They were keen to when a person was struggling and never to busy to listen to even a slight woe and offer wise advice.

 She left a legacy of hard work. Neither my great grandma or grandpa were rocket scientists. I don't even know if they had college degrees. But they worked hard and with joy. My grandma didn't work hard for the praise of man, she worked to honor God and serve her family. My grandfather didn't work hard to impress people or hoard money. As much as he received, he gave. I hope I can leave a legacy like this. Never afraid to give, even if it hurts.

They left a legacy of learning. They were never to old to try something new. My great grandma was alive when telephones and movie theaters were just becoming popular and I can recall just a few years ago watching her play solitaire on her iPad. To me, that's impressive.

She left a legacy of beautiful homemaking. She was a wonderful housekeeper, cook, cleaner, wife, mother and business woman. Being a woman who cared for her home didn't scare her. She wasn't held down by it or in any way did it inhibit her. She delighted in hospitality and caring for her family.
Food is often like a glue that brings people together.
And she knew that.
She cooked and was in her kitchen and let others be in her kitchen. She taught us how to make good food.  
I used to bring her and my grandpa desserts and even if they were AWFUL I never received any comment except for how good and tasty it was.
Her buttermilk pancake recipe is the one I hope to make for my grandkids' someday. Her mint jar was always full. Tootsie Pops were in the cabinet next to the lazy susan. I distinctly remember a Christmas at my great-grandparents when I couldn't have been much older than 3 or 4, and sitting on a stool in the bustling kitchen watching three generations of women scurry around cooking, laughing, singing and talking.
I want to be a woman like that.
I most importantly want my legacy to be one of devoted love and service to my Savior and to those around me.
Just like her.



~Bugg

Learning

Trust in the LORD with all your heart,
        and do not lean on your own understanding.
    In all your ways acknowledge him,
        and he will make straight your paths.
    Be not wise in your own eyes;
        fear the LORD, and turn away from evil.
    It will be healing to your flesh
        and refreshment to your bones.
(Proverbs 3:5-8 ESV)

My son, do not despise the LORD's discipline
        or be weary of his reproof,
    for the LORD reproves him whom he loves,
        as a father the son in whom he delights.
(Proverbs 3:11-12 ESV)


So I find it to be a law that when I want to do right, evil lies close at hand. For I delight in the law of God, in my inner being, but I see in my members another law waging war against the law of my mind and making me captive to the law of sin that dwells in my members. Wretched man that I am! Who will deliver me from this body of death? Thanks be to God through Jesus Christ our Lord! So then, I myself serve the law of God with my mind, but with my flesh I serve the law of sin.
(Romans 7:21-25 ESV)


Oh how true these verses have proved in my life! God is so good and yesterday I read Proverbs 3 and Romans 12 in my quiet time. Little did I know he gave those verses to me so that all day I could remind myself not to be wise in my eyes, put others before myself, and to remember God corrects those whom he loves! And trust me, yesterday was not one of my better days, but I look back and see God teaching and revealing to me that prideful thoughts sneak into our minds often without our realization. That's where that strenuous battle of sin comes in! Unfortunately, it seems much easier to give into sin than it does to fight for righteousness and the glory of God. But how badly I want to glorify Him! Jesus, who died for us, is so worthy of every bit of obedience and praise I can give. But, let it be known that every bit of "good" in me is from God, because without him I am a weak vessel capable of nothing. Absolutely nothing.
   
All have turned aside; together they have become worthless;
        no one does good,
        not even one.”
(Romans 3:12 ESV)

The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law. But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.
    Therefore, my beloved brothers, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that in the Lord your labor is not in vain.
(1 Corinthians 15:56-58 ESV)

I am so thankful that God loves me despite the fact I sin, stumble and a lot of the time just mess things up. He is a merciful, wonderful savior.
~Bugg