Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us. Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. --Hebrews 12:1-2
In the book, Is It Real When It Doesn't Work?, authors Doug Murren and Barb Shurin tell this story:
Toward the end of the nineteenth century, Swedish chemist Alfred Nobel awoke one morning to read his own obituary in the local newspaper: 'Alfred Nobel, the inventor of dynamite, who died yesterday, devised a way for more people to be killed in a war than ever before, and he died a very rich man.'
"Actually, it was Alfred's older brother who had died; a newspaper reporter had bungled the epitaph.
"But the account had a profound effect on Nobel. He decided he wanted to be known for something other than developing the means to kill people efficiently and for amassing a fortune in the process. So he initiated the Nobel Prize, the award for scientists and writers who foster peace.
"Nobel said, 'Every man ought to have the chance to correct his epitaph in midstream and write a new one.'"
Few things will change you as much as looking at your own life as though it were finished. What kind of legacy will you leave behind one day when you are gone from this earth?
Will your children, grandchildren, and family members remember you as one who followed obediently after the Lord each day of your life?
You and I are surrounded by people—family, friends, and acquaintances—who are watching the words we use and the things we do in this life. It's not too late to begin writing your epitaph. Strive to leave a legacy that will bring others to Jesus.
PRAYER CHALLENGE: Ask the Lord to make your life a testimony of His love and grace to those around you and those you leave behind.
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