Pastor's Note

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​Joshua 4:1-9 NIV​

1 When the whole nation had finished crossing the Jordan, the Lord said to Joshua, 2 “Choose twelve men from among the people, one from each tribe, 3 and tell them to take up twelve stones from the middle of the Jordan, from right where the priests are standing, and carry them over with you and put them down at the place where you stay tonight.”
4 So Joshua called together the twelve men he had appointed from the Israelites, one from each tribe, 5 and said to them, “Go over before the ark of the Lord your God into the middle of the Jordan. Each of you is to take up a stone on his shoulder, according to the number of the tribes of the Israelites, 6 to serve as a sign among you. In the future, when your children ask you, ‘What do these stones mean?’ 7 tell them that the flow of the Jordan was cut off before the ark of the covenant of the Lord. When it crossed the Jordan, the waters of the Jordan were cut off. These stones are to be a memorial to the people of Israel forever.”
8 So the Israelites did as Joshua command-ed them. They took twelve stones from the middle of the Jordan, according to the number of the tribes of the Israelites, as the Lord had told Joshua; and they carried them over with them to their camp, where they put them down. 9 Joshua set up the twelve stones that had been in the middle of the Jordan at the spot where the priests who carried the ark of the covenant had stood. And they are there to this day.

Leaving a legacy involves more than passing along a respected family name or perhaps handing down an inheritance if circum-stances allow. An inheritance will be appreciated. It will be put to good use.

Our church, and other congregations, establish a solid foundation from current attenders who recognize their wedding, their children’s baptisms and their parent’s memorial services were made possible by those who came before them.

In turn, it is proper to remember the church in making final arrangements so the next generation of children being baptized will be as blessed as one’s own children were. In a larger context, I want you to consider a lasting legacy. One that continues for eternity. A legacy that will be passed on from generation to generation. A lasting legacy is one written upon hearts.

Belief that Jesus Christ is the Son of the Living God by which salvation is received is the legacy that lasts. The only legacy that matters. Most of us attribute the faith we have today to our parents or grandparents or a spouse. We acknowledge that we probably wouldn’t be believers if they had not invited us to share faith in Christ. In these days of ours, I see a lot of parents prioritize almost everything else instead of their faith and their children’s faith. Is there something about your faith that you would like to pass on to those after you? Ask yourself this question, “What is the foundation of my legacy? Is it things of this world or everlasting things of God?” If your grandchildren or great grandchildren come to you and ask, “What does faith mean to you?” What would you say?

Just as the Israelites were instructed to carry stones from the middle of the Jordan and set them up as a memorial legacy of God’s faithful-ness, we too can gather stone markers that rep-resent our legacy. It can mean a lot to take a friend to dinner. It can mean eternity to take a friend to dinner after being in worship with them as your invited guest.
-Rev. Colby