The Story I’ll Tell, Part Four

The Legacy Story We’re Writing Right Now

Lately, I’ve been thinking a lot about legacy—probably more than I ever have before. Maybe it’s my age, maybe it’s the season of life I’m in, but the truth is hard to ignore: I’m closer to the finish line than the starting line. And when you realize that, you start asking different questions.

Questions like: What is my life really saying? What will people remember about me? What story will be told when I’m gone?

Over the last few weeks, I’ve attended a couple of funerals, and there’s nothing like a funeral to put life into perspective. As families stood up and shared memories, stories, and moments that mattered, I walked away thinking, What will my legacy story be?

Here’s the thing, though—we don’t have to wait until the end of our lives to find out. Our legacy story isn’t written later. It’s being written right now.

Legacy isn’t so much about what we leave for people; it’s about what we leave in people. Sure, we’ll all leave behind “stuff.” But the things that truly shape future generations are intangible—our faith, our attitude, our character, and the way we live day in and day out.

The Bible puts it this way: “Let the redeemed of the Lord tell their story.” Not someday. Not at the end. Now. If God has redeemed you, your life is already telling a story through every conversation, every reaction, every decision, every apology, and every step of faith.

Hebrews 11 paints this beautifully. It talks about Abel and says that “by faith, Abel still speaks, even though he is dead.” Abel didn’t leave behind possessions or accomplishments we can point to today—but his faith still speaks thousands of years later. That’s legacy.

So how do we intentionally build a legacy story that matters?

First, it starts with awareness. Legacy doesn’t happen by accident. We have to live with the awareness that how we live today matters tomorrow. Imagine if before every major decision we asked, Is this going to be a good chapter in my story—or one I’ll wish I could tear out later? God already knows the chapters of our lives; our job is to align ourselves with the story He’s writing.

Second, legacy requires contribution. Every one of us has something to bring. Scripture tells us that each person has been given a gift—not for themselves, but to help someone else. When we discover how God has uniquely wired us and choose to contribute, the story gets richer and more powerful.

Third, legacy is contagious. It’s caught more than it’s taught. Just like Peter and John, whose boldness came simply from being with Jesus, our lives naturally rub off on others. The closer we get to Jesus, the more His character, courage, and compassion show up in us—and others notice.

Finally, legacy is built through faithfulness. Not perfect faithfulness. Not religious routines. But fruitfulness. Faithfulness is doing something with what God has given you—using it, multiplying it, and trusting God even through painful or messy chapters. God specializes in rewriting stories, turning pain into purpose and setbacks into testimonies.

At the end of the day, our kids, our grandkids, and future generations won’t remember our stuff. They’ll remember our faith. Our decisions. How we handled hardship. How we trusted God when life was hard.

The good news? Every one of us gets to start writing that legacy story today.