Leaving a Legacy of Faith

 Legacy can be defined as the long-lasting impact of a person's life. This morning, I read about Noah in Genesis 6. Noah left a legacy of faith. One that saved his family from the flood when he built the ark. It is estimated it took Noah over a century to build that massive boat. 

Noah is a unique character. He lived in a very pagan world. There were no followers of God in his day. Noah stood alone. He did not cave into the cultural times. Everywhere he turned and whomever he came into contact with were pagans. They only thought about doing evil. Noah walked with God. That must have been difficult to stand firm in the faith when everyone else went along with popular opinions and attitudes of the day. 

God tasked Noah with building an ark. He had no power tools. He could not go to a hardware store for supplies. Everything about building that ark was hard physical labor. Everything about it was a step of faith. To believe God would send a flood in judgment of the world was faith. I am sure Noah was ridiculed and questioned many times over that span he built the ark. He just kept sawing, measuring and connecting boards to construct a boat that was 450 feet long, 75 feet wide, and 45 feet high in faith. It was his legacy of faith not just for his family but for the whole animal kingdom. 

The proof of Noah's faith was the ark. It was his crowning achievement. His life's work. His masterpiece. The ark was Noah's legacy of faith. I wonder about my legacy. What legacy of faith will I leave behind? Some financial miracles. A handful of souls saved. Three dead churches. Two others that barely keep the doors open. A couple of revivals. Not much. 

I am fueled by Noah's legacy to trust God more and pray harder to leave a legacy of faith after I am gone. Something that is tangible proof of what I believed God to do. I cannot say what that will be. Maybe it will be the church I shepherd. Maybe it will be a book or these blogs that I write. Maybe it will be something I've not even thought of yet. I want to leave a legacy of faith. Some monument of what I trusted God to do. I've got more praying and faith walking to do before that becomes reality.