I will make your descendants as numerous as the stars in the sky and give them all these lands, and through your offspring all nations on earth will be blessed, because Abraham obeyed Me and kept My requirements, My commands, My decrees and My laws.

Genesis 26:4-5, NIV 

What do you think of when you think of the legacy that a parent leaves for his children? Do you think of a substantial inheritance? Maybe you think of the notoriety that a famous or powerful parent leaves to his or her children. Perhaps you lean towards the more noble and consider a parent's good name and reputation to be the greatest legacy.

While all of these are areas that one could correctly associate with legacy, Isaac had something even more important than that: He had a father who obeyed God, kept His commands and decrees and requirements and laws. In other words, Abraham's legacy to Isaac was one of serving God.

When you think about it, what could be better? Would you rather have a dad who lives for money, or one who lives for God? Would you rather have a mom who lives for fame and reputation in the eyes of her peers, or one who serves the Lord? The reason that I ask is because someday you will leave a legacy for those you leave behind. If it is one of worldly accomplishment, it will soon fade and your children will be left with nothing but things that collect dust. But if you live for God, then your legacy is different - it is eternal!

And, while the spiritual and physical legacies are not always mutually exclusive, they do have to have a priority. Abraham was able to leave both because he left a physical legacy that came as a result of the blessings stemming from a faithful life. However, had he tried to leave a spiritual blessing from a physically motivated life, he could not have done it, for while spiritual pursuits often have physical blessings attached to them, physical pursuits without placing God first can never result in spiritual blessings.

And so we are left with this encouragement: Your legacy is important. If you can, it is good and proper to leave both a spiritual and a physical legacy to your children. But, if you can only leave one, let it be a spiritual legacy, for when you place God first, everything else will be taken care of!

I was young and now I am old, yet I have never seen the righteous forsaken, or their children begging bread.

Psalms 37:25, NIV

Today is the 7th day of the 120 day challenge to study through the Old Testament, with Genesis 25-28 being the text for today. May God richly bless you as you seek to provide the legacy that only a servant of God can leave for those he loves!