Alright, well I finally decided to start up a blog.
I'll basically use this to let some of the overflow of my mind have a home haha.
So here's what's on my mind today...
At Kairos (Tuesday night church for young adults that meets at Brentwood Baptist) this past week we talked about our legacies.
The stories we leave behind when we leave this earth for our new home.
and Mike (the pastor) asked a question that has been weighing on my mind ever since he asked it.
"What stories will you leave behind?"
So I got to thinking...
What stories will be told at my funeral?
What will my friends and family remember me for?
Will I be 'that guy I knew in high school'
or 'that dude that led my small group at camp'
or 'that one guy I saw play music that one time'?
Or will I be 'that guy that hurt me'
or 'that guy that never paid attention to me'?
Who will speak at my funeral?
More importantly who will even COME? haha
These are questions I will never know the answer to while I'm still on this earth
These are questions that I haven't the slightest clue how to answer
But, questions that I can most definitely have influence on how they are answered
Mike said something else that stuck with me
"You don't have control on when you go, and you don't even have control on HOW you go, but you do have control on what stories you leave behind"
So it got me thinking about this short life I've lived thus far
And all the stories that I've accumulated over the years
And out of all of those stories which ones I'm actually proud of
So here we are now
The stories I'm not so proud of outweigh the ones I am proud of
Which I'm sure many of you can say the same thing, after all we all are human and we all make mistakes
So how do we go about changing this?
One practical way Mike talked about was being good stewards of the relationships we have been blessed with
After all God has a purpose and plan with each and every relationship we're a part of
Otherwise why would we be in those relationships?
We can be good stewards of relationships by investing time in each other
This can be something small like taking 30 seconds to send someone a text just letting them know you're thinking of them
it could be something a bit bigger like grabbing lunch with someone
or even spending a weekend on vacation with them, taking a roadtrip, etc
The list goes on and on
It could be just simply telling someone you love them
I don't understand why we have become so afraid of telling people this in our time, but I don't like it
If you love someone, let them know
There are no guarantees you'll have another chance to do so
And who knows, maybe it might be something they needed to hear at that moment
What it all boils down to is a very simple concept:
Other people are more important than yourself
So why do we find it so difficult to invest time in others?
I wish I knew the answer for all of us
But for now all I can say is for myself, I get selfish
I want my "me" time too often
I am too easily frustrated
I need more patience with others
I need a more humble spirit
I need to put others before myself more
These are all things I am working on
And hopefully I will begin to bear fruit of this
Anyways, I will leave you with the same question Mike asked of us at Kairos
"What stories will you leave behind?"
What impact will you have on those around you?
What pieces of your life will you leave behind, imprinted on the ones you love?
Who will people say you were?
With love,
Brad
