By Megan Sledge
What do you want to be remembered for? The world is on track to run itself dry with the pace life is moving at today. I feel like every day there is more pressure to be more efficient, make more money and appear more successful to those around us. This begs the question: Are those really the things we want to be remembered for? While these things may seem significant at the moment, they are just things. Simple as that. Momentary. Evanescent.
But isn’t that the way life is, too? Isn’t life just a vapor? James 4:14 says, “Yet you do not know what tomorrow will bring — what your life will be. For you are like vapor that appears for a little while, then vanishes.” Life is just like that. A vapor. A second. A blink. A flash.
While it seems like you’re going to be stuck in that awful class for the rest of your life, or you feel you’ll never make it through the semester, your life is truly flying by without you even realizing it. With the eternity of heaven awaiting us just on the horizon, we are only given the gift of life on this earth for but a moment that pales in comparison to the glory of eternity that awaits us.
What do you want to be remembered for? I find it easy to catch myself tangled up in what the world tells me I ought to be remembered for. What TikTok and the latest trends of today tell me is I should work tirelessly to be known for what I can do, not what makes me who I am. Our culture tells me I should pursue wholeness that is defined by their standards as enough money, enough success and enough titles. Is that really enough though? Is that really fulfilling the desires of our hearts?
And I, I don’t want to leave a legacy
I don’t care if they remember me
Only Jesus
– Casting Crowns
Now, don’t get me wrong. Pursuing Jesus in a social media and material obsessed world is not for the faint of heart. The things of this world change constantly, but God doesn’t. Isn’t that so good? How comforting to know that while the world continues to chase temporary things, the God of the universe never ceases to run after us. The people you find yourself surrounded by now in college will remember you for something. What do you want that to be? The coworkers you will see daily will remember you for the way you lived and how you loved. What do you want them to think about after you’re gone? Though it’s a difficult question to face, it is a crucial one to dwell on as followers of Christ.
Live your life in a way you would want to be remembered for. Leave behind a story for others to tell. I want to be remembered for the way I loved other people and showed them just a small piece of how glorious our God is. What about you?
