Daily Devotional for Tuesday, October 14

A Good Name

“A good name is rather to be chosen than great riches, and loving favour rather than silver and gold,” Proverbs 22:1.

Walking around a cemetery, you might notice that many headstones have some small tribute to the person buried beneath them. You might see things such as “A good man, a good father” and so forth. Families often like to include what their deceased loved one was best known for. You rarely see things such as “He was loaded, had nice cars,” or “was the boss of bosses.” The findings above would be true on all tombstones, not just the ones that were eternity-minded during their lives. It seems even the heathens leave this earth with a basic understanding that our legacy in life matters and that subjective things like love, integrity and family matter more than physical things such as money and possessions.

So, the desire to be remembered for some intangible good quality seems to matter to most of us. Some people even say that “reputation is everything.” God agrees with this sentiment because, in our devotional verse, He inspired the writer of Proverbs to tell us this exact thing. A good name and a good reputation matter more than money or possessions.

People thinking I was nice, kind, honest, ethical and loving will be a good thing when I am gone. What matters more to me now is that they know why I (hopefully) was those things. My enduring hope regarding other people’s memory of me is that Jesus changed my life and me into someone to remember positively. If the only words my family can think to place on my headstone is “He loved Jesus with all he had,” then I can leave this earth with a legacy I can live with, so to speak. What will your legacy be?

JUST A THOUGHT

It is true that “you cannot take it with you.” You will leave your possessions, memory and legacy behind. People will spend your money faster than they will forget your legacy.

Wally Fry