When Nothing Else Matters

It’s been my privilege to minister and pray with quite a few people as they have walked through their last days on earth and approached their moment of eternal destiny, as they ‘cross the river’ which separates time from eternity. When flesh fails, for those who know the Lord, God is all they want! The things of earth have grown ‘strangely dim’ in the ‘light of His glory and grace’ as I have so often sung in the words of the chorus, Turn your eyes upon Jesus’.

But when flesh has failed, as it surely will, we will inevitably leave behind the treasure that has been accumulated on life’s journey. Our material possessions are distributed according to our will for another generation of beneficiaries to use and to enjoy. But there is an inheritance that we leave behind which is never mentioned in the will and yet is the only inheritance that can yet reap blessing and benefit in heaven – the inheritance that has been sown into the world as a result of the lives we have lived.

The spiritual treasure that we leave behind, which cannot be counted by the executors of anyone’s estate, will continue to reap a harvest for years and generations to come. When people think of you after you have gone, what will be their lasting impression? Will they remember the depth and the integrity of your spiritual life and be challenged to walk closer to the Saviour?

When the Apostle Paul was writing his letters in prison he had no idea that what he was writing would one day become part of the New Testament – but what he left behind was powerful evidence of the living reality of his everyday walk with Jesus. Generations have been blessed by the spiritual treasure he left behind. Like Paul, we should all be concerned about whether the spiritual treasure we leave behind will be an eternal blessing to the succeeding generations.

Prayer: Thank You, Lord, for the lives of those who impacted me for good and for God. Thank you for their living testimony. Help me, Lord, to always be aware of the influence my life can have on others as I seek to serve You with all of my heart. In Jesus’s Name. Amen.