There we sat, my Kaitlyn and I, across from one another in a booth at Whataburger.
I gazed into her big beautiful brown eyes and said to her with great emotion,
"I have to talk to you about something. It's very important to me and I think that it's time we talk about it."
She listened on intently, her eyes growing larger with every second.
"I want to talk to you about the legacy I want to leave you," I said.
I had her full attention at this point.
"Yes?" she responded.
"It's important to me that I leave a legacy with my daughters. A legacy of being a non-shopper." I said with a smile.
She bursts out in laughter and says,
"I'm sorry Mom, your going to have to talk to Amber about this one."
A few days later, my oldest came home from college to spend the day. I picked up the conversation where I left off with her sister.
I began to share my heart once again with my other daughter, Amber...
"It's important to be that I leave a legacy with my daughters. A legacy of being a non-shopper."
Silence fills the room, as she looks at me with her big blue eyes filled with sincerity and says,
"Oh Mom, I'm sorry, but it's too late for me!"
Then she points to her little brother and says,
"Don't feel bad. At least you have Mason, he hates shopping."
I don't know what it is, but I seriously loathe shopping.
Loathe with a capital L-O-A-T-H-E!
Take yesterday for instance, I shopped for a new pair of jeans and it was torture.
I would have rathered pull out all of my eyelashes, one by one.
I would have rathered pull out all of my eyelashes, one by one.
It wasn't even because I shopped for jeans, because I know that in itself is horrendous to most women.
It's shopping all together that I don't like.
Never have I ever said,
"I went shopping today and it was so much fun!"
or
"Oooh, I can't wait to go shopping!"
or
"I would love to relax and spend the day shopping."
Nope.
or
"Oooh, I can't wait to go shopping!"
or
"I would love to relax and spend the day shopping."
Nope.
Never have I ever, hold onto your hats...been shopping on Black Friday.
Nope. Never.
I know. Crazy right?
And it's not because I don't like pretty things.
I LOVE pretty clothes and shoes and jewelry and purses.
I love, love, love them.
Check out my Pinterest boards, there are tons of pretty things on there...
but you won't catch me shopping for any of it.
My husband swears it's because my highschool years were spent in hand me down clothes, living in the projects of a very small town and never going shopping.
He says I adjusted early to the simplicity of life.
He has a point...but I say to myself,
"Get over it already! Buy you some new pretty shoes and like it!"
All humor aside,
I really desire to leave my children with a legacy.
My mother may not have brought me shopping when I was a teenage girl, but what she did give me, even amongst her brokenness, was a love for Christ, a heart to serve Him and a desire to change the world around me.
And that...
is the legacy that I choose to pass on.
Oh, that they would have a heart to serve the Lord.
That even amongst the brokenness of my own life at times, that they remember and know how much their Father in Heaven rejoices in every breath that they take and how He longs to bring them to fullness in Him.
A life of grace poured out on the cross and resurrected in their hearts.
I want them to know, that even in the tiniest of amounts... their smile, their heart, their love and their life can and will make a difference.
They will change the world.
My oldest has a heart so full of passion for the Lord that it leaks out of her, spewing hope and love for everyone around her.
When I hear her say,
"I'm going back to Romania Mom. I know I am, and God is going to do great things there."
my heart explodes with excitement for her.
When I see her standing on stage leading worship for her youth group, or singing the newest song God has written on her heart...
I can't help but see the world around her changing in those few seconds.
She, is already a world changer.
My youngest daughter is the essence of Joy.
She brings laughter to everyone around her and her sprouting heart for Christ blesses me every day.
I asked her the other day if she missed her friends from public school, due to the fact that we homeschool now and she never sees them, and her response gave me a glimpse into her future...
"No, Mom I don't. Those friends were hurtful to me and I know now that they weren't really my true friends. I have real friends now. They laugh with me, not at me, and love me and I can talk about God without feeling embarassed about it. That's a good thing. No, I'm okay."
And her world slowly changes for the better with each word that leaves her mouth.
Her bright confident smile revealing God's love growing inside her.
My little guy was baptized last week.
The day before, we were riding in the car and he was practicing what he wanted to say as his "statement of faith" during his baptism.
He went over three or four things that he thought were good and asked me what I thought.
"I just want to say the best thing Mom to show people that I love Jesus and what he has done for me", he explains from the backseat.
And as he stands with his hands cupped together, about to cover his little mouth and nose before being submerged under the water he says proudly,
"My name is Mason Stelly. I am a disciple of Christ."
And Heaven rejoices as his little world changes in that very moment.
World changers...
they weren't created to be ordinary, they were created to stand out and make a difference.
Oh, that they would have a heart to serve the Lord,
and change the world they live in.
That is His legacy.
He says I adjusted early to the simplicity of life.
He has a point...but I say to myself,
"Get over it already! Buy you some new pretty shoes and like it!"
All humor aside,
I really desire to leave my children with a legacy.
My mother may not have brought me shopping when I was a teenage girl, but what she did give me, even amongst her brokenness, was a love for Christ, a heart to serve Him and a desire to change the world around me.
And that...
is the legacy that I choose to pass on.
Oh, that they would have a heart to serve the Lord.
That even amongst the brokenness of my own life at times, that they remember and know how much their Father in Heaven rejoices in every breath that they take and how He longs to bring them to fullness in Him.
A life of grace poured out on the cross and resurrected in their hearts.
I want them to know, that even in the tiniest of amounts... their smile, their heart, their love and their life can and will make a difference.
They will change the world.
My oldest has a heart so full of passion for the Lord that it leaks out of her, spewing hope and love for everyone around her.
When I hear her say,
"I'm going back to Romania Mom. I know I am, and God is going to do great things there."
my heart explodes with excitement for her.
When I see her standing on stage leading worship for her youth group, or singing the newest song God has written on her heart...
I can't help but see the world around her changing in those few seconds.
She, is already a world changer.
My youngest daughter is the essence of Joy.
She brings laughter to everyone around her and her sprouting heart for Christ blesses me every day.
I asked her the other day if she missed her friends from public school, due to the fact that we homeschool now and she never sees them, and her response gave me a glimpse into her future...
"No, Mom I don't. Those friends were hurtful to me and I know now that they weren't really my true friends. I have real friends now. They laugh with me, not at me, and love me and I can talk about God without feeling embarassed about it. That's a good thing. No, I'm okay."
And her world slowly changes for the better with each word that leaves her mouth.
Her bright confident smile revealing God's love growing inside her.
My little guy was baptized last week.
The day before, we were riding in the car and he was practicing what he wanted to say as his "statement of faith" during his baptism.
He went over three or four things that he thought were good and asked me what I thought.
"I just want to say the best thing Mom to show people that I love Jesus and what he has done for me", he explains from the backseat.
And as he stands with his hands cupped together, about to cover his little mouth and nose before being submerged under the water he says proudly,
"My name is Mason Stelly. I am a disciple of Christ."
And Heaven rejoices as his little world changes in that very moment.
World changers...
they weren't created to be ordinary, they were created to stand out and make a difference.
Oh, that they would have a heart to serve the Lord,
and change the world they live in.
That is His legacy.
Deuteronomy 4:9
Only be careful, and watch yourselves closely so that you do not forget the things your eyes have seen or let them fade from your heart as long as you live. Teach them to your children and to their children after them.
What is the legacy you want to leave for your children?
I'd love for you to leave a comment.
Have a blessed day!
What a great post! I loved your daughters reactions. So stinking funny. I too home school and want to leave a legacy for my girls. I would love for them to say,"If you followed my mom, you followed Christ."
ReplyDeleteTo be full of Gods love and joy that overflows into them. Although at the cost of sounding shallow, I wouldn't mind if they followed me while I was wearing a cute pair of jeans. ha! Whaaaaat? I like shopping. LOL! Glad I found your blog. Look forward to reading more.