Scripture:
Give ear, O my people, to my teaching; incline your ears to the words of my mouth! I will open my mouth in a parable; I will utter dark sayings from of old, things that we have heard and known, that our fathers have told us. We will not hide them from their children, but tell to the coming generation the glorious deeds of the Lord , and his might, and the wonders that he has done. He established a testimony in Jacob and appointed a law in Israel, which he commanded our fathers to teach to their children, that the next generation might know them, the children yet unborn, and arise and tell them to their children, so that they should set their hope in God and not forget the works of God, but keep his commandments; and that they should not be like their fathers, a stubborn and rebellious generation, a generation whose heart was not steadfast, whose spirit was not faithful to God.
Psalm 78:1-8
Devotional Thought:
Psalm 78 opens with a declaration that cuts against almost everything our culture values: “We will tell the next generation the praiseworthy deeds of the Lord.” The psalmist is not primarily concerned with his own achievements — he is obsessed with passing something on. He wants the children to know, the grandchildren to know, the great-grandchildren yet to be born to know that God is faithful and worthy of trust.
This is the difference between achievement and legacy. Achievement is what you accumulate in your own lifetime. Legacy is what remains when you are gone — what you have deposited in the people and communities around you that continues to bear fruit after you can no longer tend it.
Esau achieved. He built a nation. He left behind a long list of chiefs and kings. But he left behind no spiritual legacy. There is no mention in all of Scripture of Esau passing faith to his children, no prayer credited to him, no moment of worship recorded, no act of covenant faithfulness. His descendants built kingdoms, but they did not carry a story of God’s faithfulness because Esau had not lived that story himself.
Jacob, on the other hand, was a mess — a deceiver, a schemer, a man who wrestled with God and lost. But he was the one who received and passed on the blessing. He told his sons about the God of his father Abraham and the God of his father Isaac. He spoke the covenant promises over his children. He built an altar. He wept and prayed and believed.
You are building a legacy right now, whether you are thinking about it or not. The question is not whether you will leave something behind — you will. The question is what. Achievement without legacy is the story of Esau. Let it not be yours.
Reflection Questions:
1. What do you want the people closest to you to know about God because of having watched your life?
2. What is the difference between the achievements you are currently pursuing and the legacy you actually want to leave?
Application:
Write a one-paragraph description of the spiritual legacy you want to leave. Share it with someone you trust and ask them to help hold you accountable to building toward it.