The Morning I Stopped Scrolling
I’ll be honest with you—last Tuesday morning, I made the mistake of opening my phone before my Bible.
International conflicts. Tentative ceasefires. Economic uncertainties. Sports teams’ expansions. Coffee Rivalries. Some of these aren’t that bad, but others seem to be all too common in our news cycle these days. I don’t know about you, but sometimes it seems insurmountable. How do I make a difference, and where do I even begin? I don’t know what to do, and I just feel overwhelmed. It is in moments like this that I try my hardest to recount the things I do know – the sun rises and sets, I love grilled chicken breast, it’s so cool to watch the boats going up and down the channel, God is faithful. I pray these things quite often, and I try to open myself to what God is saying even when things seem too hard to do anything about.
Sound familiar? Maybe your morning looked like mine: headlines about wars, political division, and cultural upheaval. Before I knew it, that familiar knot had formed in my stomach—the one that whispers, “Everything’s falling apart.”
But here’s what I’ve learned in my years of pastoral ministry: when the world feels shaky, that’s exactly when our roots matter most.
Why Legacy Isn’t What You Think It Is
Let me tell you about Sarah, a grandmother in our community. While everyone else was panic-sharing news articles last week, she was teaching her seven-year-old granddaughter to pray the Lord’s Prayer. When I asked her about it, she smiled and said, “Pastor, I can’t control what’s happening out there. But I can make sure this little one knows where her hope comes from.”
That’s legacy in action—not something you leave behind, but something you live out today.
Legacy isn’t about building monuments to ourselves. It’s about planting seeds of hope that will grow long after we’re gone.
The Real Crisis (And Why It’s Also Our Greatest Opportunity)
Here’s a statistic that keeps me up at night: 70% of young people raised in church walk away from their faith during college years. But before you despair, listen to this: Gen Z is googling “Nicene Creed” at record rates. They’re joining worldview camps and asking deeper questions about faith than any generation in recent memory.
What does this tell us? Our young people aren’t rejecting substance—they’re starving for it.
Three Simple Ways to Build a Lasting Legacy Today
1. Choose Truth Over Trends
I watched a teenager in a youth group once hand a pocket New Testament to a classmate who was struggling with anxiety. No fancy presentation, no program—just one young person sharing what had helped them. The classmate texted later: “I read the whole book of Philippians last night. I think I get it now.”
This week, ask yourself: What truth has anchored you that you could share with someone else?
2. Listen First, Love Always
In our polarized world, being pastoral means being present. When someone shares their fears about the future, our first response shouldn’t be to debate or defend—it should be to listen and love.
I’ve found that when people feel truly heard, they’re more open to hope. Sometimes the most pastoral thing we can do is sit with someone in their uncertainty and say, “I don’t have all the answers, but I know the One who does.”
3. Write Your “Faith Will” Today
Take five minutes right now and write down:
- The Bible verse that has carried you through your darkest season
- One hard-learned lesson you want to pass on
- Your prayer for the fears your loved ones carry
In my Faith Will, I include my favorite Bible verses from Romans 8:38-39: “”For I am convinced that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor rulers, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.” It’s always comforted me that nothing – no thing, no trial, no hardship, no good thing, no death, no illness, no missing body part-can keep us from God’s love. God is love, pure and simple.
The lesson that I would leave is that you can’t fix everything, and sometimes your presence matters far more than your solutions. And my prayer for my loved ones and their fears: God, don’t let fear consume and overtake them. Give them strength. Build them up in love. Help them to see your hope shining even in the darkest of corners and assure them you are always with us, in Jesus Christ our Lord, and by the power of the Holy Spirit. Amen”
The Hope That Outlasts Headlines
Here’s what I want you to remember when the world feels overwhelming: your faith is older than the crisis, and it will outlast it too.
While news cycles spin and social media arguments rage, we get to do something beautifully subversive:
- We serve meals to hungry neighbors
- We pray for our leaders (even the ones we didn’t vote for)
- We teach children to sing “Jesus Loves Me” with the same confidence their great-grandparents did
What Your Great-Grandchildren Will Remember
I’ve been thinking a lot about legacy lately, especially as I watch the church navigate these uncertain times. Your great-grandchildren won’t remember today’s Twitter (I know it’s really X) controversies or news headlines. But they will inherit the courage, kindness, and faith you choose to live out today.
The question isn’t whether you’ll leave a legacy—you will. The question is: what kind?
A Prayer for Shaky Times
Lord, when the world feels unstable, help us remember that You are the same yesterday, today, and forever. Give us courage to live our faith boldly, wisdom to love well, and hope that outlasts any headline. Use our ordinary lives to build extraordinary legacies of faith. Amen.
What’s one small step you can take this week to build a lasting legacy? I’d love to hear from you in the comments below.