Creating a lasting legacy is an ongoing process that requires Intention, love, and commitment.

Legacy!

When you hear legacy what’s the first thing that pops into your mind? Is it assets? Honorable name? Group of companies? Fleets of cars? Connection to high places? And so on.

Though none of these things are bad, at the same time they are not enough legacies to leave for a child/child.

Proverbs 13:22 (NKJV): “A good man leaves an inheritance to his children’s children . . .”

This Bible verse about legacy keeps our life goals, our vision and our future, front and center when we’re choosing how to use our money today.

If we weigh what we want now versus what we really want later in life, we may realize that what feels good, right in this moment, won’t last like leaving a legacy of purpose and generational wealth for years to come.

An inheritance is not limited to money. An inheritance also includes Godly character, qualities like integrity and trustworthiness.

When you combine financial inheritance with wisdom and character, this makes sure the next generation will manage their blessings God’s way for His glory for a long, long time!

Let’s take a Brief look at the family of Mr. & Mrs. Ogbonlagba and the family of Chief Mr. & Mrs. Owonikoko.

The Ogbonlagba’s were blessed with three kids, (Imo, Oye, and Igbagbo) a boy and two girls while their neighbor The Owonikoko had two boys (Ipo and Dukia)

The family has been more of family friends ever since they moved in early in their marriage. Their kids were not far apart in age, giving them the advantage of being close and they attended the same school, church, and the same social circles, also their husbands worked in the thesame department in a banking sector.

However, as the children were growing the Owonikoko parents hosted lots of house parties and they invited people in high positions in their circle. They ensure that their children are introduced to every important personnel at the party and the Wife is fond of saying “There is nothing in this life that Money and Position cannot do”.

This was the mindset her children grew up with, they were strong believers in their wealth, and they did not care who got hurt when they were in pursuit of any position or huge contract.

(Hebrews 13:5 (NIV): “Keep your lives free from the love of money and be content with what you have, because God has said, ‘Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you.’”)

The Ogbonlagba’s are strict disciplinarians who keep their children grounded in the way of the lord and his commandments. The family is well above average but they make it compulsory for their children to see beyond their wealth and advantages to look at other aspects of life and to do so from a Christian angle.

They made their children understand that whatever they have or have access to is not for them alone but for them to help others in any way they can, and they were trained well to be selfless and a strong believing Christian from a very early age.

Psalm 112:1–3 (NIV: “Praise the Lord. Blessed are those who fear the Lord, who find great delight in his commands. Their children will be mighty in the land; the generation of the upright will be blessed. Wealth and riches are in their houses, and their righteousness endures forever.”)

Things were going smoothly despite their contradictory beliefs till one day when Ogbonlagba who is the head of department was sacked for allegedly embezzling the office funds.

This came as a shock to everyone who knew the man personally as he is a man with integrity and honor. His wife was depressed over this issue as she became an emergency breadwinner in the family. Her income was not as much as her husband and over time they had to move to an apartment that could suit their budget and they had to do away with some of their luxuries.

Mr. Owonikoko got promoted to the position Mr. Ogbonlagba was demoted from. However, people suspecting something fishy as the person accused of embezzlement was financially in ruins while the person who reported him to the boss was the one acquiring latest cars.

Rumor had it that he recently commissioned a big supermarket for his wife. This caused the office panel to raise the issue again and call Mr. Ogbonlagba over but Owonikoko already bribed the majority of the panel and there was little or no support for Mr. Ogbonlagba.

The Ogbonlagba’s were going through tough times, but they decided to hold fast to God and not allow their circumstances to affect their love for God.

They went about their lives with Thanksgiving and faith in Jesus to turn their lives around like before. This went on for years and Mr Ogbinlagba met a lot of people to help him with a job but they always promised to get back to him without doing so.

The children however were a source of permanent Joy and pride to the Ogbonlagba’s as IMO the first born graduated as the best overall graduating student of her university set and was given a scholarship for her master’s studies abroad in any school of her choice.

Oye innovated a few scientific gadgets that went viral before she was summoned to Japan where she was given a lifetime offer of a job and shares of the company she will be working with, while Igbagbo the only son and the last born was in his first year in a higher institution and he is very promising as well.

The Owonikoko’s is an entirely different story.

IPO the first son decided not to go further in his education since his father has it all, he said he could just learn the hang things and there was no need to waste time in school.

Learning the hang of things in their version means bullying or blackmailing competitors to forsake their contracts for them and doing a bad job afterward.

IPO is the first son of his father and he’s fully aware of every dirty secret in the business. Dukia went to a private university outside the country to Study Business administration and to be able to assist in the family business in the future, but when he got to school, he mixed up with people of like minds and values, people obsessed with Position, Affluence and Wealth.

He joined a notorious cult in his second year which in turn converted him into a murderer, rapist, drug addict, and Bully. He believes that he is above the law and fully protected by his family’s wealth and position, but nothing lasts for long.

The Owonikoko’s continues this way until the father died of cancer, IPO took over the family business and affairs and he ran the business in a dirty way to the point where the family business was ranked one of the top 5 mafia families in the continent.

The Ogbonlagba’s were enjoying the blessings of the lord to the fullest and from every angle. The ladies were known for emulating Christ in their doings and the family was known across the continent for their Charity home where they provided the needs of the less privileged.

Even after the death of their parents, the children passed this priceless legacy of faith and good home training to their children who in turn passed it to their children making the legacy a priceless living legacy.

The Owonikoko’s (both) raised their children in a worse manner than they were raised and the key thing that’s always in their minds is how to attain more power and wealth for themselves alone.

The question?

What legacy did your parents pass unto you and what are you passing or trying to pass unto your offspring in the name of Legacy?

Is it just legacy by worldly standards or legacy by worldly and heavenly standards?

A Good Man Leaves an Inheritance to His Children’s Children, what legacy did your parents pass unto you and what legacy are you passing on?

As a parent can you exemplify this for your children in the nearest future? “Phillipians 4.9: What you have learned and received and heard and seen in me—practice these things, and the God of peace will be with you.”

Can you boldly tell them this without your conscience judging you?

 

Don’t forget to drop your feedback, Stories, observations and recommendations in the comment session below.

Next week on Legacy!

Passing the torch : Building a strong Christian Legacy.