by Dale Reeves

Story Pastor

 

The end of the calendar year and the beginning of a new year present wonderful opportunities for making memories! Family celebrations at home and church make for some great intergenerational experiences. This past month, my family got to enjoy one another quite a bit as we traveled to the “Festival of Lights” at the Cincinnati Zoo, “Winterfest” at Kings Island, the “Solstice Glow” at Krohn Conservatory, and had multiple opportunities for family feasts, an overnighter with our grandchildren, and worshiping our Lord together on Christmas Eve. My wife and I are blessed to have our daughters, sons-in-law, and four grandkids (the heathen) live within twenty minutes of our home, and we do not take this for granted!

 

My favorite moment of the whole season was during our church’s Christmas Eve service when I caught a peek at five-year-old Miles looking at his Mamaw with innocence and wonder beaming through his eyes as they held a lit candle together while singing “Silent Night” with our church. At this stage of my life, that about sums it all up—our job is to shout about the goodness of God to our grandkids as we share stories of his faithfulness through the years. In this world that can be very dark and gloomy, we must continue to shine the light into the darkness—and perhaps the best way to do that is by passing on the torch from generation to generation. The psalmist Asaph asserts, “We your people, the sheep of your pasture, will thank you forever and ever, praising your greatness from generation to generation” (Psalm 79:13, NLT).

 

Passing on a Godly Legacy

Enjoying family feasts (and trying to get a decent picture of the kids—Exhibit A above!), and traveling to fun destinations with our kids and grandkids are essential for making memories and building lasting relationships, but there is nothing more crucial than passing on a godly legacy through reading God’s Word and teaching them how to walk with Jesus.

 

The best way to “praise his greatness from generation to generation” was outlined for us in several places in the book of Deuteronomy. Moses instructed God’s people in Deuteronomy 11:18-21: “Commit yourselves wholeheartedly to these words of mine. Tie them to your hands and wear them on your forehead as reminders. Teach them to your children. Talk about them when you are at home and when you are on the road, when you are going to bed and when you are getting up. Write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates, so that as long as the sky remains above the earth, you and your children may flourish in the land the Lord swore to give your ancestors” (NLT).

 

These directives were echoed earlier in the Shema prayer we find in Deuteronomy 6:4, 5, when Moses told the people to “Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one. Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength” (NIV). It was a daily prayer for ancient Israelites and is still recited by Jewish people today. The Shema derives its name from the first Hebrew word of the prayer—“hear” or “listen!” And, the word meant a lot more than merely letting the sound waves enter their ears. It meant that they would need to let the words sink in, provide understanding, and generate an obedient response. Moses was addressing the new generation of Israel as they were preparing to enter the promised land. He urged them to not repeat the mistakes of their parents’ generation, wanting them to experience the full blessings of God in their new land. But in order to do so, they would have to learn to listen to and love God fully, above all else.

 

The Word of God Stands Forever

There is some great news when it comes to Bible reading and Bible sales in our country today. According to CBN.com, Bible sales were up 22% in 2024 through the end of October when compared to last year’s sales. The Wall Street Journal called it, “a golden age of Bible publishing.” In their research, WSJ found that Bible sales increased from 9.7 million in 2019 to 14.2 million in 2023, and in the first ten months of 2024, sales were already at 13.7 million copies sold. U.S. book sales were up less than 1% during that same period, meaning that Bible sales far outpaced what has been happening in the print literary space. Why the increase? Chaos, anxiety, and uncertainty in the world has caused many people to desire to turn back to God. People are searching for something genuine, and they are looking for something real. They are on a quest for hope. Young people, in particular, could be looking for answers to some of life’s tough questions, especially as cultural confusion continues to grow. Wanna know more? Click here.

 

One of the Christmas gifts I received this year from one of my daughters and her husband is a year-long devotional book entitled, Truth for Life: 365 Daily Devotions, authored by Bible teacher Alistair Begg, an American pastor of Scottish birth. I’m enjoying the daily devotions every morning and have committed to reading through the whole Bible this year—something I haven’t done in a few years. If you’ve ever thought about taking on this Bible reading challenge, I can tell you that it can be accomplished in only 20-30 minutes a day. Friends, that’s just one TV show you can give up, or less than the time it takes to watch a quarter of NFL football. And, your time with God is worth way more than that!

 

In my reading the other day, Alistair Begg hit me with this, in his commentary on Proverbs 7:1-3,

“There is a real danger in going through our days spiritually hungry because we have not fed well upon the word of God. . . . We must get beyond using the Bible merely as a textbook to study, a book of proof texts for arguments, or a promise book to which we occasionally turn. . . . There is a direct correlation between delighting in God’s word—allowing it to control and guide our lives—and maintaining a zeal for purity. If we fail to cherish Scripture, the question is not if we will stumble in the matter of purity, but when.”

 

If this piques your interest, you can check out this 365-daily-devotional book here.

 

If we are to successfully pass on to the next generations a godly legacy of bringing light to a world of darkness, then abiding in God’s holy Word is an absolute necessity. Reading commentaries is great, listening to worship music, podcasts, and sermons can all help, but there is no substitute for God’s inspired Word that is just as relevant today as when it was penned by over forty different authors (all directed by God’s Holy Spirit), over a period of about 1,500 years. Many things come and go, but the Word of our God endures forever—from generation to generation!

 

In the eighth century BC, the prophet Isaiah nailed it,

“The grass withers, the flower fades, but the word of our God will stand forever” (Isaiah 40:8, ESV).