With this kind of spiritual nurture, the Edwards family left an amazing legacy. Their son, Jonathan Edwards, grew up to become the most notable preacher of his generation. And then over the next five generations descendants of Timothy and Esther Edwards included 14 college presidents, 100 college professors, several judges, dozens of preachers, 60 physicians, 60 authors, and over 100 lawyers.
Timothy and Esther were the initial link in a chain that extended a massive spiritual influence far into the future.
A similar thing could happen to you.
Psalm 78 tells us that we are to tell our children the stories of the saints who have come before us. We are to tell our children about Abraham, Moses, David, Esther, the prophets, Jesus, Paul, Wesley, ML King, Billy Graham, Mother Theresa, etc. These are the spiritual giants who have gone before us. We are to pass on their stories of faith, and become a link in a historical chain of faith. And we are to live in such a way that our children's children will be telling our story of faith someday as well.
Who are the spiritual heroes in your past? Perhaps a devoted Christian grandparent or parent or an aunt or uncle?
Who in the Bible has been a hero to you?
Who in church history has inspired you?
And finally, what about your life will your children be telling their children? What spiritual influence do you hope to have?
My wife's dad had a huge impact on me. Here is one of great stories of his life. He was asked to become a missionary to Australia and was given 24 hours to make a decision. Sensing that this was the call of God on his life, he said yes, committing to spending 7 years of his life in a foreign country with one day of deliberation.
ReplyDeleteMoses, who led a throng of rebellious Israelites through the desert to the promised land is my biggest Bible hero.
I hope my children will tell their children that I did what God asked me to do, and obeyed no matter what the cost.
My Mother and maternal Grandmother were both instrumental in developing my faith. Being brought up by them both in a Baptist faith, taught me a lot of the bible and it's importance in our lives.
ReplyDeleteMy biblical hero to me would be Jesus. Doing things that are not all together popular or comfortable, for the right reason has given me many motivational lessons throughout my life.
A pastor I had when I was a child, in my personal church history, has inspired me in many ways through my life. He took me in, in times of need and taught me many times, the right thing to do, in spite of all goings on around me.
I would hope my children would see me as a righteous person, doing the right thing for the right reasons, never worrying what others might think or do.
Jeff- Is this the "small group" that I should be blogging with? I tried to comment prior to this and it did not work. I just read your info. for Feb. 1st, 2010. Andrea Garling comments: One of the most inspirational people that I feel brought me closer in my Faith was the Minister that married my ex-husband and I. At the time, I attended St. Peter's Episcopal Church in Bloomfield, NY. I was age 16 when I went on a church youth group trip to Abaco, Bahamas. I went with St. Thomas Episcopal Church Minister and their youth group to help a church in need in a small, poor town. We painted the church, had bible lessons and songs with the church people in the community, etc. Pastor John Martiner had a strong influence on my faith. I went on as a young adult to attend his church in Brighton, and he married me the first time. My Dad married Jim & I! Also, a moment in my life that I will never forget!
ReplyDeleteA bible "hero"- Adam & Eve or Moses
After all of this typing & thought- I hope the blogging worked!
This is Andrea Garling finishing her blog... I hope that my son will learn by my examples that I have and continue to provide him related to Living his Life with Christian Morals & Values! I hope that he will be inspired to take his own family on a Faith Journey someday!
ReplyDeleteI am so glad you used Jonathan Edwards as your illustration. Jonathan Edwards was a man who knew the place and value of extraordinary prayer in the life of the Church. He oversaw 2 great revivals in American history in the 1700's changing the face and future of our country. I wonder how many of us can look at church history outside of scripture and be able to identify more than just a few heroes of the faith yet there is a long line of men and women whose devotion, surrender and sacrifice have become the next generations' stepping stones in the kingdom of God. I would mention a particular hero for me in the history of the church of our upstate NY area, Daniel Nash lived in the early 1800's, he pastored a church in Lowville until circumstances led him to partner in prayer with Charles Finney. He and a few other men would precede Finney into the small towns of our region and find a barn to borrow or basement to rent or wherever God provided. They would close the door and press in in prayer for days and weeks until they felt they had broken through. Then Finney would come in and preach the word. Upstate NY experienced an unbelievable revival resulting in the salvation of great numbers in these towns including Rochester.It is this type of 100% commitment that I long to see characterize our church and my family. It is what I continually pray for. I wonder if some day people will look back at us and find any heroes of the faith.
ReplyDeleteI really didn't have any spiritual influence growing up that I can remember standing out to me. When I met my husband he answered a lot of questions I had and my faith grew from there.
ReplyDeleteMy biblical hero would be Jesus. I do my best to try to do the right thing and live my life as I would hope Jesus would want me to.
My pastor at Walnut Hill Community church really helped me grow in my faith and shared a lot of messages that really related to our every day life that we could relate to.
As far as my children I would hope that they would remember me as always trying to do the right thing, telling the truth and doing things for others to help them and show them that they matter.
"Who in the Bible has been a hero to you?"
ReplyDeleteI would like to mention Cornelius. Who is mentioned in Acts chapter 10. He was devoted to God, and it was effective. He became the first gentile to receive the Holy Spirit, and was baptized into God's family. This encourages me to continue to be in prayer, to read God's word, and to apply it in my life.
"What about your life will your children be telling their children? What spiritual influence do you hope to have?"
I want my children to think of me as a man of faith, who is obedient to God. But more then that, I want them to have a solid foundation in the form of trust and love for God. To love the Lord with all that they have, and to be close to Him. I want them to tell others that I was an influence in their lives in this way.
When I was a teenager there were a group of us who went to various churches in the Northeast on Lay Witness Missions. I did this because it was fun and I got to hang out with other teenagers. However, it was on one of these Lay Witness Missions that I accepted Christ as my personal svaior. Jim Billig, the man responsible for putting together the witness teams, was a spritual hero for me.
ReplyDeleteStrong women of the Bible are also spiritual heroes. They lived at a time when life was not easy for women and they did not have the advantages and acceptance that women have today. I have a great admiration for people who can fight for a cause in an uphill battle.
I don't know a lot about church history, but I do know that Martin Luther King has always been an inspiration. Much like the strong women of the Bible, MLK found tremendous odds and his legacy lives on today.
I would hope that my children will someday understand how important it was that they be raised in a Christian home and be part of a Church community. There were weeks when I brought them against their desires but I always felt that my greatest responisbility as a parent was to bring them up with the influence of Christ and the church.
A spiritual hero that I have was my geat grandma Bowerman. She was born in the early 1900's and she lived a very difficult life. She had 8 children and was often doing it alone. Despite a husband who was arrested and died many years later in jail, she loved the Lord with all her heart. She was the beginnning of Christianity in our family and served him her whole 98 years.
ReplyDeleteMary is a wonderful example of true faith. She trusted God when he told her that she was carrying "The Savior." At that time being a single unwed mother would have been thought of very poorly. How many would have believed that she was carrying God's son? Despite all of that she followed the perfect plan!
I do not have a great knowledge of church history. For me attending a Billy Graham Crusade in the 1980's was one of the most memorable events of my life. The feeling in the air when he preached was completely God breathed. It was amazing!!
I think that my children will share with there kids that our life was not perfect or easy but that despite that there parents made many mistakes... they really loved the Lord and used prayer as a family foundation and binder.
I would like to influence my kids to grow there faith and build a foundation so that when the storms come, as they always do they will lean on the "Rock."
I don't know if I have a personal spiritual hero, but my grandmother was my personal hero at a young age. My Mom was single and we lived with my Grandparents until I was 7. My Grandmother played a key role in raising me during that time. While she watched over me, she laid down the foundation for my morals and values and while she never really used the Bible or a church to communicate those things, it was clear that those "Christian-like" values were important to her and she very much wanted to impart them on me.
ReplyDeleteThe story of David and Goliath is one of my most memorable stories in the Bible. I wonder what David was thinking about when he was selecting a stone to use in his eventual showdown. I think about how many people on this side thought he was a fool or crazy or both as he approached Goliath. I can just imagine what the other side thought when they saw David across from their Philistine. There were those who tried to protect David and give him armor and weapons, but he refused them. David knew he was going to defeat Goliath on faith alone. I think about the physical act of placing the stone in the sling and hurling it with all of his might, lifting his entire body off the ground and throwing himself at Goliath without any reservation. David needed nothing more than his faith and he committed every part of himself to demonstrating that faith. The result was victory.
I don't really know what about of my life my children would describe to theirs. I would hope that they would see that I do everything I can to help others, show kindness and support, and place high value in doing the right things in life. For me and Lesley, we are working hard to ensure that our children have a strong spiritual foundation that they can grow from as they get older. We both lacked this in our lives. I do not have enough of a track record for my children to describe me as a spiritual person who always puts God and Jesus first in our lives, but I hope to continue to show them that those things are important to me and important for them and together we continue to grow in this area.
Chris Donnelly says:
ReplyDeleteMy mother has been very inspirational to me. She has a quiet, gentleness about her. My four siblings and my father were her priority, day in and day out. Her devotion to the Blessed Mother has left a lasting impression on me. Mary, in her quiet, gentleness followed, without question, the call she received. My mother has many qualities Mary had; her love of our Lord radiates in everything she does. Interestingly, I could go on and on about my mother, but wonder what my children will have to say about me. The more I learn, the more I realize how much I have to learn.
I am grateful that we found our way to FUMC; although I am overwhelmed at times at how little I know about the bible, and the people in it, I am encouraged by the knowledge of the bloggers above and know that I will gain more knowledge in time as I read the Bible more and more!
My mom & a friend’s mom were the influential ones in my early years. My mom laid the foundation by dragging me to services every Sunday and requiring Religious Ed classes.
ReplyDeleteIn my later teen years, when I began to doubt the existence of God, a friend’s mom helped reopen my eyes to Christ. She was terminally ill, confined to her bed/couch, attached to an oxygen tank, yet always praising God for His goodness. I knew she had something I lacked. Her life & attitude taught me a lot. I later joined a church that held some pretty great Bible Studies. I’m grateful to have learned so much there.
One of my Bible heroes was Job. He endured much suffering for his faith. Jesus Christ of course is my ultimate hero.
For my kids, I hope I am able to give them a foundation to build upon. I hope someday they trust in God, knowing that all His promises are REAL. I hope they have God’s peace & joy in their hearts, and that by “doing unto others” they are “doing unto Christ
I was blessed to have several spiritual heroes in my life growing up - I think it took some hindsight when I was older to realize their effect on me. I was entrenched in church all around me, all my family on both sides were all staunch Lutheran church go-ers. I loved these people and they taught me Bible and took me to ss and vbs and prayed around me - ultimately I knew how to have faith from them. But the thing was I didn't make it my own until I was older, as a teen church did not seem cool, I kinda hid it from my friends as a teen, I followed the path, but didn't own it. (There's a point coming honest) Then when I was a teen, my family started going to a different church that had a great youth program and I started going to their functions. I saw other "cool" teenagers being faithful to God, I found Christian music and suddenly it all fit me better. One of my faith heroes became Mylon LeFevre - you probably never heard of him unless you were into Christian rock in the late 80's. So here's why he mattered: he lived his faith in such real ways it astounded me, his music spoke to my soul and I realized there was a God that didn't want me just going through some religious motions, but wanted me to have a relationship with Him. I heard that before (often,) but suddenly as a 15/16 yr.old it clicked and faith beacmae interactive and alive. But truly lots of people were biblical heroes to me and I can't mention them all...
ReplyDeleteAs for a Bible hero... well I think I'd pick Joseph. Why - he followed God's plan even when it didn't make any sense from his own view. In Biblical times you didn't marry and take on the child of an already pregnant woman. It wasn't rational - a virgin birth. He didn't have to believe that she was pregnant with the Son of God. He could've told the crowd to stone her. But he blindly followed God's plan even though it didn't make sense from his perspective. That's the kind of faith I want. Whoa!
Oh OH Oh I totally thought of another one( hero of my faith-that is), on a totally different mental level though - I love J. Gresham Machen -who was a famous Presbyterian theologian and authored an awesome book called What is Faith?( and several others) which was written in the 1920's -I think it was re-written in the 40's- but anyway I digress. Those of you that know me as a stay-at-home Mom may wonder how I ever met up with Machen - the answer is... college. At Roberts in the early 90's there was a history prof. that demanded everyone (we all had to take his Western Civ. class - and glutton for educational punishment that I am I later ended up following him into 5 more awesome classes) but anyway- this guy made us memorize the intro. to this book - it's NOT short by the way, I initially thought the man was slightly tetched in the head. I now respect him among the very best profs. Roberts had. Anyway - I later read the whole book -
ReplyDeleteMachen was theological/philosophical phenom in my opinion. His ideas are still with me. If you want to ease into deeper theological thought - go borrow this from a library. Wallow in his brilliance - it's not a difficult read, but he exudes wisdom.
Who influenced me with my faith as a young child was a loving, caring Priest, Father Hickey. He always told me great bible stories, and of course, he knew I loved to sing, so he let me sing in the church choir too.
ReplyDeleteI have to say that with all of the trials and tribulations in life, Job is my inspiration. He went through so much in life too, and he never gave up his FAITH and TRUST in God. A lot of times we complain about the little things, and then I think of what Job went through, and life doesn't seem so bad....:)
I never had anyone in my life as a spiritual guide- no friends, family or any other outside influences. My parents were Christian but not practicing- I believe the issue was one of denomination (Catholic vs. Baptist). As a result, no one in my family ever attended church of any kind. No one else in my life was practicing either.
ReplyDeleteAs far as a Biblical hero, I would have to go with Jesus. He is the only perfect human to ever walk this earth. He sought His Father every day with all of His heart and followed what He was told to do. Oftentimes, this was very unpopular with folks but He did it anyway.
BTW- this is Mike MacDuff (Chris' post is above mine). Neither of us have registered yet so we're going to be 'anonymous' until we do. Please bear with us!
Hi Mike and Chris! great reading your posts! Mike, I like what you said about Jesus! "He sought His Father everyday with all of His heart and followed what He was told to do." I think that one sentence says it all and teaches us everything.
ReplyDelete