legacy (noun) - the long-lasting impact of particular events, actions, etc. that took place in the past, or of a person’s life;
-something that is passed on;
-practices that are handed down from the past by tradition;
-something that happens or exists as a result of things that happened at an earlier time;
-something that somebody has done successfully, and that has positive effects even after they retire or die
I’m feeling lots of things this morning. Gratitude. Love. Some wistfulness. Grief. Longing. Challenge. Conviction. Joy. Gratitude (again, lots of it). Contentment.
Yesterday, Malcolm and I traveled down to Houston with two of our amazing older Saints from our church here in Dallas. We were heading down to attend the 70th birthday dinner of our college alma mater. It was located at a restaurant that used to be the West 11th First Church of God, that had also served as the Gulf Coast Bible College chapel while it was located there. My dad and three different uncles attended the college while it was down in Houston. The college moved up to Oklahoma City in the early 80s, and became Mid-America Bible College where some cousins, my sister, and my brother-in-law studied. I attended in the late 90s. Our oldest daughter is now attending there at Mid-America Christian University. I was actually born while dad was finishing his degree in the late 70s at GBC. One could say I have deep ties there. 😉 I don’t know how many times I’ve actually been to that Houston location when it was a church building, but I do remember being there with the college choir in the spring of 1996 while we were on our tour.
My great grandfather Robinson fell to his knees on a road in a small town in Missouri, filled with conviction that he needed to follow the one true God that he had been fighting and mocking. My great grandmother had been attending a local tent revival that had come through, and the Holy Spirit was heavy upon the family. There are many more details, but this is where the story and legacy of our family’s faith journey started. I could go on and on with stories, but my great grandpa became a preacher. He ministered to many, even those in prison, baptizing believers in creeks and lakes. As they say, the rest is history.
His oldest son walked down a church aisle in his adulthood when he recognized that he could be living a better life by following a gracious Savior. In his 50s, he decided to also become a preacher. He was a Grandpa who was loud about his faith, making sure we all knew how much he longed for us to become followers of Jesus and that he and Grandma prayed for each of us by name every day. He loved people and left an impact on many. He definitely left an impact on me, but through the years I have met people that share simple stories with me that proves he was a loving pastor. Last night I got to meet someone who had been a young person in a church that he served at in Mississippi. She made sure to let me know that when he first came to their church, she hadn’t given her life to Christ yet, but found herself immersed in my grandpa’s sermons, intently listening, and ultimately seeking salvation. The rest is… history.
My grandpa‘s oldest son, who became my father, also felt a call to become a pastor when he was a teenager. That didn’t come to fruition until later, after he had tried college once, decided to join the Navy for a few years, met and married my mother. He struggled with his calling while they were beginning their lives together, and eventually gave in and went back down to Houston to finish his degree in ministry. I could say the rest is history, and it is, but there’s so much to it as with all history. For 46+ years now I have received encouragement and compliments from my daddy basically every time I see him. I never questioned his love for me. He was also technically my first pastor, and even though it confuses people, I always wanted to be a pastor’s wife. I watched my parents serve the greater church my whole life. Were they perfect? Of course not, as none of us are. But they wanted others to see how their lives could be better by walking with Jesus.
From the time I was little, I knew that I wanted to attend the same college my dad and several family members had. I barely looked at any other college while I was in high school. I was determined to get to Mid-America. My college years were…… formative. There were amazing highs and crippling lows. There were lessons learned and friendships begun and classes passed and futures dreamed. Not many people know that during the fall semester of my third year, I had almost decided to quit school and move back to San Antonio with some family friends and get a job at Fiesta Texas. I never had quite the nerve or real desire to fully go through with it, and I never told anyone for several years. At the end of that semester, I went on my first date with a scrawny kid from Tennessee. He was not like most guys I had dated, which was actually probably the best thing for me! 🤪 Later that summer after a break up, we got back together, knowing that we were probably going to make this a lifetime commitment. The next summer we made that commitment public at our wedding. And again, the rest is history…. that we are still making.
Now, our oldest child is in her third year at Mid-America Christian University. She is also studying ministry, but how that will end up looking is still in the works. For her to be there and thriving and enjoying life there immensely, makes my mama heart extremely proud and warm.
Thinking through the 70 years that the college has been around and the impact it has had on people which then has had a ripple effect impact on the world, I feel so thankful. No institution does everything right all of the time, and no professor or administrator is a perfect person. The college has had ups and downs. It has made mistakes. There has been at least one time that it was unknown if it could financially continue. But I believe the hand of God is on this sacred place. The 5th president began his term last year. I believe each president has served his time and place for specific reasons. As we spoke with the president and his sweet wife last night, it hit me again that God really does work for our benefit. He directs God-following people to benefit the Kingdom. I am excited to witness what God will have this current president help Him accomplish, and pray in that vein.
I also have been thinking of all the people I know that have a connection to the college - either friends of my dad’s or my husband’s, or people I’ve met that are also alumni, or my own relationships I developed during my time there. So much richness in my life is through these connections. What an incredible fortune I am privileged to claim! I could go on and on about the memories we were reminded of or heard about, or the many ‘little’ influences both Malcolm and I had over the years we spent at GBC/MBC/MACU. Last night was one of those sacred moments that remind me not only what I love about the Christian faith and the Church of God family, but also give me a little glimpse of what heaven will feel like.
So this morning I have been sipping my coffee, relaxing in my hammock, and thinking through what last night’s experience means to me. The impact of my family heritage as well as so many wonderful humans increases my gratefulness to overflowing measures. It makes me think and give thanks for the amazing legacy I have been given, and challenges me to continue and do even greater at leaving a legacy to my kids and others.
(Enjoy this beaut of my family celebrating the centennial of the Church of God Reformation Movement)
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