Inheritance

I’m reading through a book right now called The Valley of Vision. It is a beautiful collection of Puritan prayers and devotions. As I came upon this quote, it reminded me of something I read earlier in the summer in a book called, The Holiness of God, by R.C. Sproul.

A few things were floating around in my mind as a I read The Holiness of God. First, my best friend’s father-in-law had just passed away. He had not been a good steward of his resources throughout his life, but the Lord had allowed him to have many resources. At his passing, my friend and I were discussing how the inheritance he would leave for his children would likely be able to make a more profound kingdom impact. Their family can and will make a difference for generations and be a source of redemption in a story that has long been a tragedy.

Second, I was thinking about how little we personally have in terms of worldly wealth. Years ago, we sold our home and our cars and moved to Spain. We don’t regret that act of obedience, but there are times when we look around and see that in comparison to our friends and those around us, we have far less than others. I’ve wrestled with the idea of home for a while and the truth that we have no home sometimes makes me sad. We move from one rental property to the next, furnished with someone else’s furniture, decorated by someone else’s hand, never fully settling in because we know each home is temporary. There are days I long for a space of my own, with a garden and furniture I’ve chosen and colors and style that represent our family.

Shaun and I speak often about the verse in Scripture which says, “Foxes have dens and birds have nests, but the Son of Man has no place to lay his head (Luke 9:58).” We feel that tension especially in the summers, when we return “home” to America, only to realize that we are homeless in our hometown. So reading that same verse in a passage about inheritance caught my attention. And as I read the page, I wept. For such was the beauty of the writing… the fullness of the explanation of what an inheritance we have as followers of Christ.

I’ve seen various statements on inheritance since reading these words… from a famous actor saying he would never leave an inheritance for his children as he thinks it is tacky, to stories of billionaires in America either committing to give away their wealth prior to their death, or trying to spend it in the most frivolous of ways possible.

But nothing pierced my heart like these words from R.C. Sproul. I share them here in case any of you wrestle with some of these themes… home, sacrifice, obedience, inheritance.