Awhile ago, I wrote “Blog#47 – What is Your Legacy?” That blog included things we could do spiritually (pray for our kids & grandkids, speak encourage words to them, etc.) and relationally (Take our grandkids out for a day, have our kids or grandkids over for a video & pizza night, etc.) for our kids and grandkids. I’d like to add a little to that.
When my Dad and Uncle were alive, they would regale us with stories of their youth in the 1920’s. I kept thinking I wanted to get them on a tape recorder so I wouldn’t forget what they were saying (this was before computers & cell phones). I never did get them tape recorded and I’ve regretted it ever since. Oh, I’ve written a family Christmas letter for most years. I’ve also written down some memories in a Memory notebook. And I did fill out a lot of pages in the memory book “A Father’s Legacy”. All of these things document some of our life. But all 3 of these things were for Patti & I and won’t be read by anybody else.
Our 3 boys with real astronauts…Jack Lousma and Al Worden
I’ve considered writing an autobiography to pass on some of the life lessons that I’ve learned. But I’ve never written a book before and it proved to be overwhelming. Then it hit me! I could do a video autobiography. I have all the necessary setup for it as I’ve done teaching videos for my website at http://BSSSB-LLC.com. When I brought it up to one of my sons to see if he’d be interested in viewing it, he heartily endorsed the idea with a caveat. He knows how my mind works, so he recommended doing it around individual events instead of in chronological order. What a great idea!
It took me about 6 weeks to complete it. I put it on my website’s youtube channel under “My Life”. There are 17 sessions of about 15-25 minutes each. I may do more sessions later on but for now, its complete. At the end of most sessions, I give a brief lesson that was learned from this event. The easiest way to get to these videos is to go to my website at http://BSSSB-LLC.com and click on either of the 2 youtube links. Once you’re at my youtube channel, they’re under the “My Life” link.
My nephew Thomas, my Dad & my Uncle
This way my kids, grandkids and whoever else can get to know their Dad & Grandpa better, even after I’m gone. Hopefully, some of the life lessons will apply to them. I hope some of these videos allow them to see some of the problems we faced and how we overcame them with God’s help. Maybe they’ll see and be encouraged to walk with or keep walking with Jesus even in the hard times. Our hope for anyone who sees these videos is for them to know Jesus and to know Him better.
An added benefit was when a stranger saw one of my videos. He contacted me and asked me what I meant by ‘being born again’. Talk about a golden opportunity! I was able to share the gospel message with him. Several of my friends and family have seen these and were blessed as they never knew these things that happened to us and how we reacted. They could clearly see God’s hand in our lives.
Patti & I, engaged Dec ’75
What has God done in your life that you’d like to pass along to future generations? What have you learned that might benefit them? How might you show people how God has walked with you thru the good and bad times of your life? While living your life with God will shine the brightest of all, documenting your life is an additional way to let people know that He is real, He loves us and will be with us wherever we go.
May God bless any efforts you make to pass on any of the life lessons you have learned.
For His Kingdom,
Dave Maynard
http://BSSSB-LLC.com
