"Minute Messages" - Word for Life World Ministries

Link: http://wordforlife.com/b2e/blog1.php/2011/03/20/footprints-of-faith

In James Dobson's magazine Focus on The Family some years ago, an article appeared titled "Footprints of faith." It is about a woman who found an old piece of paper dated July 10, 1912, and it contained the following message "I hereby sign and give my son Robert over to the Lord for the Lord to redeem his soul from sin and make him an earnest Christian . . . " The woman who the author had never met had left behind a footprint of faith."

When I read the account of the early church in Acts, I read the stories of men and women of faith who willingly sacrificed all in order to follow Jesus Christ. You read their story and suddenly you realize those people are our spiritual ancestors. They fought numerous battles both within the church and without. They laid their life on the line because of their desire to be a disciple of the man from Galilee. When you get to the last chapter, you will notice that Luke does not pen the words "The End." It just seems to stop. I think Luke was, in a very subtle way, telling us that the history of the church Jesus sought with His blood is a continuing story. Every generation writes its chapter.

There are those who have in the past written some very colorful history. (The other night over my friend Robert's house our friend Ron and I spoke of some of those men who have proceeded us.) However, as great as their story is to tell, what about your story? What about your journey of faith? What sort of footprints are you leaving for your children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren?

My great-grandfather was a circuit riding preacher. (He went from town to town on horse back to preach) I have no way of tracing his journey. The only thing left is a small church in Altoona Kansas that he helped erect. Other than that, I have little of his journey of faith that I believe would have been fascinating to read. Let me encourage each of you to leave behind footprints for the generations following you. You might not think they will be interested in your notes, journal or even the Bible you now scribble in. Be assured they will. In so doing, you will write your chapter of Acts.

Norm Russell