If you and I live to be 90-years old, what would we like to have accomplished? What will people remember us for?
Try backing up from the grave. What would we see as we looked at our past? Would we have been happy to have been a fun grandparent, and source of wisdom for our adult children? Will you and I have wished we’d started a ministry or a project we’d put off? How about friends? How many will have had a better life because we were their friend or neighbor?
Or were we known for having a generous spirit? A wonderful legacy can include many elements.
My daughter and son-in-law, in their late twenties and early thirties, have already started planning for retirement. No, not monetarily, but how they will spend their time. They want to build a hobbit house.
Yes, an inexpensive hobbit house to live in…(whatever that looks like) and start a ministry to the homeless.
-You see, years ago a church in Santa Cruz, California reached out to my son-in-law when he was living on the streets. Church members passing out parcels of food and saying, “God bless,” may never have known how much that meant to him when he had so little to call his own.
And now he is married to my daughter and a committed Christian. But he doesn’t forget the church which helped him.
So… they are planning backwards.
Our life does… or it can count for a lot or a little.
We can spend our lives on comfort and pleasant experiences. Or, we can look back from the grave and hope our lives are spent serving others.
Plan backwards for eternal results.
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I’ve extended my birthday contest a couple more weeks. See below for fun details:
My book, Lake Surrender is two years old! And instead of birthday cake, I’m putting together a contest.
Here’s the prize: an assortment of special things from the book, mainly food related.
First prize: The winner will receive a box full of ginger peach tea, Kona coffee, and blueberry related goodies. (Michigan is known for its abundance of blueberries) and an Amazon gift card. Sort of a party in a box.
Second prize: An Amazon gift card.
Third prize: I’ll come clean your house for free. Ha ha, just kidding.
The contest will end two weeks from today, Tuesday November 5th .
You can earn points by:
1) Signing up for my blog on my website– 5 points
2) Sharing my Amazon link on your FB page.-3 points
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01DCJBFMM
3) Writing a fairreview if you haven’t, – 5 points
To write a review of the book, click on the link above and scroll down to the end of the reviews. There is a box that says, “Write a review. “ Please click on it. The more reviews a book has the more Amazon will promote it.
4) Sharing this link on Twitter.-2 points. I have written three to use:
– Illumination book Award for Inspy romance #autism #beachread #MI http://tinyurl.com/jslx24j
– Ex S.F. editor starts life over as camp cook in northern MI #autism #inspyfict. http://tinyurl.com/jslx24j
-Her journey ends where the lake begins. #MI #Christfic #forgiveness
Let me know how you’ve participated by send me an email at contact@changingzipcodes.com. The reader with the most points wins! Anyone can join. May the best reader win.
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