Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world—the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life—is not of the Father but is of the world.

—1 John 2:14–15

Have you ever thought about the value and effort we place on things that mean nothing in heaven? The Bible does tell us to care for our homes and families and even tells us it is good to leave an inheritance to our grandchildren (Prov. 13:22), but isn’t a godly heritage of more value than a material inheritance? It is so easy to lose sight of what is truly valuable in this fast-paced world, and it is even easier to feel slighted when our neighbors get a little bit ahead of us in their home improvements or the cars they park in their driveways.

So how do we stay balanced, and how do we leave behind a heritage and not just an inheritance? Colossians says to set our minds on things above, not on things below. I recommend that people frequently visit Hebrews 11 to see what a life of not loving the world looks like and those who excelled at it.

As they grow older, children adopt many of the values of their parents. If church and serving God play a secondary role in our lives, our children will grow up with the same approach. However, if we put God first and our lives revolve around serving Him as a delight rather than a duty, then that is exactly what our children will grow up believing and practicing.

Money is just an inheritance, but teaching others to live for Jesus—that’s a heritage!

Excerpt from “Body Builders” now available on Amazon.

BARRY STAGNER