Do you have a promising vision of legacy that you’re working toward in your family? What mission has God called you out to do? To be?

The Bible tells us that God promised to the nation of Israel the land of Canaan. It was the land where they’d till ground, sow seeds and gather a fruitful harvest. They only needed to go in and take possession of the land. That was the promise. That was to be their legacy.

But something happened along the way.

As they prepared to enter the land, two tribes—the Reubenites and the Gadites—came to Moses and said they didn’t want to go into the promised land. Shocker! Why not?

On the plains of Moab, the doorstep to the promised land, the Reubenites and the Gadites found that they liked it there. They had livestock and they thought the plains of Moab were good ground for raising that livestock. So the two tribes went and asked Moses if they could settle in Moab—not the promised land of Canaan.

Of course, we know the story. At first, Moses was a little annoyed and thought they were shirking their duty to help Israel take the land. The two tribes said they’d help in the conquest and then return to their land. Moses gives in to the settlers. The half-tribe of Manasseh apparently negotiates to join the Reubenites and Gadites, and they also received land in Moab.

Stopping short of the vision

Here’s the punchline.

As the rest of the story of scripture unfolds, these tribes become largely absent. There are no great men of God who arise from these tribes. They become a non-factor in the destiny of the nation. To some extent, it seems they lost their identity with the rest of the nation of Israel. They were sidelined from the legacy promised to the whole nation.

God has called you out to a great legacy. He has given you great promises. Seek it out. Seek to fulfill it. Listen to him and let nothing stop you short of it!

Photo by Dhruv Mehra on Unsplash

Bill High

Bill is CEO & Founder of Vyne Legacy. He works with families to equip them with tools to build multigenerational legacies, and he teaches givers and financial advisers on transformational biblical generosity. He is the co-author with David Green of Giving It All Away and Getting It All Back Again: The Way of Living Generously.

Published March 13, 2020

Topics: A Life of Faith | Family Legacy

Biblical LegacyFaithFamily VisionGenerationsLegacy