Special Possession

Special Possession

Reading: Deuteronomy 10-12; Mark 16 8 At that time the Lord set apart the tribe of Levi to carry the Ark of the Lord’s Covenant, and to stand before the Lord as his ministers, and to pronounce blessings in his name. These are their duties to this day. 9 That is why the Levites have no share of property or possession of land among the other Israelite tribes. The Lord himself is their special possession, as the Lord your God told them. (Deuteronomy 10:8-9 NLT)

The priests and Levites had different responsibilities: To carry the Ark and the Tabernacle and its equipment (Levites); To offer sacrifices and pronounce blessings in God’s name (Priests); To stand before the Lord as ministers (Both). Neither the priests or Levites would receive any inheritance in the land they were about to enter and possess, apart from the houses they lived in and shared pasture for their livestock. Their special relationship with the Lord was the inheritance they received and the inheritance they passed on to their children. My dad lived and served sacrificially, pastoring small churches in small, out-of-the-way towns in Oregon and Washington while I was growing up. He always had to work at a job for a living, and sometimes it was his tithes that paid the expenses of the church rather than the church giving him a salary. When my dad died, he left some debts, hospital bills, and funeral expenses to Mom and my brothers and me. But he also left the heritage of a deep and rich relationship with God. Looking at my life now, I’m glad he left a heritage of faith, commitment, and sacrificial service rather than just money and property and things.

I want to leave my daughters, their husbands and children, and anyone else on whom I have fatherly influence, the heritage of a deep and rich relationship with God. I want them to receive the Lord himself as their special possession! And I don’t want them to have to wait until I die to receive that inheritance from me! If you, like me, are in the heritage-building, legacy-preparing season of life, what’s the heritage you’re building and the legacy you’re preparing for those you leave behind? Prayer:

Father, I pray that over and above any family heirlooms I may leave to my children, I may leave them the heritage of a special relationship with you – a relationship of faith, service, and whole-hearted commitment to your will. Please help me to share that inheritance with them now, not just after I’m gone! Amen.