Unleash the Holy - Martin Wiles

When Moses came down Mount Sinai carrying the two stone tablets inscribed with the terms of the covenant, he wasn’t aware that his face had become radiant. Exodus 29:35 NLT

They called him “deac,” but he wasn’t one. Still, he could unleash the holy.

By usual standards, my paternal grandfather didn’t have an impressive build. At five-foot-six inches and 165 pounds, he was comparatively small. But what he lacked in stature, he made up for in godliness.

On one trip to visit him and my grandmother, my father told me how people called my grandfather deac—short for deacon. Interestingly, he wasn’t a deacon, but they associated him with the position because of his godly behavior. He wasn’t a vocal man or unusually bold in sharing his faith. He didn’t have to be. What he held onto on the inside naturally oozed out in his actions and speech.

My grandfather himself told me of a time when he visited a local diner across the street from his house. As he drank his coffee, another of the usual customers sat beside him. The waitress took the man’s order and said, “Oh, I have a joke to tell you—but not until Mr. Boyce leaves.” My grandfather’s life unleashed the holiness in him.

After Moses visited with God on Mount Sinai, he lumbered down the mountain to tell the people what God had revealed. Unknown to Moses, his face shone because he had been in the Lord’s presence. So brightly, in fact, that his brother and the others feared approaching him.

As believers, God has set us apart and instructed us to be holy, even as He is holy. Doing so doesn’t entail walking around with a snobby attitude, imagining we’re better than anyone else. It simply means remembering who we are and who we represent. God has given us the righteousness of Christ, and our goal should entail reflecting that to others.

Living in a world that is often hostile to Christianity means that unleashing the holy takes conscious effort. Fear, neglect, and busyness can keep it leashed if we’re not careful. But when we remember and nurture the person we are inside, holy living will naturally be unleashed to run free on the outside.

How are you unleashing the holy?

Father, give me strength to let my light for You shine brightly before others. 

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Flashback Friday - Stones of Remembrance - Martin Wiles

Stones of Remembrance

As I approached 40 years of age, I immediately noticed the change.

One disadvantage of aging is memory impairment. Things that once came easily to me don’t anymore. The first thing to go was my ability to remember people’s names. Then other episodes of memory lapses occurred. Sometimes I look at a student I’ve taught for two years and can’t remember their name. Or even recall the grammar concept I’m currently teaching. Memory lapses frighten me. Some things I enjoy forgetting—the hurts, disappointments, and trials. But there are other things I want to retain until my final breath. Read more...

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Forging a Legacy - Martin Wiles

Good people leave an inheritance to their grandchildren, but the sinner’s wealth passes to the godly. Proverbs 13:22 NLT

As I perused each entry, I wondered what I’d read.

I was ending my four-year stint as a Middle School Language Arts teacher. The headmaster had selected the final chapel service as the time for me to officially inform the students I was leaving and why. As a gift, the marketing department had presented me with a yearbook for the children to sign. 

In each class, I passed my yearbook around the room. At the end of the day, I began reading the entries. Without exception, each one told me I was their favorite teacher. That was encouraging. 

Then I came to the entry of one quiet young man who seemed more mature than his classmates and who didn’t participate in their frequent horseplay. His entry stated, “You have pushed my limits both academically and morally, but I know your hard work will make me a better person.” Tears formed in my eyes. My goal had been reached. 

In addition to my own, God gave me a four-year opportunity to leave a legacy to many other people’s children and grandchildren. I didn’t take it lightly. I knew teaching at a Christian school was more of a ministry than it was a profession.

Forging a legacy occurs whether I intend for it to or not. 

If I don’t purposefully forge a good legacy, I will leave a poor one. I planned to forge a good one at the school, but I often wondered whether my having to discipline the children for poor choices and bad behavior would interfere with them being able to see my example. Evidently, they had been able to separate the two, just as I as a believer realize God’s discipline doesn’t define Him as mean.

Forging a legacy requires intentional endeavors. 

If I want my legacy to point others to Christ and the abundant, fulfilling life He offers, I must have a plan and goals. People are always watching—which can make living a Christ-like example tricky. Only by the power and direction of God’s Spirit can I forge a lasting spiritual legacy for those whom I influence.

Make up your mind that you will forge a legacy that will impact others for generations to come. 

Prayer: Father, enable us to leave behind a spiritual legacy that will live on for many years.

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Leaving an Inheritance - Martin Wiles

Good people leave an inheritance to their grandchildren. Proverbs 13:22 NLT

Inheritance has meant very little in my family—at least where it concerns money.

My maternal grandparents were the only ones in my family who had money. Even what they had wouldn’t be considered much by today’s standards, but in the eyes of a 15-year-old, it was. When my grandfather died, we discovered he had more than 100K in savings and more than 20K in his checking account. I doubt my grandmother ever knew. She wasn’t allowed to touch the money, pay the bills, or make financial decisions. 

Though stingy in life, my grandfather was a little more generous in death. In his will, he delegated $1,000 for each of his grandchildren. That doesn’t sound like much now, but to a teenager it was a gold mine. I forget what I did with it, but I do remember my spendthrift parents made sure I used it wisely. 

Other than a few good memories of helping around the farm, money was all my maternal grandfather left me. I never remember him showing affection or telling me he loved me. No encouragement or wisdom for the future either. 

My paternal grandparents, on the other hand, left me much more—though it did not come in the form of a monetary inheritance. From them, I received bunches of hugs, hundreds of  I-love-you’s, hours spent doing various things together, financial help when I was struggling, and many words of wisdom for the future. What they left was far more than a thousand dollars. 

At the moment—and as far as I know no change is in the cards, I won’t leave my grandchildren money either. Like with my paternal grandparents, I will leave them a meager financial lifestyle. 

But that’s okay. Their example taught me money can’t buy everything—and that there are more important things than money. Such as spending time together around the table eating a meal, sitting in my recliner reading Bible stories, perching at a table doing handiwork that teaches how God created the world, and taking them to church. 

I’m not “spending my grandchildren’s inheritance”; I’m leaving my spiritual heritage intact for them. Hopefully, they’ll pass it on to theirs. 

What are you leaving your posterity?

Prayer: Father, may we leave behind for posterity what can never be spent. 

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