legacy-bible-institute

In the Hallway - Linda Kovacs

Tue, 20 Aug 2024 12:45:23 GMT

Have you ever felt like standing in a hallway? Like you would need a direction, a signal, a word or just something or anything that would show you how to move on, what step to take next but nothing seems to happen? I believe that each and everyone of us knows that feeling. And it can get really challenging. Especially when we feel like our time is running out but you feel that God is still waiting and nothing is really changing.

It could be a sickness, a difficult marriage, singleness, loss of a job, loss of a loved one, waiting for a child, or just simply a graduation.

We have many examples in the Bible that show us similar stories or situations. How about Noah who was building the ark in the desert for approximately 75 years. How about our famous Abraham, how did he wait for his promised son? How about Joseph after his brothers sold him to Egypt or when he was imprisoned? How about Moses who spent 40 years in the desert before God called him to lead the Israelites out of Egypt and then he had to wait another 40 years wandering through the desert towards the promised land? Or how about David whom Saul loved first but later became his enemy and chased him for about 4 years? There are so many more stories in the Bible about someone waiting on God, and not only for a few days but for weeks, months and years. How did these people spend those times of waiting? As we know, not all of them were able to wait faithfully. But we don’t want to raise our fingers to judge them. Rather, how do we deal with the times of waiting? With the times in the hallway where we seem to be alone, where every door seems to be closed and maybe we only glimpse a tiny window if we look up?

I believe, that God is using those times for something good. He wants to see, how we react and behave in the hallway. If we get desperate, hopeless and depressed Or, if we look around us to see if there are other people in the hallway waiting just like us, who might need our encouragement, advice, a listening ear or simply a smile. How do we act in the hallways of our lives?

A few days ago I had a conversation with someone about the “waiting in a hallway” and he said that sometimes it’s not easy to wait in the hallway. He sees it more as a desert. A plant challenged by drought learns to develop stronger roots. And that this is exactly the case in our spiritual life. Looking back, we see that God meant it well and that we were allowed to grow through our situation.

Let us trust in God during the process, during the wait in the hallway and keep in mind that the hallway is just a season, not a destination, which God can and wants to use for our good, if we are willing to follow him and seek his will.

Surrender - Hanna Isakov

Tue, 20 Aug 2024 12:41:35 GMT

God has been teaching me so much during my stay here at Legacy, through the study of His Word. One of the most dominant lessons lately has been to surrender my ideas, hopes and dreams to Him.

To surrender means to cease resistance and submit to an authority. To surrender, I must trust.

“Trust in the Lord with all your heart,

And lean not on your own understanding;

In all your ways acknowledge Him,

And He shall direct your paths.”

Proverbs 3:5-6

I serve the One with ultimate power and authority. Life is not “all gas no breaks” as lots of us young people seem to think sometimes. I have always said that I want whatever God wants for me but how will I know what that is?

First, I must truly surrender my deepest hopes and dreams to Him in prayer and display my intent with my actions. I have begun to write my prayers down so that I can look back and praise God for the principles He's taught me and the wrongs He's convicted me of in my everyday habits and practices. Am I intentionally examining myself, my motives? How can I require His guidance while overlooking surrender to the things He has already given me in his word! I am called to be his steward here on earth.

Verse 25 of Psalm 73 says:

“Whom have I in heaven but you? And there is nothing on earth that I desire besides you.”

I have been asking myself ever since the first weeks of this year, is this verse a reality in my life? Deep down, if I do not get what I am hoping for out of this life, will I still praise Him and be content in Him? Does He fulfill my deepest desires or am I reserving that for something else? Am I experiencing true intimacy with my Savior and Lord, Jesus Christ?

These are the challenges set before me and I can say, by the grace of God, I will strive to be obedient to the Holy Spirit no matter what my feelings may dictate. This life I have is a gift, I was not brought into this World to fulfill my desires but to shine the Light of the Gospel to those in darkness. Gods' way is best.

“I have been crucified with Christ; and it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself up for me.”

Galatians 2:20

Life is hard. God is good. - Stephen Weinhardt

Tue, 20 Aug 2024 12:40:25 GMT

“Delight yourself in the Lord; And He will give you the desires of your heart.”

Psalm 37:4

Being nearly 21 one years old now is mind blowing for me to think about. In one sense, it feels like my life has been so long and there are so many things that I’ve experienced. Yet on the flipside, if the Lord wills that I live an average lifespan, I’m only a quarter of the way into my life. So why does it sometimes feel like I’ve already gone through so much? Even when I look at the circumstances in my life, there is truly nothing for me to complain about. I grew up in a Christian family, in a first world country. I’ve had no significant illnesses, immediate family members passing. I’ve been blessed with so many things in my life there are too many to count. So why then did I still feel broken inside? Why did I experience this longing for somewhere I’ve never been? The truth is that I wasn’t created for this world. I was made with a desire that can never be satisfied with anything that can be found in this physical world alone.

The deeper I understand the Gospel and what Christ’s sacrifice on the cross meant for me and my life, the more I realize that the only true satisfaction I can ever find in my life is in Jesus. He wasn’t exaggerating when he said that He is the Living Water. These past 8 months at Legacy have had their moments when I wrestled with God and the purpose with which he called me to serve Him. The countless nights that I’ve spent in prayer with God as I searched for answers. It seems like it’s only now that I finally am beginning to realize that sanctification is a painful process. As God molds and shapes each of our lives to be more like Christ’s, that is only done through the testing of our faith that produces steadfastness. (James 1:3)

But looking back at all the work that God has done for me, I see just how much higher His ways are. Our Father in heaven knows what we need. He knows that things are difficult. But He made a way for us to be in fellowship with Him through faith in His son Jesus and the work that He did for us at Calvary. He wants to give us the true desires of our hearts. The deepest desires that we were all equally created with. The ones only He can satisfy. All God asks in return is for us to delight in Him.

What does delighting in God look like?

“If you love me you will keep my commandments” (John 14:15).

Jesus doesn’t make it complicated. He shows us just how simple it is to delight in God. All we need to do is follow his commandments. And what a comfort it is to know that through his Holy Spirit He provides us with the strength to follow his commandments! When we live lives according to the way that God designed us to live, we start to truly experience the blessings of abiding in Him. It’s the reason that the Psalmist writes the entirety of Psalm 119; they understood that God's Law is what gives us fulfillment in our lives. Jesus goes further and says that the entirety of the Law can be summed up in two commands. Love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul, mind and strength. And love your neighbour as yourself. When we obey the Word of God, we begin to see just how good God is and how He’s always wanted the best for us from the beginning. It’s why He gave us a law in the first place.

A concluding thought: this world is going to present countless false hopes, false gods that promise us satisfaction and fulfillment. A question that I need to ask myself daily is this: Am I satisfied in Christ alone?

As one of my favourite songs brings out in its chorus:

I rejoice in my Redeemer

Greatest Treasure

Wellspring of my soul

I will trust in Him, no other

My soul is satisfied in Him alone.

Worship - Simeon Nenadov

Mon, 19 Aug 2024 20:15:36 GMT

Worship is the very reason we exist. Worship is much more than singing, worship is presenting yourself as a living sacrifice, dying to sin and giving your life to God (Romans 12:1).

Worship is living to glorify God. Worship is serving. Our worship is only made possible by God Himself. It takes a marvelous trinitarian action for us to be able to worship at all. We are saved for the purpose of worship. God displays this purpose in Exodus as Israel is saved from captivity in Egypt in order to worship the Lord (Exodus 3:12,18 ~ 5:1,3,8 ~ 7:16 ~ 8:1,20 ~ 9:1,13 ~10:3,7-11,24-27).

Parallel to Israel being stuck in Egypt, we are by nature stuck in sin. We were captives, dead in our sin. As Romans 8:6-8 says, in our flesh we cannot please God. We had no hope or way of escape. Romans 6:17-19 says that we were “slaves to sin,” but by the trinitarian work of salvation we have become “slaves to righteousness.” Just like Israel was saved from Egypt so that they could serve and worship God, we are saved from being slaves to sin so that we can become servants and worshipers of our redeemer! God saves us for worship.

Each part of the trinity plays a unique role in our salvation and in making worship possible.

The father made the plan, and it was a well calculated and long prepared plan:

Ephesians 1:3-6 says, “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places, even as he chose us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and blameless before him. In love he predestined us for adoption to himself as sons through Jesus Christ, according to the purpose of his will, to the praise of his glorious grace, with which he has blessed us in the Beloved.”

The Son accomplished the plan given to Him by the Father: He became human, lived perfectly, died for our sins, and rose for our justification.

Philippians 2:6-8 says, “Who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied himself, by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.”

And the Holy Spirit applies the finished work of the Son to believers: We are sealed and sanctified by His indwelling presence.

1 Corinthians 6:11 says “And such were some of you. But you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God.”

“Without the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit we would be dead in our sin, unable to recognize God, much less worship Him” (Zac Hicks Doxology and Theology).

Jesus not only died for our sins, but He gives us His perfect life. We cannot bring an acceptable offering to God; we cannot live anywhere close to His standard. We cannot even look upon His holiness, let alone give Him the worship He deserves. Christ provides us with the worship God requires of us. He was obedient in living a perfect life and worshiping the Lord perfectly. God sees Christ’s perfect worship as we continually worship imperfectly. Jesus Christ is the only Worship Leader. He worships for us.

Similarly to how we pray, we worship the father, through the Son, by the power of the Holy Spirit. Our great God is why we worship, how we worship, and who we worship. Apart from Him we are dead and we have no worship. He has graciously gifted us a pardon from sin, eternal life, and the ability to worship Him.

Key Verse: Romans 12:1: "I appeal to you therefore brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship."

My Testimony - Diego Duduletz

Mon, 19 Aug 2024 20:14:27 GMT

I was born in a Christian household, but I was a troublemaker as a kid. When I was a teenager, I always thought I would get baptized. But I was in 8th grade when I started looking at porn. Then during high school, that’s when I started smoking and doing drugs and being depressed. Whenever I went to church I would see my friends and see them so happy and I would think to myself saying why don't I feel like that, and I would just hate myself for it.

During Eastern Camp in 2021 on the last night, I heard Dylan’s testimony and thought, I’m not the only one that’s dealing with this. I started crying, and then Fred Weinhardt was sitting behind me and asked if I wanted to talk. I said yes, and I just confessed all my sins to him. And felt the Holy Spirit to start confessing my sins and the Holy Spirit was working with Fred Weinhardt to come up and talk to me.

After camp I asked Thomas Nitz if he could start counseling me. Counseling with Thomas Nitz it was on and off for a while because I would keep on sinning and I would tell myself that I wasn’t good enough to keep on counseling. But after a couple of years, Stephen asked me during camp to come to Legacy with him. At first I said no, but then my family convinced me to go.

During the first month of Legacy, I decided I wanted to get baptized here in Wooster. When I realized I wanted to get baptized, I felt the Holy Spirit working in me, and I felt that I didn’t need to sin anymore. And after that day, I haven’t done any drugs, smoking, and I haven’t looked at porn or felt depressed with myself; I feel the peace of God in me.

Questions - Linda Kovacs

Mon, 19 Aug 2024 20:13:22 GMT

God will make a way when there seems to be no way…

What an awesome song, right?

I raise my voice and turn the volume up every time when I hear this one. It makes me happy and gives me new hope.

But what I don’t like is to actually be in situations like this, where I don’t see the outcome, where I don’t know what is going to happen next, when it feels like I am totally left in the dark, or where I simply don’t even see a way out.

A lot of question marks are buzzing around in my head.

One of the biggest question marks right now:

WHAT HAPPENS AFTER LEGACY?

I have desires, dreams, ideas but also fears.

But how can I know what is right?

How can I know what God wants for me?

Is it only my dream or did God put certain desires in my heart?

Maybe we all can imagine that in situations like this we are confused after a time.

So was I. The last few days and even weeks I struggled with doubts, with confusion, some sleepless looooong nights and a lot of prayers that ended in tears.

Starting everyday with reading in psalms and proverbs and sing and worship and to study the bible with loved ones gave me strength.

One day, after a long sleepless night and deep prayer I got a few answers from God:

“Trust in the Lord completely. Do not think that you understand things well enough for yourself. Whatever you are doing, remember that the Lord is with you. Then he will show you the right way to go.” Proverbs 3:5-6

“Delight yourself also in the Lord, And He shall give you the desires of your heart. Commit your way to the Lord, Trust also in Him, And He shall bring it to pass.” Psalms 37:4-5

“Do not worry about anything. Instead, pray to God about everything. Ask him to help you with the things that you need. And thank him for his help. If you do that, God will give you peace in your minds. That peace is so great that nobody can completely understand it. You will not worry or be afraid, because you belong to Christ Jesus.” Philippians 4:6-7

… and of course my favorite song right now:

God will make a way

Where there seems to be no way

He works in ways we cannot see

He will make a way for me

He will be my guide

Hold me closely to his side

With love and strength for each new day

He will make a way.

So God already answered. He cares.

He also placed me here where I am surrounded by loving people, who have opened ears and hearts for me, who are praying with me aloud, whether only with one or two good friends, or my mentor, or even in a prayer meeting in church. He gave me a few very helpful conversations.

I definitely feel the Love and that God cares and is working “behind the scenes.”

Did I already receive my answer(s)? No!

Do I still have question marks in my head? Yes!

But what I definitely learned and what God showed me the last few days: Not to look at my circumstances, not to focus on my situation, BUT to look and focus on Jesus, NO MATTER WHAT.

And believe in HIS almighty power.

Because when I focus on my circumstances or on my question marks, then after a time I get depressed and confused and disappointed. But when I look at Jesus and his word and his promises I get hope and strength and I can be very sure that a solution, a way will come.

Yes, it is easier to say and write it down than to actually put it into reality.

I pray that I can be opened for His will, for the way, he is gonna make for me.

Because sometimes it is something different He wants for us:

“The Lord says, ‘Remember! My thoughts are not the same as your thoughts. The way that you do things is not the same as the way that I do things. The sky is far higher than the earth. In the same way, I do things in a much better way than you do. Also, my thoughts are much higher than your thoughts.’” Isaiah 55:8-9

He will make a way.

Readjusting to New Surroundings - Hanna Isakov

Mon, 19 Aug 2024 20:09:28 GMT

The past four months of my life have been riddled with ever-changing environments. From my family home in Serbia, to Florida in a house setting with four little boys to a house with five pet cats and then finally to Ohio and the long anticipated, “Legacy Bible Institute.”

Am I going to just hit the ground running, will I fit in? Who will be there? Will I have neat roommates? All these thoughts were running through my mind as we drove into the driveway of my new “home” for the next six months. In retrospect, all those questions were valid, but when I examine their motives, I find them selfish and self-centered. It was all about me and how others would view me, but I ended up experiencing the biggest blessings and lessons through situations where I did not fit in or feel comfortable. I am not saying it is wrong to be alert and prepared for new situations in life, but this is something I feel God has been teaching me this past month. Integrating into a completely unfamiliar environment that has already been running without you for a while can be intimidating.

The comfort in all of this is that the world could go on just fine without me. I do not need to be the main character in every story. Filling in the gaps of a well-integrated group of people has been an amazing experience for me. Learning to fit in with my roommates, paying attention to their needs and preferences has been a process of dying to myself and my desires daily. Who would have known that denying yourself something you thought you needed would bring you to something you never knew you wanted.

A small funny example of that is that now I airdry all my laundry and enjoy the scent of my clothes much more. When I first came the drying racks annoyed me and the concept of airdrying when we had a dryer just one room over seemed absurd to me. It is also a subtle way I was able to show them that I accept their culture, which draws me closer to them. It can be the smallest change you are willing to make that will teach you the most surprising things.

My time away from home has also caused me to trust in God more concerning situations back home that I cannot impact in any other way other than through prayer. I am learning what it means to truly cast my cares on Him. Christ is my confidant and friend but above all Jesus is my Savior and Redeemer. What a privilege to carry everything to God in prayer!

On My Knees - Stephen Weinhardt

Mon, 19 Aug 2024 20:07:46 GMT

“Hear my prayer, LORD, Listen to my pleadings!

Answer me in Your faithfulness, in your righteousness!”

Psalm 143:1

Over the past month being back at Legacy after our winter break I’ve really felt the Lord laying on my heart the importance of my prayers to him. I shamefully admit that for the majority of my life I have not treated my communication with God as seriously as I should have. Even though I’ve been taught from a young age to pray, I feel that it wasn’t until this past month that I really began to understand why God calls us to pray and what our role is in our prayers to God.

A lie that I believe is straight from the enemy himself that I have believed for too long now is that my single prayers are so insignificant that God wouldn’t change something just because of my prayers. I don’t know where I first got this idea from, but I know now that biblically that just isn’t true. There are so many examples that we have in scripture of God listening to, and answering the prayers of people who humbled themselves before him and he heard their cries. Even Jesus tells us multiple times that we need to humble ourselves before God and raise our requests to God and he will answer.

God has shown me that the real reason that we pray to him is not because we want to receive something so we turn to our “Cosmic Genie” and hope that he grants each of our selfish wishes. Not only is that a complete perversion of the gift of prayer that God has given us, it goes completely opposite to the attitude that God wants us to have when we pray to him. I believe that the reason God wants us to pray to him is because when we fall to our knees before Him, we surrender all of the pride that we’ve been holding on to and simply admit “Lord, I can’t do this on my own, I need your strength.”

Last week this really became real to me when God answered my prayers in ways that were so beyond my wisdom and understanding. Without sharing specifics, there were several things that I had asked God's help for and he used the circumstances around me to answer those prayers in ways that I still can’t fully believe. I truly believe that when we empty ourselves before our Creator and humbly ask Him for His help, He will always be faithful to us. It may not be in the way that we imagined or even wanted, but God’s wisdom is infinite and like the apostle Paul writes in his letter to the Romans; “He works all things together for the good of those who love him and are called according to his purpose.”

My prayer is that whoever reads this would always remember that when we are on our knees praying to our Lord, the greatness of our God would be in our minds and we would remember just how Magnificent and Wonderful he is to us. And I pray that our hearts would always be devoted fully to the Lord our God.

What I Will Do After Legacy - Diego Duduletz

Mon, 19 Aug 2024 20:05:34 GMT

When I get back home, I will take a couple days off and then start to work for my Dad again. I will be working on smart houses at the warehouse where we work. And, hopefully, I can travel with my dad when he goes to different countries for work, such as helping him when he goes on mission trips to Africa.

I want to tell friends how good Legacy was and hopefully some people will be called to do a year at Legacy. I also want to travel and spread the love of Jesus to those that have never seen God's love.

I would like to join a youth group committee to help out with the church. When I go back to the church, I would like to become a member of my church back home. I would also try to talk about the bible to my friends that are not Christians and also my brother that doesn’t have Jesus in his life.

And I want to keep on studying the bible when I get back home and not fall back into bad habits.

Words - Abigail Schmitt

Mon, 19 Aug 2024 20:04:41 GMT

How many times do we think about apologizing for what we have said to another person?

For some, maybe we think about it often. Our words hang over our heads and we wish that we had never opened our mouths to say what we did. Our only thought is to go apologize to that person. But for many of us, I suspect we do not even think about it. We say what we say to a person and then we move on to the next, ready to share our opinions, our thoughts, our ever-so-important words. Careless words fill our speech. They find their way out of our throat through the crevices around our tongue without us even noticing. Words said without care. Words not even thought about. Words that have meaning.

Everything we say has meaning, and yet we so often fail to treat it that way. Would we ever care to stop and measure the effect of our words on someone else? Would we ever care to find out the meaning our words had to someone other than ourselves? The very foundation of the world was brought about by the voice of God. From the beginning, he established speech as a core part of our being. And though we are but imitators of him—none of us quite have the ability to bring a universe into existence with our words—every sentence we say brings something into existence. Give someone a compliment and we bring into existence their happiness; make them the butt of a thoughtless joke and we bring into existence their pain. Our words have meaning. God made us that way.

But do we care?

Sometimes you see it in their eyes first. You make a quick joke about them, and everyone at the table laughs. They lower their gaze to the ground, give a short laugh, and fail to meet your eyes for just a second too long. You are no longer comfortable. But you did not say anything wrong, did you? Why should you have to be the one to apologize?

Sometimes you see it in their actions. Maybe it is not immediate. You said something about the food they made yesterday, and now all their words to you today have been short and clipped. What is this about? How could they still be holding on to that comment? It does not mean anything; they should have just forgotten it. Why should you have to be the one to apologize?

Sometimes you are unaware of it until the very moment they bring it to you in a blaze of fiery words. You are taken aback. This came out of nowhere. How could they say that this is the last straw? That this is the last in a repeated series of offenses you have made against them with your words? You did not know about this. So why should you have to be the one to apologize?

But when you try to meet their eyes and they will not look back at you, suddenly you care. When you try to ask how their day was and all they say is, “Fine,” suddenly you care. When you look into their face red with anger, tears streaming down their face, silence in the air after all the hot, accusing words they threw at you, suddenly you care.

How could you have been so blind?

And what do you do now?

What do you do when you finally care about your careless words?

It is not easy to take the first step, but that is what God calls us to do. In our Peacemaker book now, we are reading about restoring relationships that have been damaged by conflict, and we are called to take the initiative in reconciliation. It will not be comfortable for us, and it requires a grand portion of humility that only God can give us, but if we know that someone is holding something against us, it is our responsibility to go confess to them our wrongs and ask for forgiveness.

And when we seek to restore a relationship, we must remember to, above all, restore gently. If we have been careless with our words, now is the time to be careful. Not only in how and what we say, but in when we say it. Before we share any of our all-too-important thoughts, we must first listen. Understand the effect our words have had on them. Listen to their hurt, ask about their hurt, and care about their hurt. You have not damaged your relationship with an unfeeling being; you have damaged your relationship with a human, and you must now make every effort to understand that damage in order to resolve it. Once you have truly listened, waited patiently, attended to the words they told you, and understood them thoroughly, then it is your time to speak.

Let your first words be filled with grace. In the spirit of love speak to them, seeking for peace between you. Admit your wrong, as humiliating as it might be, specifically addressing how your words hurt the other person. Our words have meaning, and we can choose how to use them. Where once we tore down, we can choose to build back up. Where once we brought pain, we can now bring joy. Where once we did not care, we can now put care into every word we speak.

“‘For out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks. The good person out of his good treasure brings forth good, and the evil person out of his evil treasure brings forth evil. I tell you, on the day of judgment people will give account for every careless word they speak, for by your words you will be justified, and by your words you will be condemned.’”

Matthew 12:34b–37

Thoughts on Leaving a Legacy - Simeon Nenadov

Mon, 19 Aug 2024 20:03:39 GMT

Legacy.

A name you throw around, but you rarely think about.

Something bigger than you, but small when you are young and full of doubts.

A thought that haunts you at night, when you realize time is running out.

Something you leave no matter what, even if the world was better without.

Legacy.

I have been thinking about the name and what it means to me. I have always associated the name “Legacy Bible Institute” with the goal of passing down the legacy many of our fathers in the church have left behind: valuing, studying, and teaching the Bible. But as I have thought about my legacy, and what I want to leave behind, it means so much more to me.

Anyway, what legacy do I want to leave behind? Simeon was a great... He was a faithful... He was a strong... He valued... Simeon studied... He worked as a... He loved his... Simeon’s greatest accomplishment was... He always...

I could sit here forever and think about how I would want to be remembered. Fill in the blanks. I know pretty much exactly what I would want those blanks to say.

But there is a problem...

If my time on earth was done now, and it was up to me to honestly fill those blanks in, not a single statement about me would be anything close to what I wanted it to be. And that is honestly part of why I am here at Legacy: I want to change, and I know I can only be changed by grace, through faith. Romans 10:17 says, “So faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the word of Christ.” So a Bible institute must be the best place for me to come change my legacy, right?

But there is an another problem...

Hard as I may try, and as much as I may learn, I will never achieve what I want to do in this life. I am bound by my flesh, and although the Holy Spirit is working in me and changing me each day, the punishment of my sin is still death, but the gift God has promised me is eternal life with Him (Romans 5:12-21). When I am raised to be with Him I will be given a perfect and eternal resurrected body. But in this life, I will never come close to leaving the legacy I wish I could. In Romans 7:18 Paul explains this same feeling, “For I know that nothing good dwells in me, that is, in my flesh. For I have the desire to do what is right, but not the ability to carry it out.” I know exactly what I would want those blank spaces to say, but I know I will never be able to make even one of those statements true.

The problem with the legacy I want to leave behind is a deeper issue...

As I considered what I wanted my legacy to be and how I would never come close to it, I realized that I had it all wrong. Even the legacy I wanted, the good things I thought would be nice to leave behind, weren’t right.

The legacy I wanted to leave behind was about me. I wanted to be remembered as a faithful Christian, who studied the word of God, who loved his family, and who was always there for his brothers. All good things, but even if it was possible to leave behind the legacy I would want (which if I am honest it is impossible), my legacy is not about me.

As we have been reading the Bible together here at Legacy Bible Institute the last couple of months, one thing has been made clear: It is not about me; it is about God. He saves and He punishes. He gives and He takes away. He loves and He hates. He judges and He justifies. He creates and He destroys. He gives mercy and He gives wrath. He changes lives and He hardens hearts. He redeems and He adopts. He baptizes and He sanctifies.

Simeon was a wretch, he never really could quit some of those sins. In fact, even if it looked like he was doing good things, his thoughts were continually selfish, prideful, and full of lust. Simeon said he loved God and His Word, but he just couldn’t really seem to live by it. He said he loved his family, but he was quick to get annoyed with them and lash out in anger. But, God loved him. God sacrificed Jesus, His one and only blameless Son for Simeon’s many sins. Jesus suffered the punishment Simeon deserved to suffer in hell. God saved Simeon. God redeemed him. God adopted him. Through the Holy Spirit, God worked on Simeon’s heart, softened it up, and slowly changed him, making him closer and closer to the man he was supposed to be. God picked up Simeon’s many broken pieces, and made something He could use for good. Jesus rose from the dead so that Simeon too could be resurrected and have a perfect eternal life with God. God predestined, called, justified, and glorified Simeon (Romans 8:29). Simeon couldn’t, but God did.

That is the legacy I am leaving behind, and that is the only legacy I want to leave behind.

The best part is, that is a legacy I could have never even thought of or chosen. It is my legacy, but it is only because of God’s great grace. God chose to redeem me, a wicked and wayward child. God did it all to display His amazing love and mercy through me.

This legacy, my legacy, cannot be changed.

“For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.” - Romans 8:38-39

Unity Over Uniformity - Rosie Namenyi

Mon, 19 Aug 2024 20:02:33 GMT

How is one saved? Did Christ die for everyone? Is killing in self defense murder? Every week we discuss somewhat controversial topics in our open forum class, each student bringing evidence, information and scripture they found to support their presentation. When students come from varied backgrounds and possess distinct qualities, they bring a richness of perspectives to the discussion and foster a diverse range of ideas.

Open forums are like bridges, connecting people with contrasting opinions and opening up to constructive debates. More often than not there are disagreements and differing beliefs that come between us and this week after a particularly heated conversation in class, everyone headed downstairs to lunch without any pointing fingers, offended or hurt feelings and went back to being friends, laughing and enjoying each other's company. It is so interesting to me how we, although so different, can live and work together in harmony. Our opinions and beliefs may be a bit different, but we all have the same mission: pressing toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus (Philippians 3:14).

I remembered a conversation I had with someone a while back about how as Christians we should be unified instead of uniform. While we share the same faith, we do not all have to share the same temperament, gifting or preferences regarding indifferent matters (1 Corinthians 10:17).

God seeks unity among us, but does not call for uniformity. Paul, speaking of the human body as a sort of metaphor for the church, says the same. He explains how the body is both one and many, different parts — hands, ears, eyes etc.— exist in the body, but is essentially in unity. Each part of the body is and does different things but is serving for the same purpose (1 Corinthians 12:14-26). So it is with the church as the body of Christ.

When we acknowledge and appreciate the individual strengths and weaknesses of each other as members of this body, we can encourage, grow closer to each other and can help one another more efficiently to continue our walk together, unified with Christ.

Flesh vs. Spirit - Stephen Weinhardt

Mon, 19 Aug 2024 20:01:47 GMT

Over the past week through my personal reading and scheduled class reading, a common theme that God has been revealing to me is how I need to live according to the spirit and not the flesh.

Romans 8:5-8 is what first got me to look into my life and see if I’ve really been living in the spirit or if I’ve been setting my mind on the things of the flesh. Of course, to be completely rid of all desires of the flesh and live completely for Christ will never be fully possible as we will battle with our flesh until the day we die and are glorified with Christ. Yet until that day, our goal should be to strive to that example that Jesus set for us.

How do we know if we are reaching that goal? We have been given the law as a gift from God as a way to see the standard of holiness that he desires from us. Not that we should seek to affirm our salvation through the following of the law, but instead we can aim to keep God’s commandments out of our own love and eternal gratitude for the gift that God has given us.

I recently read through the book of James, and he has some really powerful thoughts about our Christian life and just how short this life is in comparison to the eternity that we will live after this life ends. In chapter 4 verse 14, James likens our mortal life to a vapor that appears for just a short time and then vanishes away. If my life really is so short compared to all of eternity, I want to make the most of it now while I still can. And I don’t mean that I want to spend my time trying to fulfill as many of my own desires as I can before I die, I want to do as much work for God’s kingdom as I can on this earth, so when I finally reach the end goal, the prize, when I am finally called home I’ll be greeted with the words, “Well done thou good and faithful servant.”

Patience - Abigail Schmitt

Mon, 19 Aug 2024 20:00:58 GMT

In the last several weeks, I began working at a fast food restaurant behind the drive through window. And, if anyone else has had experience with that, you know that during the busiest hours, the environment can get stressful and you sometimes just want your other crew members to hurry up with that food so you can get it to the customer and go on to the next order already. It was in just such an environment this morning that a man who was waiting on his food saw me through the pick-up window and said to me, “Patience. You just need to slow down.”

“Patience?” I wanted to say. “Patience? How can you say, ‘Patience,’ to me? How can you say that when I’ve already had two impatient customers before you and I know there’s another one in the car just behind you? Patience? Not here. Not now. There’s no time for it.”

A voice calls to me, “‘Martha, Martha,’” but I ignore it.

It was only after he had driven away that I decided that was a rather ugly thought for me to have, criticizing him for his patience. After all, the Bible says in Galatians 5:22–23 that against such things as love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control there is no law. So why does the idea of patience grate against me so?

I have never been a patient person. My father used to point out the flowers that he saw and say, “Look, they’re just like you—they’re called impatiens.” And that was me. I was called impatient. I was the hyper one with the short fuse that could hardly wait for a piece of toast to come out of the toaster without getting impatient. I was the one who could not wait for someone else to finish their sentence so that I could chip in with my contribution to a conversation. I was the one who could not listen, for I wanted to speak now.

I write that I was, while knowing that I am.

I am impatient.

“‘Martha, Martha.’”

In one of the first weeks at Legacy, I prayed that God would give me opportunities to practice patience so that I could become more patient, but when those opportunities did actually come—and come they did—I failed miserably. My short fuse blew and every ounce of patience that I thought I had built up suddenly crumbled before my eyes. “Why can’t I just be good at patience already?” I pleaded, as if I did not see the irony of it, “Why can’t I just be good at patience now?”

“‘Martha, Martha.’”

And it is not just in the little things that I am impatient, I know. I have felt no greater joy than being here at Legacy, growing closer to my God every day, but still a tiny voice in the back of my mind cries out at me, asking me what on earth I am doing here in the middle of Ohio, going to Bible school like a religious weirdo. Why am I here? I could be doing anything. I could be doing everything. I could be in graduate school by now. I could have a doctorate in just a few years, so why am I not on my way there already? A better part of me even says forget the doctorate, why am I not evangelizing, converting the masses to Christianity already? Why am I here? I have to go, go, go.

Why am I here?

“‘Martha, Martha.’”

I turn to the Bible for answers, and I am frustrated in the plainness before me. Abraham was one hundred and Sarah was ninety years old when God’s promise to them was finally fulfilled through Isaac. Moses was eighty years old before the exodus of Israel and the subsequent forty-year wandering even began. Paul was trained in all the Jewish laws and was a prominent Jew before he first encountered Jesus. Jesus lived thirty years before he began his ministry. These people lived entire lifetimes before what we know them for today even began. So I am frustrated at the plainness before me because it tells me exactly what I had hoped it would not—be patient. I could live an entire lifetime (or two) before God uses me for my purpose, and all those lifetimes before will seem as nothing when he does. I know not his purpose for me, and yet I know that I should listen for it.

“Now as they went on their way, Jesus entered a village. And a woman named Martha welcomed him into her house. And she had a sister called Mary, who sat at the Lord’s feet and listened to his teaching. But Martha was distracted with much serving. And she went up to him and said, ‘Lord, do you not care that my sister has left me to serve alone? Tell her then to help me.’ But the Lord answered her, ‘Martha, Martha, you are anxious and troubled about many things, but one thing is necessary. Mary has chosen the good portion, which will not be taken away from her.’” (Luke 10:38–42)

The good portion—to sit at the Lord’s feet and listen.

So why am I here?

To sit at the Lord’s feet,

be patient,

and listen.

A Typical Week - Diego Duduletz

Mon, 19 Aug 2024 19:59:50 GMT

On Monday, I was diving from Canada with Thomas and Stephen and his cousin. I got to talk about how Legacy is with Thomas, and I did my homework on the way back. We got back to the barn around 9:30 pm.

On Tuesday morning, I did my morning devotion. We were in Thad’s class and we were reading out of Leviticus. After class the Legacy students went grocery shopping. After grocery shopping Simeon and I went to the YMCA to play basketball and workout. What I found interesting in my observation in my journal is in Acts 25:9 that Festus did the same as Felix there, doing a favor for the Jews.

On Wednesday, I did my devotional in the morning and did Thad’s class and we went to Amish country to get donuts. After that we did the topical discussion class where we discussed biblical issues. Simeon, Rosie, Stephen and I went to the YMCA to work out and play basketball. I liked the one observation I made in Proverbs 6:12-15: the one who stirs up plots with evil their life will be overtaken with disasters.

On Thursday, I did my devotional in the morning and we did Judah’s class where we read out of Acts. We had lunch after class, and I also did some homework. The Legacy students went to the prayer meeting. During the night, Simeon and I studied verses together and helped me understand it better. What I found interesting in my observations in Proverbs 6:17 is that you shouldn’t make anyone shed innocent blood.

On Friday, I did my devotional in the morning. The Legacy students were doing Judah's class, and after class we cleaned the barn and did our memory verses. The students went to the YMCA to play basketball and workout and met with Chase. We helped with UBY Youth Night, and after that we watched a movie at the Lumsdens’ house.

Evangelism - Rosie Namenyi

Mon, 19 Aug 2024 19:58:56 GMT

Evangelism: a word that brought me anxiety just thinking about it. Last week I walked into an assigned class on evangelism taught by Wilf Scheuermann, not really knowing what to expect. I was worried that I wouldn’t be receptive to what was about to be taught. I knew I wanted to speak and share the gospel with strangers and shine the light in the darkness, but I also was reluctant to speak with strangers because of my difficulty with English and fear of being rejected. I desperately wanted to be like some of my classmates who had the confidence and knowledge to know exactly what to say when starting spiritual conversations with people and when challenged on what they believed.

During the class, we heard many personal stories and experiences from both Wilf and his wife, Melanie. They each ended with the same advice: “Pray before, during and after every interaction with any person.” The power of prayer, trusting in God to direct their speech and actions, was the only thing that brought them through every trial and to where they are today. They encouraged us to pray for opportunities wherever we went, and also to go out in pairs so that while one is talking, the other can silently pray for the heart of the stranger and that the Spirit would speak and open doors for more opportunities.

What stood out to me especially was when Wilf said that he himself was incredibly shy and introverted. How could this man accomplish so much, spread the gospel message to so many people and impact so many lives when he struggled with a much bigger challenge than me? The answer is simple, through the power of Christ. Jesus says, “For the Holy Spirit will teach you in that very hour what you ought to say” (Luke 12:12).

Although I am weak in many areas of my life, I know that God can still use me for whatever His plan is. Our job as followers of Christ is to spread the Good News to as many as we can, to share the hope that we have so that others may know him as we do. Romans 1:16 says, “For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek.” I don’t need to worry about how well I can speak or whether the person will want to hear it, God will direct my paths and seeds will be planted in places least expected. We don’t do this for ourselves, but all for the glory of God.

Trust - Stephen Weinhardt

Mon, 19 Aug 2024 19:58:04 GMT

When God first called me to go to Legacy, I felt him give me a peace that it was what he wanted for me in my life, but at the same time I also had a subtle feeling of uncertainty deep down. Was God really calling me to go? What would I do when I got back home? What will my future look like? I would like to say that I believe in Matthew 6:34, but if I’m being honest, I often struggle to give up to God my anxious thoughts about the future.

Throughout the past three weeks, God has been using our study through Genesis to show me how this human weakness is by no means a new phenomenon. Abraham, the man known as the father of faith also had a hard time trusting God with his life and future despite being reminded by God three separate times that he would bless his lineage. The whole book of Genesis is filled with people who had to learn to put their faith and trust in God and not try to work it out through their own scheming.

This week we were visited by Wilf and Melanie Scheuerman from Portland. Wilf, a guy who’s spent most of his life letting the spirit lead him wherever he was called, was leading us through an evangelism training class. If there was one recurring point that he kept hammering home it was that throughout his life, every time things seemed out of his control and he was forced to rely on God, he always pulled through in the end.

In all of this, God’s been showing how much more I need to be listening to the spirit in my life and put my trust and refuge in God’s promises to defeat any doubts and anxieties that I have in my life.

Promise - Simeon Nenadov

Mon, 19 Aug 2024 19:57:19 GMT

I have spent so much time planning my life or thinking about what plans I should make. Thinking about where I want to go to school, what career I should get into, and what goals I want to reach in life have controlled my mind at times. Thinking about my future has often led me into worrying about not having a definite plan, and being anxious about the possibility of not being good enough to carry out God’s will for my life. My continual shortcomings and personal failures have added to my doubts and lack of comfort in my future. The good news is that God works in unexpected ways, and in broken people, through his unconditional promise.

At Legacy Bible Institute we are currently studying three different books of the Bible in our classes, along with a daily devotion in Psalms and Proverbs and three topical textbooks. It has been amazing to see how the first half of Genesis and just the first few chapters of Luke and Acts tie together to paint the picture of God’s sovereign and invincible plan, and I hope to give my readers a glimpse into some of these powerful connections.

We started in the very beginning, where God created a perfect world, and made man in his own image to have dominion over the whole earth. Adam and Eve fell into temptation, broke the only rule God had given them, and brought the curse of death upon all of their descendants, including us (Romans 5:12). Out of love for his creation, God accompanied the promised curse of death with a new promise of redemption, immediately after the fall of Adam and Eve (Genesis 3:15).

This promise was unconditional, there was no requirement of Adam and Eve. It is true for me as a child of God, and it has been fulfilled through the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ, my Lord. By God’s unconditional redemptive promise my future is secure, and all my anxiety, worry, and doubt is silenced.

I take comfort in the ways we see God administering this promise to his people throughout the scripture we have studied so far. God chose the line of Seth and cursed the line of Cain (Genesis 4:8-12, 5:3), graciously chose to save Noah’s entire family (descendants of Seth) from the flood (Genesis 6:18, 7:1), and decided to make a covenant with Abraham to start a great nation (Genesis 15) and bring about a blessing to the whole earth from his seed (Genesis 12:3, 18:17-19, 22:18, Luke 2:32, and Acts 3:25), which has been fulfilled in the eternal and atoning sacrifice of Jesus (Luke 1:68-75).

In all these examples, I see that two things are made clear: it is only by God’s grace that saving faith is granted, and he is often pleased to use the family structure in choosing to give his grace to his children, and their children. Despite the drunkenness of Noah, the lies of Abraham, the doubt of Sarah, and the sins of many more who God had chosen to use for his purpose, he instilled a fear of the Lord in them, a saving faith by which they were counted righteous (Genesis 15:6). I am so thankful for the work the Lord has chosen to do in my heart, and how he has instrumentally used my family to lead me in his ways, and set an example to me of what it means to live by faith.

God wonderfully designed marriage (Genesis 2:24) and the family, in a way that we inherit many characteristics, attributes, and practices from our family both biologically and by example. These biological characteristics and attributes include things like size, shape, talent, and even personality. These things combine with the example our families set, such as their beliefs, habits, attitudes, and other practices. All of these things that run in our families are used by God to make us who we are, and bring us to be who he has called us to be (Proverbs 22:6). My grandmother has shared with me that through her family I mark the 8th generation of born again believers. God’s amazing love for those whom he calls to be faithful shines through his providence for their children. The Lord loves his children, and knows that his children desire for that same love to be extended to their children. In working through families, “generation to generation”, all the more glory can be given to God as his children, or “those who fear him”, praise him for the work he is doing within the hearts of their children (Luke 1:50).

I do not have to know exactly what my future holds, and I do not even need to know what tomorrow holds. My eternal future is promised by the Lord my God, and it is impossible for God to break a covenant he makes (Genesis 15:17). I praise him for the undeserved and unconditional promise to redeem his children that He has passed down from Adam and Eve, to Abraham, and by the work of his seed Jesus on the cross, to my ancestors, and to me. No joy could be added to my heart by any worldly gain or future. I know my identity, purpose, and my future.

Acts 2:39 says,

“For the promise is for you and for your children and for all who are far off, everyone whom the Lord our God calls to himself.”