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7 Things to Add to Your Bucket List That Will Leave a Powerful Legacy
- Cindi McMenamin Crosswalk.com Contributing Writer
- Published Oct 10, 2023
When we think of a bucket list, we tend to think of adventures we want to take or risks we want to attempt before we leave this earth: Skydiving, traveling, experiencing a “first” on the other side of the country or the world. But what if we added to that list some activities or “firsts” that will leave a lasting legacy of who we were spiritually on this earth?
Scripture tells us, “If then you have been raised with Christ, seek the things that are above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. Set your minds on things that are above, not on things that are on earth” (Colossians 3:1-2 ESV). When we are setting our minds on things above, our bucket list can include activities that impact others, garner eternal rewards for us, and leave a legacy that will outlive us after we die.
When it comes to your bucket list, you don’t need to throw out the adventure and the risks. You may be able to add some spiritual and eternal purpose to some of them by inviting someone along with you or making sure each item on your list isn’t just about you. Or, make sure you have a healthy balance between what will die with you and what will remain as a reminder of who you were and where your heart was.
Here are seven things to add to your bucket list that will leave a powerful legacy:
1. Invest in God’s Word daily.
According to Scripture, only two things are eternal: God’s Word (Isaiah 40:8) and people (Revelation 22:5). You can invest in both by making the study of God’s Word a regular part of your life if you haven’t already. In addition to the personal spiritual growth you’ll receive, when you are being changed by the Word, chances are others are being impacted eternally, as well. How do you invest in God’s Word? By studying it, applying it, memorizing it, teaching it, and allowing it to transform your life.
As you grow in your love for God’s Word, make it a goal to visit some of your favorite locations or sites found in the Bible. Then, learn as much as you can about them and offer to teach a Bible study or Sunday School class at your church on them, or just share what you learned with others who would be fascinated with your Bible-come-to-life experiences.
2. Add someone’s name – and life – to your bucket list.
Instead of making your bucket list all about what you want to accomplish, think of at least one or two people whose lives you’d like to pour into before you die, so that you leave a lasting imprint on them and possibly impact their lives for eternity.
Who do you know that might be unnoticed by everyone else? Who doesn’t have family around and would be changed by your love and service toward them? You can begin pouring into that person’s life by showing God’s grace to them, helping them turn from a life of sin, sharing the plan of salvation with them, or just being a friend in the name of Jesus.
Such investments are spiritual and often cannot be displayed here on earth. In fact, the more we let God do the accounting and displaying for eternal investments like that, the more we have that we probably didn’t realize! Make part of your bucket list something God can reward and your legacy will turn into eternal rewards stored up in heaven.
3. Write and send more handwritten old-fashioned letters.
I realize we are in the age of technological communication. But there’s something far more meaningful about receiving a card or letter in the mail than an email (especially those addressed to several people at once), or a text message that can easily be erased. Hand-written letters and cards can be saved through the years, and held, smelled, and treasured.
Imagine receiving a letter from a loved one written shortly before they passed away. That is something you might hold onto, right? Maybe even read a portion of it at their memorial service? Keep in mind that as you write encouraging letters to others, you are recording and leaving bits and pieces of your heart that loved ones might otherwise have longed to recall.
Photo Credit: ©GettyImages/Tom Merton
4. Make Psalm 90:12 your life’s motto.
Some people regularly adopt a different verse – or even a single word – to focus on and apply each year. How about making Psalm 90:12 your life’s motto with every year that you may have left?
Psalm 90:12 says, “So teach us to number our days that we may get a heart of wisdom.” We shouldn’t have to wait until we get a diagnosis of six months or a year before we start living carefully and intentionally, realizing our number will soon be up. Psalm 139:16 tells us are days are numbered and therefore we all have limited time left to make an impact on this earth. Imagine how our lives might change for the better if we lived each day as if it were our last.
In my book, When Women Long for Rest, I wrote a chapter called “Focusing on the Few Things that Matter” and listed how radically my life might change if I were told I had only six months to live. I wrote that I’d:
- Spend quality time every day with my husband and daughter
- Cut out the busy work at home and church
- Spend more time in heart preparation every day
- Spend longer, richer times in worship of my Creator and Savior
- Enjoy each sunset, walk more in the sun, climb a mountain, take more prayer walks
None of us really knows how much longer we have left to live, so why not make your list now of how you’ll start living differently because your days really are numbered.
5. Start a blessing book or gratitude journal.
Many people enjoy scrapbooking with the idea of leaving behind a book of memories for their family and loved ones. Consider starting a blessing book in which you record daily blessings God provided, answers to prayer, things you had hoped and prayed about and then how you saw God come through. Can you imagine how wonderful that would be for somebody else to read after you’re gone? They would get a glimpse into your heart of gratitude, your prayer life, and a heart set on things above. Perhaps they’d even be inspired to start a blessing book or prayer journal of their own.
6. Mentor at least one other believer.
Even if you’re a fairly new believer, you can always find somebody who isn’t as far along spiritually as you are. To invest in someone’s spiritual growth and be a spiritual mentor to someone even if you might think you don’t have much to offer is something that will live on eternally, especially if the person you mentored follows suit and becomes a mentor to someone else and the pattern continues.
Do you enjoy hiking, backpacking, camping, cycling, or some other activity? If so, turn those trips into spiritual pilgrimages by taking along your mentee or someone you are discipling in the Word. Chances are they will remember that trip with you long after you’re gone.
7. Start collecting the right stuff.
Jesus told His followers, “lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also” (Matthew 6:20-21 ESV). To store up “treasures in heaven” is to invest eternally rather than collecting earthly things that are temporal and won’t outlive your time on this earth. Here are some examples of “collections” that will leave a lasting impact on others:
- All nine fruits of the Spirit (Galatians 5:22-23)
- Scripture verses you have memorized (Psalm 119:11)
- People with whom you’ve shared the gospel (Mark 16:15)
- Children you’ve loved and cared for, or widows you’ve “adopted” as grandmothers or great-grandmothers (James 1:27)
- Leaders you’ve trained for ministry (2 Timothy 2:2)
- New believers you’ve helped usher into the kingdom and disciples who’ve learned to walk with God from your instruction and example (Matthew 28:19-20)
- Lives that have been touched by your encouragement (Ephesians 4:29)
- Worn-out, read-through, marked-up Bibles, full of your own study notes (2 Timothy 2:15)
These “treasures in heaven” will greet us someday when we arrive; and our trinkets – or time wasted on earth – will not. Seek to know God more fully and leave a lasting impact on others and a legacy of who you were, spiritually, and where your heart was invested.
For more on living carefully and intentionally, see Cindi’s books, Letting God Meet Your Emotional Needs, and Women on the Edge.
Photo Credit: ©GettyImages/MichellePatrickPhotographyLLC
