“Remind me of this with every decision, generations will reap what I sow, I can pass on a curse or a blessing – to those I will never know…to my great, great, great, grandaughter – live in peace, to my great, great, great, grandson-live in peace”

I played this song over and over and over and over and over again. I had seen the curses of poor choices and I wanted to choose better- to choose the blessings my grandparents had …

I was incredibly intentional about this choice. Passing on love and blessing and faith … Our kids will tell you my deepest prayer is that they will love and respect and hold each other up in prayer for the rest of their lives. They will be the blessing carriers when I’m gone some day… I want my legacy to be the gift of love and faith in Jesus to the generations I am honored to know and to the generations I will never know…

The words to that song have been ruminating in my heart again…

life gets hard…love takes work. It is a choice – every. single. day.

Even so, I will ALWAYS choose to pass on the blessing.

Earlier this month we watched our 3rd grandchild be dedicated. Each time, our children, their parents, have promised to raise them to know and love and trust Jesus. We are honored to join in that promise each time. In just a few weeks we will watch and join the promise as our 4th grandchild is dedicated. A promise, a choice to pass on the blessing…

This view of our son Owen holding Owen and Emeryn, cross in the background, and their momma looking over, nearly brought me to my knees. The blessing I had prayed to pass on was there, in real time. My eyes moved down the row in front of me, next to Owen and Lexi were Natasha and Colin and their newest baby Naomi, and next to me, Alaina holding our first grand daughter Mila, her boyfriend Connor and holding us all together, my sweet hubby. I am incredibly humbled by the blessing of love we chose to sow, it is bearing fruit. Watching our children love their children and our daughter love her nieces and nephew has become our JOY, it is the tangible harvest of our choice to pass on the blessing…

Daily life is a constant reminder that every decision, every word choice, every action, each bit of grace and mercy, each ask of forgiveness and every act of indifference, hate or love -have impact – I have to choose daily if I will pass on a curse or a blessing, our family has to choose daily which they will pass on…

Life does not always offer the easy choice of passing on the blessing…sometimes we don’t listen, sometimes our words hurt- deeply- sometimes we isolate ourselves because we don’t feel loved or accepted, sometimes we are not our best selves…

If we are to pass on this blessing, and bypass the curse, the hard work of life is to pick ourselves off the floor, take responsibility for the hurts we’ve caused, forgive the hurts others have cut deeply into us and choose to remember the generations…to consider the choice…to decide what we will pass on – the curse or the blessing… Intentionality, trust, faith and choosing love above all else… choosing the blessing.

I pray and pray and pray this blessing over my children (ALL of them), my grandchildren and all of the generations I will never know…and I will continue to soak up all of the moments watching this perfectly imperfect family fight with intentionality- to choose trust, faith and love, to choose each other and to choose the blessing – for the generations…

“We will not hide these truths from our children; we will tell the next generation the praises of the LORD, his strength and the wonders He has done. For He established a testimony in Jacob and appointed a law in Israel, which he commanded our fathers to teach to their children. That the next generation might know them, even the children yet to be born, and that they in turn might teach their children, so that they should set their hope in God and not forget the works of God, but keep his commandments.” -Psalm 78:4-7