The Legacy JourneySample

Personal Legacy

A few years ago, my friend Tom Stanley wrote a book about the habits of millionaires called The Millionaire Next Door. It’s a great book and became a best-seller for him.

He followed that up with a book called The Millionaire Mind, where he studied the personal qualities of individuals whose average net worth is around $10 million and whose average annual household income is $750,000. You could call these folks decamillionaires. You also could call them really rich!

Tom’s research focused on finding common characteristics among these wealthy folks. When he finished, he found that the most important success factor for these individuals was honesty. The most common trait among these incredibly wealthy people was unbelievable, fanatical integrity! That’s what was important to them!

That’s an interesting thread running through the lives of these successful people. But maybe we shouldn’t be surprised. As Christians, integrity should also run as a thread through our lives—regardless of our bank balances. Paul told the Corinthians that anyone who serves as a manager has to be faithful. In other words, he or she has to live with unquestioned integrity.

Single or married, we have a responsibility to safeguard our personal lives. We have to remember that God owns it all so stuff doesn’t sidetrack our walk. We have to develop compassion and generosity instead of pride and arrogance because money magnifies who we are. And we need to make ourselves accountable to others so we can stay focused on what’s important.

Above all, we have a responsibility to be faithful with what God has given us. We have to display the moral backbone that enables us to carry more in a trustworthy way.

Personal integrity shapes your personal legacy. Without it, you will falter and you will put your legacy in harm’s way.