A Treasure Passed Down

If you are the anonymous South Carolinian who recently won the largest jackpot in United States history, congratulations! $878 million is a lot of buckage. How does one begin to embrace a fortune so immense?

Personally, I received a dollar every Christmas from my grandfather until he died. I was 8 years old.

The sum total of eight dollars is negligible in contrast to a multi-million-dollar fortune, but hold on. These were silver dollars and they came from Papa Joe. By definition, that makes them special!

Papa Joe gave me something more than money. Along with the dollar, he passed down a legacy. 

Streams Of Silver Dollars

As kids, my brothers and I received the gift as one of his many grandchildren. He had eleven children, so the lineup of their offspring to get our silver dollar was a long one. I remember standing expectantly, respectfully waiting for him to place the coin in my hand. 

We were receiving the equivalent of a blessing. Indirectly, my grandfather passed down an inheritance that has no bounds.

Papa Joe gave a gift at Christmas, but the silver dollars are merely a reminder of what he passed down. 

1. There’s a fortune to embrace in recognizing the strong thread of influence others, by their goodness, have had on our lives. 
2. There’s rich gratitude that comes through acknowledging the countless times someone else has encouraged us with kindness.
3. There’s power in focusing on what is worthy.

The apostle Paul said, “Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable — if anything is excellent or praiseworthy — think about such things and the God of peace will be with you” (Philippians 4:8).

An Intangible Inheritance

My father was the oldest of Papa Joe’s 11 children. Maybe there weren’t countless grandchildren, but there were so many that he couldn’t always call us by name. Didn’t matter. We carried away something from him that’s worth a fortune—the stamp of having belonged to a Godly man.

The intangible inheritance that I, my brothers, and my cousins received from our grandfather came as a reminder that we belonged to something and someone greater than ourselves. He handed down love, not measured by the dollars that he gave but through the essence of his kindness.

One cannot measure the stream of a positive influence a person has on our lives, but it is a fortune worth embracing.