Day 7: I Don’t Want My Kids to Feel This Way

"What you have learned and received and heard and seen in me—practice these things, and the God of peace will be with you."

Philippians 4:9 ESV

You’ve come a long way this week. You’ve invited God into your anxiety. You’ve made space to breathe. And you’ve started practicing the kind of peace that doesn’t come from circumstances—but from Christ.

After my mother passed away, my brothers and I went through her home. Everything was still in its place, just as she had left it. Her Bible sat on the kitchen counter. It was worn, underlined, filled with little notes and prayer cards. As I flipped through it, I saw she had marked the Book of Philippians.

She didn’t just read about peace. She lived it. And now, here I was, years later, realizing that the peace I help others find is something I saw modeled right in front of me. Her Bible reminded me that what we believe and how we live doesn’t end with us. It shapes the people who come after us.

Maybe you’ve thought, “I don’t want my kids or grandkids to feel this way. I don’t want them to inherit this.”

You can leave them something better.

You can’t pass on what you don’t possess. But when you begin to live from peace, your family sees it. And that’s where generational change begins.

To leave a powerful legacy, it requires intentionality. When you choose peace over panic, and truth over fear, you show your family that it’s possible to walk with God through hard emotions and come out stronger.

We can’t control everything our kids will face. But we can live in a way that shows them what peace looks like when it’s lived out daily.

The peace you fight for today becomes the peace your children will one day remember. It’s never too late to leave a legacy that points to the God of peace.

ONE THING

Think about someone younger than you—your child, grandchild, niece, nephew, or spiritual child. What would it mean for them to inherit a legacy of peace from your life? Write a short prayer or letter to them, declaring your hope for their future.