A Meaningful Legacy

Yael Eckstein  |  February 6, 2023

What do people gain from all their labors
    at which they toil under the sun? — Ecclesiastes 1:3

This month marks the fourth anniversary of the passing of my father, Fellowship Founder Rabbi Yechiel Eckstein. In his honor, I offer you a selection of devotions on the spiritual importance of legacy and leadership.

Sam Walton, the founder of Walmart® and Walton family patriarch, was more successful than anyone could have ever imagined. Despite all his success in business, Sam’s final words on his deathbed surrounded by family were not about all his material accomplishments. His last words were: “I blew it!” 

Sam barely knew his youngest son and many reports say that his wife only stayed with him out of a sense of marital obligation. They say that toward the end of his life he attempted to repair those relationships.

By the standards of the material world, Sam Walton had been one of the most successful individuals in the world. But by his own admission, he had failed.

A Meaningful Legacy

In the Book of Ecclesiastes, King Solomon wondered aloud, “What do people gain from all their labors at which they toil under the sun?” Did King Solomon really believe that there is no value to all of our hard work? Did he really think that everything we work at in life is meaningless?

The answer is found in a phrase that is in this verse and repeated throughout the book: “under the sun.”

When Solomon talks about life under the sun, he is referring to the material, physical aspect of life. And in that respect, yes — everything is meaningless! Everything physical is temporary and empty. King David wrote, “Man is like a breath; his days are like a passing shadow” (Psalm 144:4 ESV).

But that’s life under the sun. There is also life beyond the sun, the spiritual part of life. Solomon teaches us that ultimately, that’s the only part of life that really matters. Only the spirit lasts forever.

In this verse, King Solomon wondered, “What do people gain from all their labors at which they toil under the sun?” In other words, what lasting value is there to our material successes? Sam Walton worked hard and made billions. But what good is all that money if he barely knew his own son?

A meaningful legacy is measured in spiritual terms, not material ones. How much good have I brought to the lives of others? What impact did I have on my children and those closest to me? What are my contributions to the Kingdom of God?

This is the meaningful legacy we must all strive to fulfill.

What do people gain from all their labors
    at which they toil under the sun? — Ecclesiastes 1:3

This month marks the fourth anniversary of the passing of my father, Fellowship Founder Rabbi Yechiel Eckstein. In his honor, I offer you a selection of devotions on the spiritual importance of legacy and leadership.

Sam Walton, the founder of Walmart® and Walton family patriarch, was more successful than anyone could have ever imagined. Despite all his success in business, Sam’s final words on his deathbed surrounded by family were not about all his material accomplishments. His last words were: “I blew it!” 

Sam barely knew his youngest son and many reports say that his wife only stayed with him out of a sense of marital obligation. They say that toward the end of his life he attempted to repair those relationships.

By the standards of the material world, Sam Walton had been one of the most successful individuals in the world. But by his own admission, he had failed.

A Meaningful Legacy

In the Book of Ecclesiastes, King Solomon wondered aloud, “What do people gain from all their labors at which they toil under the sun?” Did King Solomon really believe that there is no value to all of our hard work? Did he really think that everything we work at in life is meaningless?

The answer is found in a phrase that is in this verse and repeated throughout the book: “under the sun.”

When Solomon talks about life under the sun, he is referring to the material, physical aspect of life. And in that respect, yes — everything is meaningless! Everything physical is temporary and empty. King David wrote, “Man is like a breath; his days are like a passing shadow” (Psalm 144:4 ESV).

But that’s life under the sun. There is also life beyond the sun, the spiritual part of life. Solomon teaches us that ultimately, that’s the only part of life that really matters. Only the spirit lasts forever.

In this verse, King Solomon wondered, “What do people gain from all their labors at which they toil under the sun?” In other words, what lasting value is there to our material successes? Sam Walton worked hard and made billions. But what good is all that money if he barely knew his own son?

A meaningful legacy is measured in spiritual terms, not material ones. How much good have I brought to the lives of others? What impact did I have on my children and those closest to me? What are my contributions to the Kingdom of God?

This is the meaningful legacy we must all strive to fulfill.

Your Turn:

Do you worry too much about material status? Remember that your spiritual life is what really matters. Don’t blow it!