How can our lives echo into eternity? Two simple ways are through our children and the written word. Leaving aside my belief in the importance of natalism, I cannot understate how the written word can echo our thoughts and ideas into eternity.
The power of words conveys ideas not only in lands far and wide to people you may never meet but also throughout time. Think of the great writers who have influenced you—ancient and modern.
We are impacted by words carved into stone, scribed into vellum, written on parchment, or printed in books and papers. Whether the words of Moses echoing from Sinai, stoic musings from Marcus Aurelius, a great play from Shakespeare, or a modern story like the Harry Potter series from J.K. Rowling, these words impact culture for years, decades, centuries, and even millennia.
Even the writers who influence us were influenced by others throughout eternity. Saint Paul says to Timothy, who is planning to soon visit him in prison, "When you come, bring the cloak that I left with Carpus at Troas, and my scrolls, especially the parchments." (2 Tim 4:13 NIV)
There are no great writers who are not prolific readers.
Perhaps you are in your sunset years and looking to your legacy. Maybe you are wondering if this life is all there is. I assure you, it is not all there is. There is life after death and, even more promising, there is "LIFE after life after death," as N.T. Wright has commented.
While we look forward to eternity, we can also concern ourselves with those we leave behind. Take up the pen (or the keyboard) and leave a legacy. A way to outlive your own body. A way to be present and influence people you will never meet—across place and time.
Let's make our lives echo into eternity through our words.