“What’s the win?”

I’ve heard that question hundreds of times over my professional career as our team planned countless events that we hoped would leave a lasting impact for the Kingdom. Whether I was serving on staff at a church under my father-in-law’s leadership, whether I was pastoring a church I led, or whether I was serving on a marketing team for a nonprofit ministry, the strategy always started with defining the win. What that means is we wanted to be able to define what success looked like. Sometimes it was a certain number of attendees. Sometimes it was a dollar amount raised. Sometimes it was a number of salvations, baptisms, or decisions to take a next step in one’s faith journey. One thing has been and is consistently true for every organization I know of: the win is defined by the desired outcome.

But what if it’s not?

In 2 Kings 13:20-21, we encounter a powerful message about legacy through a remarkable story. The passage describes the death of Elisha, a prophet of God, and an extraordinary event that follows his passing. When a group of individuals buried a man, they saw a raiding band approaching and hastily cast the deceased into Elisha’s grave. When the body touched Elisha’s bones, the man came back to life and stood on his feet. This scene is a vivid reminder of how the faithfulness and obedience of one person can impact others, even long after their death.

Raising godly children is a lifelong journey filled with opportunities to instill a deep faith and character rooted in Christ. As fathers, our role is not only to guide them but also to grow alongside them in faith. By being intentional, present, and loving, we can help our children become unreasonably committed followers of Jesus, paving the way for a new generation that values and lives out their faith.