PEACE IN MY TIME—BUT WHAT ABOUT TOMORROW?

Legacy Arc Episode 4

King Hezekiah was one of Judah’s most faithful kings. He reopened the temple, restored worship, confronted idolatry, and trusted God when the Assyrian Empire threatened Jerusalem.

Yet near the end of his life, Hezekiah heard that Judah’s treasures—and some of his own descendants—would one day be carried into Babylon. His response leaves us with a sobering question:

“Will there not be peace and security in my lifetime?”

Is it enough for life to remain peaceful while we are here, or are we preparing people for the world they will face after we are gone?

In this special extended episode of the Legacy Arc, Matt explores both the faithfulness and the blind spots of Hezekiah’s life. Hezekiah repaired what he inherited, carried his fears into God’s presence, and received fifteen additional years of life. But what did he do with that additional time?

Along the way, we pause at two important “scenic viewpoints.”

The first is Matt’s Psalm 90 Yardstick of Life. On a 40-inch yardstick representing an 80-year life, every inch represents two years. Hezekiah’s additional fifteen years would equal seven and a half inches. The illustration makes the question strikingly personal: What are we doing with the portion of the yardstick still entrusted to us?

The second viewpoint takes us to Europe in 1938. Neville Chamberlain returned from Munich speaking of “peace for our time,” while Winston Churchill warned that temporary relief had not removed the danger. Their story illustrates the difference between experiencing peace today and preparing wisely for tomorrow.

The episode also considers Hezekiah’s son Manasseh, the danger of turning God’s blessings into a personal showcase, and the responsibility to place faith, wisdom, truth, and courage into the people who will remain after us.

Matt concludes with personal reflections prompted by the death of an old friend, the startling speed with which children and grandchildren grow, and three common lies about time:

• The young say, “There is plenty of time.”
• The middle-aged say, “I am too busy.”
• Older people say, “It is too late.”

None of those statements has to determine the direction of our lives.

Peace in our time may be a gift. Preparing people for their time is a legacy.

SCRIPTURES REFERENCED

• 2 Kings 18–20
• 2 Chronicles 29–32
• Isaiah 38–39
• Psalm 90:10–12
• Psalm 71:15–18
• Psalm 92:12–14
• Ecclesiastes 3:1–11

REFLECTION QUESTIONS

1. What have I inherited that God may be asking me to repair rather than merely complain about?
2. When pressure comes, what do the people watching me learn from the way I carry fear?
3. Have God’s blessings become a testimony through my life, or primarily a showcase of what I possess and have accomplished?
4. Am I using the time God has given me only to enjoy present peace, or am I intentionally preparing someone for tomorrow?
5. Who is already near me who may need my encouragement, experience, honesty, wisdom, or trust?

We cannot control tomorrow, but we can be faithful today. May those who follow us inherit more than our possessions. May they inherit faith, wisdom, courage, truth, and a living knowledge of God.

The Kingdom Corner Podcast

Kingdom Builders: Forming Character in an Age of Confusion

When Love Becomes Action—Transcendence Part Two

What happens when the values we believe in begin to shape the choices we make—even when those choices cost us something?

In this Kingdom Corner Reading Room episode, Matthew Geib finishes Chapter 12, “When You’re Small, You’re Bigger,” from Dr. Henry Cloud’s Integrity: The Courage to Meet the Demands of Reality.

We conclude our exploration of transcendence, the sixth quality of integrated character: recognizing that life reaches beyond our immediate interests and making the adjustments needed to serve something greater.

The reading and closing reflections explore three connected themes:

• Awareness: recognizing a greater good and responding to it.
• Self-denial and adjustment: expressing love through choices that involve time, effort, comfort, or convenience.
• Making shifts: growing in trust, communication, cooperation, and willingness to receive help.

Through Cloud’s examples of leadership and service, alongside personal reflections on friendship, family caregiving, and Christian community, we consider how our everyday actions reveal what we truly value.

Self-denial does not mean losing our worth or ignoring legitimate needs. It calls for wisdom as we give ourselves to what genuinely serves others.

Questions for reflection:

1. What have I become aware of that I now need to act on?
2. What do my choices show that I value—and what am I willing to surrender to live that value faithfully?
3. Where do I need to adjust so that the people around me can grow and contribute too?

Key Scripture passages:

Psalm 34:5; James 2:17; Ephesians 2:10; Ephesians 4:15–16.

Book discussed:

Integrity: The Courage to Meet the Demands of Reality, by Dr. Henry Cloud.

Chapter 12: “When You’re Small, You’re Bigger”—concluding sections on transcendence.

Historical clarification:

The nationwide recall discussed in the 1982 Tylenol example concerned Tylenol capsules, rather than every form of Tylenol.

As we finish this chapter, choose one adjustment to put into practice. Love takes shape in dependable actions.

The Kingdom Corner Reading Room | Matt Geib

Reading: Henry Cloud’s Integrity, Chapter 11; character dimension five, Oriented Toward Increase.

What happens when the desire to grow gets buried beneath criticism, disappointment, or fear? In this Reading Room episode, Matt explores how our inner character finds expression in everyday life—and how encouragement can help gifts and abilities flourish. Drawing from Henry Cloud’s Integrity and the story of friends who developed a coffee-roasting hobby into a coffee shop, he considers the difference between a thoughtful step beyond our comfort zone and an unprepared gamble. Growth invites us to prepare, seek support, and give what is developing within us room to become visible.

• Inner character shapes outward choices, relationships, and creative work.
• Criticism and repeated disappointment can silence the desire to try; encouragement helps nurture it.
• A healthy desire for more serves meaningful relationships, gifts, and purpose.
• Wise risks build on skills, experience, research, and support.
• Small steps can develop the capacity to take larger steps and handle setbacks.
• Our daily habits can give visible expression to our convictions.

00:21 — Welcome and introduction to Integrity

02:09 — The invisible world of character and its visible expression

03:57 — Buried, hurt, or stifled hunger for growth

09:21 — Internal criticism, fear, and the need for encouragement

10:37 — Disappointment, hopelessness, and detachment

14:48 — Healthy and unhealthy hunger for more

18:07 — Gambling versus thoughtful risk

19:41 — The Lamp Post coffee shop: preparation before stepping out

22:08 — From a popcorn popper to a larger expression of growing ability

25:23 — Relational risks, support, and readiness

28:18 — Growth beyond the comfort zone

29:14 — Questions for reflection

33:50 — One small, thoughtful step this week

34:53 — Closing announcements

1. If growth begins in the invisible world of character, what is developing within me, and where is it beginning to show in my life? Consider patience, honesty, courage, kindness, and new abilities.
2. What do I care about deeply enough to invest time, effort, and heart in helping it grow?
3. What is the difference between a wise step beyond my comfort zone and a risk I am unprepared to take? What preparation, counsel, or support would help?
4. When a step brings disappointment, can I learn from it without letting it define my worth or close down my future? Who can help me regain perspective?
5. Does my life today give evidence of what I believe? Where do my habits need to catch up with my convictions?
6. What is one small, thoughtful step I can take this week to give expression to what is growing in my heart?