On This Day in History

One of my favorite little rabbit holes to fall down is checking the “On this day in history” websites. It’s a fun way to see what quirky or meaningful things happened on any given day, and every once in a while, one of them grabs my attention enough to make me read more. This week, it was the 149th anniversary of Custer’s Last Stand.

Now, I’m not a historian, and my knowledge of the Battle of the Little Bighorn is pretty surface level. But as I read about it, something stuck with me: the way people see Custer is all over the map. Some called him a hero, a bold leader who went down fighting. Others view him quite differently—reckless, arrogant, and dismissive of the lives of both his men and the Native American people he was fighting against.

It got me thinking about how complicated legacies can be. How one person can be remembered in such vastly different ways depending on who’s telling the story. It reminded me of a scene from the Gospels—one where Jesus is walking with His disciples and asks them, “Who do people say that I am?” (Mark 8:27). The disciples respond with a variety of answers: “Some say John the Baptist; others say Elijah; and still others, one of the prophets.” People had different views, different interpretations. Then Jesus gets personal: “But who do you say that I am?” That question still matters. Not just about Jesus, but about ourselves and the world around us. What influences are shaping how we see others? What assumptions do we carry? What legacies are we building?

Custer’s story may be debated, but the legacy of Jesus is still being lived out. Not through fame or battlefield victories, but through grace, humility, and love. And unlike Custer, Jesus didn’t go down in a blaze of glory—He laid down His life willingly, not to conquer enemies, but to save them…to save us. In a world that’s quick to judge and slow to listen, maybe we need to look a little harder at the stories we tell and the ones we believe. And maybe we can ask ourselves: when my story is told, will it be one of pride and self-interest, or one of service and love? Because when it comes down to it, the best legacy we can leave behind is the kind that reflects Christ.

May God hold you,

Rev Chris Hester