The Church & Grandparents

#LocalChurch #Family #Discipleship #Faith #Community #IntergenerationalMinistry #Grandparents #FamilyofFaith

The local church is a body that can either be healthy and thriving or sick and fading. The difference in the whole matter can be several outside influences, such as the changes in the community, the misalignment of the local church to the current community in which it serves, the lack of emphasis on discipleship and serving the community and many more. One factor that blesses the local church is to heed the words of those who have been around for a while longer than the youngest members of the family and the local church.

“ The counsel of the Lord stands forever,

The plans of His heart from.

Blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord,

The people whom He has chosen for His own inheritance.”[1]

Grandparents are a blessing to a family. These are the voices of those who have lived longer than those around them (except their peers) and those who begin to see how things could have been better addressed in their younger days because of their stage in life. The renewed vision based on their experience can be a catalyst for applied wisdom in the lives of those willing to listen and take these words to heart. However, there is a much more critical aspect of grandparents being part of the family for those who are Disciples of Jesus Christ. Grandparents are privileged to steward the faith entrusted to them as they pass it to their sons, daughters, and grandchildren.

“For I am mindful of the sincere faith within you, which first dwelt in your grandmother Lois and your mother Eunice, and I am sure that it is in you as well.”[2]

Grandparents attest to God’s faithfulness. Every generation goes through different issues, trials, and circumstances that highlight the need for God’s peace, comfort, peace, and guidance. As three generations (or more, if you are blessed to add “great” in front of “grand”) spend time together. Sharing life experiences provides families the chance to experience God moving in His unchanging ways from one generation to another. Recall if you met your grandparents, the stories they shared, their experiences about growing up, and how they saw God move throughout their lives.

“We will not conceal them from their children,

But tell to the generation to come the praises of the Lord,

And His strength and His wondrous works that He has done.”[3]

Grandparents are a source of wisdom. Not the kind that is moralistic or humanistic, but for those grandparents that have faithfully walked with YHWH, those are the ones that have God-given wisdom to impart to the younger members of the family. How can we deepen our prayer life? How may I handle the difficulties in parenting? How may I find a better way to address marriage issues? How do I overcome dealing with a particular temptation or habitual sin in my life? These are a few questions a spiritually wise grand or great-grandparent is apt to answer for a son, daughter, grandchild, or great-grandchild. While our society may discount the elderly because physical strength is no longer theirs, the wisdom that comes from walking alongside God cannot be replaced or bought.

“For the Mighty One has done great things for me;

And holy is His name.

“And His mercy is upon generation after generation.”[4]

Grandparents are stewards of God’s mercy. Mary sings in the adulation after Gabriel announces Jesus’ birth about the mercy of God that is from one generation to the next. Here the patriarchs and matriarchs of the families around us are the gatekeepers of the faith as they walk as disciples of the Lord Jesus. Living through every kind of situation we could imagine; grandparents and great-grandparents provide individuals the real experience of God’s mercy toward humanity. There is a real sense of personal experience as we hear from a loved one how they experienced forgiveness and mercy from God’s hand. God, in His mercy, shows us His goodness as we see How someone else has received such great love and kindness from the Creator and Sustainer of all life.

Are you blessed to know and share life with your grandparents? Praise the one who has provided them to you! Are you a grandparent sharing in local church life? I pray you will see that you have much to give and share with everyone around you. Are you a member of a local church where grandparents are present? I pray God will guide you to be mentored by those who have lived longer than you.

May we grow as we have grown in appreciating one another as the gift we are to one another in Jesus Christ.

[1] New American Standard Bible: 1995 update (Ps 33:11–12). (1995). The Lockman Foundation. [2] New American Standard Bible: 1995 update (2 Ti 1:5). (1995). The Lockman Foundation. [3] New American Standard Bible: 1995 update (Ps 78:4). (1995). The Lockman Foundation. [4] New American Standard Bible: 1995 update (Lk 1:49–50). (1995). The Lockman Foundation.