Loving Our 'Children's Children'

God gave me a rare blessing when I was a boy. Both sets of my grandparents lived within a bicycle ride of my house.

Grandpa and Grandma Orebaugh (my mom's parents) loved the great outdoors—hunting, fishing, gardening, and sports. Sunday dinner at their house meant fried chicken cooked the old fashioned way in Grandma's black skillet, homemade mashed potatoes and gravy she stirred by hand, baked beans loaded with onions and bacon, and the best from-scratch chocolate cake I've ever eaten. Grandpa and Grandma enjoyed listening to music. I still remember the big band sounds that bounced from the maple stereo console in their living room.

Grandpa and Grandma Faust read the newspaper on the front porch swing, worked crossword puzzles while watching TV at night, kept a plastic egg full of Silly Putty in their desk drawer, and ate ice cream before going to bed. Grandpa and I worked on school science projects in his garage. One year we made a battery-powered telegraph out of strips of tin, nails, wire, and wood. Another time we used old paint cans filled with sand to demonstrate the power of pulleys to lift different weights. (Grandpa, not I, deserved whatever grade I received for those assignments.)

What do you remember about your grandparents? Did you give them special names like Gramma, Pop, Papa, Nanna, or DadDad? Did they greet you with warm hugs, get up early in the morning and make you bacon and eggs, and give you birthday cards with five-dollar bills inside? Were they attentive and kind, or were they distant and grumpy? Were you fortunate enough to have loving grandparents in your life at all?

A Scriptural blessing says, "May you live to see your children's children" (Psalm 128:6). Now that I'm a grandpa myself, I get to see my "children's children." In the eyes of my granddaughters, I see reflections of my own youth, I re-live memories of bringing up my own kids, and I see God's promise of hope for tomorrow.

What is the role of a grandparent?

We should be encouragers for our grandkids. They need us to provide a safe relationship where they will be consistently built up, not torn down.

Grandparents should be parent boosters. We shouldn't undermine but support the moms and dads who serve on the front lines of child-rearing.

We should be good listeners. Our grandchildren give us a precious gift when they open up their private worlds and talk with us about their schoolwork, friends, questions, goals, and dreams.

Above all, grandparents need to be genuine in our walk with God. Children can sniff out a phony a mile away, but grandparents who are sincere in their faith and consistent in their convictions impact kids for life. Older Christians who reinforce biblical values by word and deed are a blessing not only to their grandchildren but to the entire body of Christ. Remember Paul's admonition? "Teach the older men to be temperate, worthy of respect, self-controlled, and sound in faith, in love and in endurance. Likewise, teach the older women to be reverent in the way they live, not to be slanderers or addicted to much wine, but to teach what is good" (Titus 2:2, 3).

When our grandchildren look back and remember us, what will they recall? Chances are, they will remember the hugs we gave, the food we served, the vacations and holidays we shared with them. Most of all, may we live in such a way that they will remember the Lord we love and serve.