De Erfenis van Grootouders—The Legacy of Grandparents
In a few weeks, our great-niece will be baptized, showing the world her faith and trust she has placed in Jesus Christ as her Savior. That particular & special weekend will coincide with the celebration of her birthday.
Years ago, when we were unable to conceive, my sister graciously allowed her daughter to become as our first daughter. My sister wrote to me, telling me how sharing their daughter with us was a blessing to them.
My husband and I shared Sunday afternoons at our home with Scott & Jill’s little girl. We played, laughed, dressed her in funny Sunday outfits, and took long drives in my 1965 Ford Mustang.
The little girl who is about to be baptized (in a few weeks) is my niece’s daughter (Clementine—a granddaughter thanks to my sweet sister).
Fast forward to 1999, to the year when the Lord helped us conceive and birth our own biological daughter, one who is currently pregnant.
This morning, I arose to our daughter’s post on Instagram, a photo of the nursery, along with words that spoke of hope and joy.
“We can’t wait to meet you, baby boy.” Today, we enter week thirty-nine of her pregnancy, and so many have asked me, the nana: “Are you excited?”
Truly, I fully believe in birth at conception. Yet when asked the question about my excitement for our upcoming grandchild, the emotion that fills me most—the overwhelming responsibility that comes with the role.
- Nana
- Grandma
- Oma
- Grandma
In The Netherlands, the Dutch word for grandma is “oma,” & back in 2015, the Lord gave us another daughter, not biological, but one placed in our hearts by love.
“We will not conceal them from their children,
(The Psalms 78: 4 NASB)
But tell to the generation to come the praises of the LORD,
And His strength and His wondrous works that He has done.”
- Should we read Bible stories to our beautiful grandchildren who are toddlers?
- Should we devote more time to pray for their salvation?
- Could we connect more frequently with our teenage grandkids?
- Could we share car rides with them?
- Should we tell them about Jesus, our Savior and Lord?
The Legacy of Grandparents
De Erfenis van Grootouders
In whatever language one speaks, IT’S REALLY IMPORTANT!
- For our grandchildren’s salvation (our kleinkinderen) hangs in the balance, and when we have a child who has a child—it’s vitally important!
- And if we have a child who has a child who has a child—it’s terribly important!
- Great-grandparent and Grandparents—Do we know the power of our influence?
We (the grandparents—grootouders) are second (to the parents) in the potential to impact our grandchildren spiritually.
“For He established a testimony in Jacob
(The Psalms 78: 5-6 NASB)
And appointed a law in Israel,
Which He commanded our fathers
That they should teach them to their children,
That the generation to come might know,
even the children yet to be born,
That they may arise and tell them to their children,”
We tell, so our kids will tell their kids, and then their kids will tell their future children, those not yet born. As I sit here thinking about all those generations, I recall the words my dad used to say when I was a child. Dad always said, when speaking of his children: “My quiver is full.” As I ponder the spiritual legacy he left me, the way he guided my thoughts, my actions, and my words,
I find myself quite grateful.
Years later, now some twenty-six years past the death of my dad, I find myself living close to his age, within that same decade of life as when my dad passed away. Currently, my husband and I prepare our finances, our Trust, our Last Will and Testament, for the generations to come. More and more, I now see the important role parents play in the lives of their children. Today, I see the important role grandparents hold for their grandchildren. Maybe I will not live as long as I hope, to the age of 103, but this is what I desire more than years of life and even more than my next breath—
I want my children & my grandchildren to come to know Jesus as their Savior & Lord.
God asks us to push against the darkness. The task begins with us as we respond to God’s Holy Spirit within our own lives. Our Father knows us so well: our fears, our tears, our grief, our wounds, our words, our thoughts, and our behaviors.
God knows the influence we have over our children, the way we can lead them toward God, as well as the way we can lead them to go away from God. May we have a vision & see our godly purpose.
WE CAN CHANGE IS THE SPIRITUAL LEGACY OF THOSE WHO COME AFTER US!
May we Live It, Speak It & Pray for It—The Lord’s salvation for the generations to come.
Maybe we are reading this and asking: What TRUTH should I speak to my kleinkinderen (grandchildren)? We are to share the TRUTH found in God’s Word.
“That they should put their confidence in God
(The Psalms 78: 7 NASB)
And not forget the works of God,
But keep His commandments,”