Honoring Some, Helping Others

INTRODUCTION: ILL.- One grandmother said, “My granddaughter came to spend a few weeks with me, and I decided to teach her to sew. After I had gone through a lengthy explanation of how to thread the machine, she stepped back, put her hands on her hips, and said in disbelief, "You mean you can do all that, but you can’t operate my Game Boy?"

ILL.- A sweet little boy surprised his grandmother one morning and brought her a cup of coffee. He made it himself and was so proud. He anxiously waited to hear the verdict on the quality of the coffee. The grandmother had never in her life had such a bad cup of coffee, and as she forced down the last sip she noticed three of those little green army guys in the bottom of the cup.

She asked, "Honey, why would three little green army guys be in the bottom of my cup?"

Her grandson replied, "You know grandma, it’s like on TV, ’The best part of waking up is soldiers (Folgers) in your cup."

ILL.- My grandson was visiting one day when he asked, "Grandpa, do you know how you and God are alike?" I mentally polished my halo while I asked, "No, how are we alike?" "You’re both old," he replied.

ILL.- Another grandmother said, “I didn’t know if my granddaughter had learned her colors yet, so I decided to test her. I would point out something and ask her what color it was. She would tell me and always she was correct. But it was fun for me, so I continued. At last she headed for the door, saying sagely, "Grandma, I think you should try to figure out some of these yourself."

ILL.- A grandmother was telling her little granddaughter what her own childhood was like: "We used to skate outside on a pond. I had a swing made from a tire; it hung from a tree in our front yard. We rode our pony. We picked wild raspberries in the woods."

The little girl was wide-eyed, taking this in. At last she said, "I sure wish I’d gotten to know you sooner!"

Isn’t grandparenting grand? Better yet, aren’t grandchildren a ball of fun? Interesting? Insightful? Entertaining? And exhausting?

ILL.- Elaine and I recently visited my daughter and her family in Mechanicsville, VA. Granddaughter Hope is age 5 and is a sweet, pretty little girl. Grandson Caleb is age two and is full of energy. And as Elaine says, he can’t talk softly. He is loud every time he opens his mouth. But they were so much fun, well behaved and full of energy.

I’ve got the cutest picture of Caleb sitting on Elaine’s lap and she is talking to him and his response is like, “yeah, yeah, yeah!”

PROP.- In the light of this being grandparents’ day and in the light of the hurricane Katrina tragedy, I want us to think of honoring some and helping others.

I. HONORING SOME

In this case, honoring grandparents.

Proverbs 17:6 “Children’s children are a crown to the aged, and parents are the pride of their children.”

New Living Translation “Grandchildren are the crowning glory of the aged…”

CEV “Grandparents are proud of their grandchildren.” Most of the time, this is true.

DID YOU KNOW?

• There were about 56 million grandparents in the United States in 2001, according to data collected in the Census Bureau’s Survey of Income and Program Participation?

• Of Americans aged 45 and over, roughly 67 percent are grandparents?

• About 75,000 Americans become grandparents each month?

• The average age of people becoming grandparents for the first time is 47?

• About 8 percent of all children in the United States – nearly 5.8 million children – live with their grandparents, according to the U.S. Census Bureau?

QUOTES:

- "If you would civilize a man, begin with his grandmother.”

- “Few things are more delightful than grandchildren fighting over your lap.”

- “No cowboy was ever faster on the draw than a grandparent pulling a baby picture out of a wallet.”

- "The reason that grandparents and grandchildren get along so well is that they have a common enemy."

- “They say genes skip generations. Maybe that’s why grandparents find their grandchildren so likeable.”

- “My grandkids believe I’m the oldest thing in the world. And after two or three hours with them, I believe it, too.”

- “Grandchildren are God’s way of compensating us for growing old. “

- “I don’t intentionally spoil my grandkids. It’s just that correcting them often takes more energy than I have left.”

I think grandparents deserve some honor, some praise, a pat on the back! Some kids receive some of their best support and encouragement in life from their grandparents. Most grandparents are good to their grandchildren. VERY GOOD!