Thank God For Grandparents

Professor Gordon Rupp, the British historian, was asked how

the church could survive the decades of persecution and

communist propaganda in Russia. His answer was, "It's largely

due to grandparents." The communists made the big mistake of

thinking that because the church was only full of old people it had

no future. They failed to realize that grandparents have an impact

on their grandchildren. The old Russian grandparents passed

their faith on to their grandchildren, and that is why there is a new

revival of Christianity in Russia.

We often look at the masses of youth in our schools and

colleges and say that they are our future, and it is truly so, but let

us not forget that our future is also in the past because the older

people pass on their old values and faith to those masses of youth.

Paul recognized this in the life of young Timothy. He loves

Timothy dearly, but he recognized that his gifted young Christian

servant was not merely a product of his own making. He had a

heritage that went back to grandma Lois. She was the one who had

faith in God, and she passed that faith on to her daughter Eunice,

and together they instilled it in Timothy. He was not a self-made

man. He was a product of a godly heritage that came to him from

his grandmother.

The Bible is filled with grandparents. All of the Patriarchs of

the Old Testament were grandparents, and practically every

famous person in the Bible was a grandfather or grandmother.

Every person in the genealogy of Jesus was a grandparent. The

grandfather of Jesus is mentioned 3 times. A major portion of the

Bible was written by grandfathers. But Lois is the only person in

the Bible actually given the label of grandmother. There is one in

the Old Testament given the name grandmother as well. Her name

was Moaca the grandmother of King Asa, but she was a bad

example. So Lois is the only named grandmother in the Bible with

a positive influence.

Her grandson Timothy is one of the major New Testament

servants of God, and Paul's two letters to him are a major part of

the New Testament. We do not know a lot about Lois, but her faith

touched her family, and through her family has touched all of

history. She became an ideal example of the value and influence of

grandparents, and on this grandparents day we want to focus on

the role they play in God's plan for the family. It is of interest to

note that the Greek word for grandmother is mamme. It is very

close to mommy, and from which we get the term of respect, which

is mom.

Grandparents should be addressed with terms of affection and

respect. A Swedish proverb says, "Where there is a grandmother

in the house the children always have a friend." In a world where

children in greater numbers than ever have to endure the trials of

divorced parents, and multiple kinds of abuse, the grandparents

often are the glue that keeps together any semblance of continuity.

If kids loose the present, but still have a pass to tie into, they can

bridge the gap to the future, but rob them of their grandparents

too and they are cut off and abandoned. That is why the courts in

recent years have given grandparents the right of visitation so that

no matter how messed up the parents are, the children can still

develop a healthy relationship to grandma and grandpa.

Rita Fuentes received this letter from her grandson that

illustrates the impact of grandparents, and one way we can let

them know of our love.

"Dear Nana and Pop-pop:

I was reading a book written by one of my favorite poets, Rod

McKuehn, and all of the sudden the phone rang. Immediately I

scanned my desk top for some kind of bookmark and settled on a

wallet-sized photo of you two from 1983.

After finishing my phone conversation, I opened the book and

saw those two familiar faces saving my place. And then it occurred

to me that the two of you have been saving a place for me for a

long time now.

So basically, in celebration of Grandparents Day, I decided to

let you know that I have a special place saved in my heart for both

of you."

When the Star Tribune back in 1991 asked for letters of

affection from 11 thousand students they did not write about

boyfriends and girlfriends, or even about mom and dad, but mainly

about grandparents. One of the main values grandchildren love is

the escape from legalism they experience in their home.

Grandparents will often let rules slide. This is called spoiling the

grandkids, but it is great fun for everyone involved. When I was a