Motherhood: Building a Legacy of Blessing
“Grandparents and grandchildren, together they create a chain of love linking the past, with the future. The chain may lengthen, but it will never part.”
-Unknown
One of the happiest days of my life was the day my husband and I found out we were going to be grandparents. It is hard to believe that it was 7 1/2 years ago already. Yet, I remember all the details and how I felt. Tears flowed down my face as I thanked God for this precious gift of life. The pride, gratitude and joy I felt at that moment can even now be overwhelming. I knew I did not deserve this new blessing, but oh–how I could not wait to meet this tiny miracle! The way God continues to pour out His Grace into my life leaves me utterly amazed.
A Parent’s Reward
It is hard for me to put into words what being “GG” means. However, the first time I held our granddaughter (and then our grandson 15 months later) are experiences I will never forget. There were flashbacks to the birth of our own children and some of the same feelings were present. The wonder and amazement; utter joy, love, pride, an urge to protect, and a sense of responsibility to guide and to nurture, yet something was different this time… a depth… a satisfaction… an awareness that something bigger was present. I was holding the child of my child. What a blessing! I began to understand what Proverbs 17: 6 meant, “Grandchildren are the crown of the aged…”
CROWN- a reward of victory or mark of honor something that imparts splendor, honor, or finish (Culmination)
Grandchildren are the reward for persevering through all the challenges, demands and joys of parenting. They provide opportunity to enjoy discovery and adventure through the perspective of young eyes all over again. An excuse to be silly; a chance to rekindle imagination; a reminder to relish simplicity and let go of the complications we adults love to create.
Being free from the responsibility of day-to-day care takes away the pressure to “hurry up” and allows for more patience, attention, and quality time that I often struggled to provide as a parent. My grandchildren help me to remember what is important. I can slow down, focus, and be intentional in seizing those “teachable moments”. I am convinced now more than ever that C.S. Lewis was right when he said, “Children are not a distraction from more important work. They are the most important work.” Grandchildren have opened the door to love and support our grown children in new ways, as well.
Connecting the Past & Future
“Because (grandparents) are usually free to love and guide and befriend the young without having to take daily responsibility for them, they can often reach out past pride and fear of failure and close the space between generations.”
Jimmy Carter
More and more studies are showing the importance of the relationship between older and younger generations. The connection to the past and the future found within the grandparent-grandchild relationship provides benefits to both. Primarily, children receive stability along with a sense of belonging. They can look back and see that they are part of a legacy, and they have a place in it. Meanwhile, adults find a connection to the future and are given a chance to impact it. This fact can provide new purpose in later life. The youth need patience, wisdom and guidance to grow: age requires respect, understanding and the motivation to keep growing.
My children and grandchildren are the most visible testaments to God’s faithfulness in my life. Looking back, I can see what God has done throughout all of history. More specifically, though, I remember how He has provided and poured out His grace on my husband, on me, on our families, and our marriage. There are so many blessings to be thankful for! However, becoming a grandparent causes me to acknowledge anew the past has a connection to the present and beyond.
A Grandparent’s Responsibility
Consequently, just remembering how God has worked and provided is not enough. With His blessings there comes a responsibility which deals with more than the passing on of wealth, practical skills or knowledge. The following verses remind me of my role as a grandparent the way that God intended.
Deuteronomy 4:9 “Only take care, and keep your soul diligently, lest you forget the things that your eyes have seen, and lest they depart from your heart all the days of your life. Make them known to your children and your children’s children—
Deuteronomy 6:4-7 “Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one. You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might. And these words that I command you today shall be on your heart. You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, and when you walk by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise.”
Psalm 145:4 “Great is the LORD, and greatly to be praised, and his greatness is unsearchable.
One generation shall commend your works to another and shall declare your mighty acts.”
Joel 1:3 Tell your children of it, and let your children tell their children, and their children to another generation.”
2 Timothy 1:5 “I am reminded of your sincere faith, a faith that dwelt first in your grandmother Lois and your mother Eunice and now, I am sure, dwells in you as well.”
“Young people need something stable to hang on to — a culture connection, a sense of their own past, a hope for their own future. Most of all, they need what grandparents can give them.”
Jay Kesler
Family & Legacy
The concept of family is important, and God has chosen it as a tool to bless the world. Jesus, the eternal and infinite God, was miraculously born into an earthly family to fulfill the plan of redemption for mankind, the ultimate blessing! Family is intended to be where the primary teaching of God starts, and faith can be passed on. The definition of LEGACY is- anything handed down from the past, as from an ancestor or predecessor. The question then is, what legacy am I handing down?
- Is it based in the unchanging Truth of God, or the ever-changing values of society?
- Are there attitudes or habits I should change?
- Do I magnify the works of God or the failures of others?
- Am I modeling a life of worship and trust?
- Is it a legacy of blessing providing hope for the future, or of cursing leading to destruction?
- Am I being intentional?
- Do my children/grandchildren know that the God of Abraham is my God, and He wants to be theirs, too?
The Family of God
I acknowledge that none of us are perfect, and as a result, neither are our earthly families. Some may not feel their family has any blessing at all. However, we are members of a new family now. The moment we accept Jesus as Savior, we are born into the Family of God. Just like earthly families, there exists the opportunity to foster relationship and pass on wisdom to the next generation. For example, the apostle Paul never married or had any children of his own, yet the letters he wrote to Timothy open with, “my true child in the faith”, “my beloved child”. Timothy was Paul’s spiritual son. Later within those same letters he instructs the older men and women of the church to come alongside and teach the younger. Think about your local church family. Is there someone who could become your spiritual son, daughter, grandparent, etc.?
The grace that our Heavenly Father lavishes upon His children is able to cover over all sin, redeem, and heal any broken pieces of our past or present. He bestows on us all spiritual blessings and gives us a hope for the future secured in Jesus Christ. He has built a new legacy for us. His legacy is one of blessing.
Yes, every child must choose and walk their own faith journey, but I still have a responsibility in helping the younger generations, my children and my grandchildren, to know who God is and what He has done. I must speak of Him and testify to what He has done; that is the way to begin building a legacy of blessing.
“A child needs a grandparent, anybody’s grandparent, to grow a little more securely into an unfamiliar world.”
Charles and Anne Morse