Purposeful Grandparenting

I became a grandma almost 18 years ago. I still remember the sense of awe that my kids were now having kids! How could time fly by so quickly? I delight in each of my twelve grandkids and am thrilled with the opportunity to invest in their lives.

Part of me knows what grandmas do from watching my mom and my grandma in action. They loved us well. I loved visiting with my grandma. She was always warm and welcoming. Love for me and all her grandkids was obvious. My mom relished being a grandma. She loved shopping for them and loving on them. She and her mom played games, laughed, tickled, and even disciplined their grandkids (only when they had too!). They influenced the grandma I have become.

As I’ve grown older, I recognize my time here on earth is getting shorter. I desire and sense a keen responsibility to invest in my grandkids’ spiritual lives. I want to be a purposeful grandparent. I want to leave a legacy that points to eternity.

What can I do as a grandma that promotes biblical, spiritual values for my grandchildren? Some live close, others live far away. Wherever they live, how can I show my love for them? And how can I creatively and meaningfully teach them about God? I want them to know more and more about his character, his word, and his love for them.

When we lived overseas, I tried different things. I made monthly one-minute videos called “grammy devotionals.” I made a photo book around Christmas for each family. I sent postcards and brought trinkets from different places we visited. I tried to stay as connected as much as I could when I was physically distant from them.

Now that we are in the same city as seven of our grandchildren, it may look different. They can now come over to my house. I can spend time with them. We go places, have tea parties and sleepovers. We ask questions to get to know them better.  How can I use this time well for eternal purposes?

I’d love to learn from other grandparents how to build into the lives of our grandchildren. We can help each other. What have you learned and what have you tried? Here are a few of the things I’ve done recently.

Three of my granddaughters came over for a morning. I planned time to talk about a Bible verse and play a game to memorize it. I chose Romans 6:23, “For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.” Then, I thought, “Rome is in Italy!” My mind jumped to Italian food, so we made homemade pasta. My husband’s brother and his wife served in Italy, so we zoomed with them about what living there was like. We learned some Italian words. We watched a short cartoon in Italian with English subtitles. We spent the morning together doing fun things that tied together, with some time in God’s word.

Some days we just have fun, play a game, or watch a show. But there are other times when I choose a theme for our time together. I then incorporate scripture, games and activities that reinforce the truth I want to share. For instance, I told the story of Deborah and Barak for the theme “God Goes Ahead of Us.” We looked at Hagar’s life and talked about “The God Who Sees.” Esther’s experience in dealing with fear helped us see God as the one who helps us.

I love being a grandma and I adore these grandkids God gave me. I also love God and I desire that each of these twelve kids know and love him, too.

If you are a grandparent, how do you grandparent purposefully?

If you are a parent, how could grandparents bless you and your family?

I am not sure what my grandkids will remember in the years to come. My prayer is that with intentionality, they will remember more about what is most important in life and faith.

May each of us grandparent this new generation purposefully for the Lord and his glory.