The Legacy of Grandmothers
Grandmothers. That’s what I’ve been thinking about, lately. I don’t write from experience, but anticipation. What is the spiritual influence and legacy of grandmothers?
When I think of my dad’s mom, at first, I thought, eh, no influence on my family. She passed away before I could even remember her. However, in retrospect, she did leave a legacy. She raised my dad in church. Because of this, he grew up a believer. Not a perfect man, by all means, but he took us to church, we heard Bible stories, and we were raised with moral standards.
My maternal grandmother, although a different faith than ours, often sent me cards, telling me she was praying for me or she had lit a candle for me. It was quite a daunting task, really, considering she lived to see 64 grandchildren (my mom came from a family of 12). Because of my maternal grandmother, my mom, in turn, raised us with Sunday School, was my Sunday School teacher, and sang in the church choir. I remember my mom dressing us up for church (yes, I go back a l-o-n-g way), directing Christmas plays, creating crazy hats for Mother’s Day programs, and even memories of falling asleep on her arm in church. I’m thankful my mom modeled the value of service.
Grandparents do play an important role in raising Godly grandchildren. It starts with praying for them, even before they’re born. In the case of adoption, it’s praying for them before they are placed. Pray for their little (and big!) hearts, too. There are also grandma prayer journals you can buy at book stores, and you can write prayers of encouragement and blessing to pass on to them.
You can buy children’s Bibles for your grandchildren. A recent scouting trip to a local book store found over 25 versions of children’s Bibles, from picture stories, to easy readers, to cartoon versions, to simply smaller hand-held versions of adult Bibles. Write a dedication to your grandchild in the front. Write a favorite Bible verse.
Of course, there are Bible stories to tell, Jesus songs to sing, fingerplays to teach. If you’re fortunate enough to live close by, you can take him or her to church, or attend church where your little grand one goes. There’s also the aspect of setting a Godly example through our words and our actions. After all, we’ve learned from the mistakes we made with our own children! Wisdom. For long-distance grandmas, the challenges are a bit more creative, but we can be present in their lives through mail, and phone, and now Skype. And, if we’re very fortunate, we carefully shop the airline sales.
I’m thankful my parents raised me with a faith. But before that, I realize that I need to recognize my grandmothers, no longer with me, who played their part in this generational legacy. And I, in turn, can pass this legacy on to a new generation, as well.