I like to walk with Grandpa;

His steps are short like mine.

He doesn’t always say,

"Now hurry up!"

He always takes his time.

I like to walk with Grandpa;

His eyes see things mine do;

Wee pebbles bright, a funny cloud,

Half hidden drops of dew.

Most people have to hurry;

They just don’t stop and see.

I’m glad that God made grandpas

Unrushed and young like me!

Jack Exum 

Bulletin Digest

One of the most useful functions a person can perform is "grandparenting." Since families are so much more fragmented today than in past generations, the role of grandparent is more important than ever. Grandparents are needed in our world because so many mothers have entered the workforce – sometimes of necessity, sometimes of misplaced priorities. Our protests to the contrary have not changed the fact that many children grow up without spending much of their "awake time" with their mothers and fathers. Though grandparents understand they cannot be a substitute for parents, they know they have a unique opportunity to fill the gap.

Fill in the "practical" gap. Grandparents are needed today to teach common sense things to their grandchildren. Paul told the older women to be "teachers of good things" (Titus 2:3), which would include spiritual things, of course, but might also include practical things they will need to know to be a good husband/wife, daddy/mommy, or citizen/neighbor.

As a grandparent, you can teach your grandchildren how to bait a hook, sew on a button, or change the oil in a car. Teach them how to tie their shoelaces, pump up a bicycle tire, and make a bed. Teach them how to bake cookies – and then take them to someone who just came home from the hospital. Teach them the importance of hugs and looking someone in the eye when you speak to them. Show them how to write a check and balance books. Teach them the importance of organization and how to save time by investing thought.

Fill in the "moral" gap. It is best if parents and grandparents have the same spiritual goals for the children. Then the pressure is off the grandparents and they can see themselves as the "adjunct faculty" that simply reinforces what is being taught at home. In the real world of today, though, when many parents do not see the need to take children to Bible school, read to them from the Bible, and show them God’s way, it is extremely important that godly grandparents morally influence their grandchildren (Proverbs 22:6). For some of us, we recognize the sadness that we may be the only hope our beloved grandchildren have of going to heaven after this life.

How? Show them how to turn the TV off when inappropriate material is on. Teach, exemplify, and reinforce the importance of always being honest. Tell them why they should not see R-rated movies and wear clothes that are too short or too tight. Teach them to be respectful of their elders.

Fill in the "knowledge" gap. Timothy had known from a child "the Holy Scriptures" which were able to make him "wise for salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus" (2 Timothy 3:15). Will someone be able to say that about your grandchild?

If you live near the children, this teaching and reinforcing process can be done steadily and incrementally. Help them get their Sunday school lessons before the last minute and memorize that week’s Bible verse. Show them how to use a concordance and how to find Habakkuk. Take a songbook home one week and show them how to find the songs quickly and follow along from one stanza to the next. Teach them the rudiments of music and how to keep time with the song leader. Sign both of you up for a Bible correspondence course and find the answers together. Take them to Vacation Bible School in the summer.

If you do not live near them, this teaching must be done in spurts and through less personal avenues. In that case, make the most of each precious moment you have with them and make the investment in long distance calls, stamps, and if you’ve made the computer plunge, e-mail. Invite them to stay with you the week of a summer gospel meeting or Vacation Bible School. Buy them good spiritual books. Volunteer to take them to youth events. And don’t forget to pray (1 Thessalonians 5:17)!