Energizing Grandparents

The Gift of the Blessing

Gary Smalley and John Trent wrote a wonderful book called The Gift of the Blessing. They share about the importance of giving blessings, and 5 elements of the blessing.

• Meaningful Touch
• Spoken Words
• Expressing High Value
• Picturing a Special Future
• An Active Commitment

As Grandparents, what are ways we can incorporate these concepts as we give blessings to our grandchildren?

But perhaps, dear fellow grandparents, like me, you don't live near all your grandchildren. We can give the best gift of all - we can pray. Phone calls, letters, and cards are all ways to make an active commitment even if you are long distance.

Let's commit to put things in writing for our grandchildren. What a treasure they will have when they read our words of encouragement.

I would love to hear how you are blessing your precious grandchildren!

Energizing Grandparents

The mission statement for this program says “As grandparents, it is a privilege to invest in our grandchildren’s lives, be involved in their education, and leave a legacy for the Lord Jesus Christ― whether we live in the same home, community, across the country or around the world.”

This month I personally felt the burden of these words as two of my children and grandchildren were across the country and moving during the arctic front, everyone got sick and I was doing a teacher training conference in another state. My heart hurt and I felt so helpless. This is often what happens when we are grandparents. We want to be there for our families but we can’t always do so. But we can always pray and sometimes that is the most important gift we can give.

Thank the Lord for technology which helps us to stay connected with our grandchildren and children via the internet and cell phones. One of my goals is to provide practical ways for grandparents to be involved with your grandchildren even if you do live far away. And, let’s have fun in the process! I want to acknowledge that some of you have taken on the responsibility of raising your grandchildren and I want to affirm you because that puts you in a different and often difficult role. We will be addressing that complex issue in future programs.

Grandparents, here’s your homework assignment for this month. (Surely you didn’t think I would let you off easy did you? ☺) Ask yourself, what role do I want to play in my grandchildren’s lives? What kind of grandparent do I want to be? On the program I shared the different roles that my grandparents played and what roles our parents played as they were grandparents to our children. Each one was different, unique, special and important. How do you see your role? For example, I want to be the Grandma who is Jesus in skin, develops the love of books, teach them to swim, love gardening, bake bread and yes, have fun in the process!

Our next programs will be on:
“B”: Giving Blessings to Our Grandchildren
“C”: Staying Connected With Our Grandchildren

I invite you to join me!

Click here for some recommended resources.