Wednesday, March 26, 2025

 

Have a Godly Impact on Your Family 


Recently I attended a Grandparents Day at the Christian school where one of my young grandsons is a student. During part of the program, the grandparents were reminded of the influential role they can play in the lives of their grandchildren. The staff commended those who had impacted their families for Christ by their teaching and example. It reminded me of the many times I have heard people point to the great influence a godly grandmother or grandfather had on their lives, specifically in their eventually putting their faith in the Lord.

Paul pointed out such a heritage in relation to his young co-worker, Timothy. “When I call to remembrance the genuine faith that is in you, which dwelt first in your grandmother Lois and your mother Eunice, and I am persuaded is in you also” (II Timothy 1:5). Timothy’s faith fell in line with that of his grandmother and mother before him. However, let’s not get the mistaken idea that such faith is inherited or is somehow automatically attributed to us due to our parent’s or grandparent’s relationship with the Lord. While we can be grateful if we were blessed to be raised in a family with a Christian heritage, such a circumstance doesn’t mean that we are necessarily believers ourselves. Those family members can have a huge effect on us, but we still have to come to the point of repentance and trust in Jesus in our own hearts and minds. We cannot enter into God’s kingdom riding on the wings of someone else’s faith. We have to personally respond to the love of Jesus that took Him to the cross as the sacrifice for our sins.

So even though our faith can’t guarantee that our offspring will follow in our footsteps, we can still exert a significant influence on them that might help lead them in that direction. After God gave his commands to the Israelites concerning how they were to live their lives, He declared, “And these words which I command you today shall be in your heart. You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, when you walk by the way, when you lie down, and when you rise up. You shall bind them as a sign on your hand, and they shall be as frontlets between your eyes. You shall write them on the doorposts of your houses and on your gates” (Deuteronomy 6:6-9). This passage reminds us that we have a God-given responsibility to teach God’s Word and His will to our children and grandchildren. However, it needs to be more than simply going through religious exercises with them. Our faith should show in the way it affects our own lives. Our family should be able to see in us a living example of love, faith, trust, purity, faithfulness, truthfulness, and other Christlike characteristics. They should see how our relationship with Jesus plays out in our everyday lives and in how we relate to other people. It is more than teaching them Bible verses, although it can include such practices. It is living out those truths in front of them.

Of course, praying for our children and grandchildren is also a large part of our influence. This is something that may go unseen by others, but God knows and hears those prayers. He can do things in the hearts, minds, and lives of our offspring that we can’t do. He can be with them when we are many miles away. The prayers of a parent or grandparent may be the greatest influence we can exert.

Let’s not miss this wonderful opportunity God has given us. Through our words, example, and prayers, let’s seek to have a godly impact on our families.

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