Passing On...Our Christian Inheritance

No instruction manual - it was left out!

Terrible two’s, terrible teens, terrible twenties…how in the world do you know what to do?

If you are a parent or grandparents, you know exactly what I’m talking about – your children.

We can’t return them; they are ours and we must figure out how to put them together without a step-by-step instruction manual.

During parenting and even grandparenting we may have searched for how to raise and positively influence our children and/or grandchildren. The search results vary as much as the child we are thinking of, so what are we to do? Life keeps going and we need to find ways to help our children and grandchildren navigate this complicated world. We begin to rely on books, resources, authorities, and influencers to help us navigate this parenting journey.

From experience, I can tell you that by the time your children leave your home it will be the time you finally start figuring out what you should do. Personally, my husband and I were determined to break the generational garbage/junk/curses off and have it STOP at their generation. We were NOT perfect and made many mistakes, yet both of our adult sons have both told us, “You did a good job.” Considering the background my husband and I came from; this is a compliment and now I can say – “I AGREE!”

I found one of the best resources with ALL the answers to the parenting questions.

The BIBLE. The Bible has all your answered to life’s questions. It’s a lifeline. It never fails and you can find answers to anything about life issues. If you don’t believe me, go look in the back of a study Bible and look at the huge index of subjects you can explore to find answers to your questions in life.

The Bible is consistently the best-selling book of all time, according to Guinness World Records. The Bible also tops the list of most read books in the world. If you want to know more about either of these fact statements, go search for it yourself.

As a grandparent, I’m determined to influence our grandchildren as much, if not more, than we did our children. In this quest, I have pondered the influence I have with my grandchildren and what is my responsibility. God has opened the Bible to have me dig to find the answer and I want to share just a little bit of what I found.

My approach to taking such a complex and seemingly overwhelming issue is to become a private investigator and use their basic techniques to unravel mysteries. It’s looking for evidence and uncovering the answer to who, what, where, when, and how of the subject matter. In this investigation it has led me to discover why, what, and how do we influence the next generation.

Here is a short overview of what I discovered:

 WHY are we to influence the next generation?

o   We are to share what we know so we can live a long time, just as our ancestors were promised so that our families will live a long time on earth.

•  Deuteronomy 11:21 CEV Then you and your descendants will live a long time in the land that the Lord promised your ancestors. Your family will live there as long as the sky is above the earth.

o   Practical implications:

•  We must teach biblical principles, so they are brought into the public light and applied to our laws, policies, and agendas.
•  We must fight for strong godly marriage, God-fearing families to make our communities strong and able to fight the schemes of the enemy.

 WHAT are we going to pass on to the next generation?

o   Deuteronomy 4:9-10 gives us details, go look it up.

o   As parents/grandparents we are responsible for passing on to our children/grandchildren our:

•  Experiences (stories) with God – recounting God’s great acts. We have experienced and “seen” it in our lives, this passion/excitement needs to be shared because our children/grandchildren have not yet experienced it.:
  •  What you’ve seen Him do in your own life.
  •  What you’ve heard he’s done for others.
  •  What you’ve read about God in the Bible.

o   Knowledge, we have gained from God through His Word/Scripture.

HOW are we to pass it on to the next generation?

o   Many verses give us instruction to how: Deuteronomy 6:4-9, 11:18-20, 1 Chronicles 28:8-10.

o   Principles to Live By: based on King David’s instruction to his son Solomon:

•  Get to know God. Seek to know Him and His Word.
•  Learn God’s commandments. Discover the moral character of God and the foundation of how to live with others.
•  Worship God with your whole heart. Loving God more than any activity, achievement, possession or relationship.
•  Serve God with a willing mind. Commit yourself completely to God so we know His principles and values to form a foundation in what we think about.
•  Be faithful. Believing God is eternally reliable, steadfast, and unwavering.
•  Don’t be discouraged. Keeping hope in the forefront of our minds when challenges come in our life.

Wow – this is a lot! 

Take time to reread this and look up the Bible verses and allow God to speak to you so you can find some practical ways to apply this to your life. And look at the last bullet point right before this sentence - - DON’T BE DISCOURAGED!

Placing our hope and confidence in God and what He will do with your obedience to help carrying on our Christian inheritance to the next generation. It will result in blessings. Do what you can right where you are and do not have regrets. Keep on marching forward.

Do you want to know more about this topic and practical ways to pass on your Christian values to the next generation? Learn about Community Connection Events that focus on women discovering how they can positively influence the next generation in their community. CLICK HERE to learn more.

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