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Written by Brenda Davis, volunteer with Iron Rose Sister Ministries in Arkansas 
Be careful, and watch yourselves closely so that you do not forget the things your eyes have seen or let them fade from your heart as long as you live. Teach them to your children and to their children after them. (Deut. 4:9 NIV)
While barely mentioned in the New Testament, two Christian women, Lois and Eunice, were no doubt familiar with this scripture due to their Jewish heritage. It is evident that they practiced this teaching because we read of the influence they had on their grandson/son, Timothy, one of the most impactful missionary preachers in the early church. Here are the only two passages that mention these women:
I am reminded of your sincere faith, which first lived in your grandmother Lois and in your mother Eunice and, I am persuaded, now lives in you also. (2 Tim. 1:5)
Now Paul also came to Derbe and to Lystra. And a disciple was there, named Timothy, the son of a Jewish woman who was a believer, but his father was a Greek, and he was well spoken of by the brothers and sisters who were in Lystra and Iconium. (Acts 16:1)
If only we knew more about the specifics of how they raised Timothy. Did they give him time out when he misbehaved? Did he have a curfew? Did they make him go to church when he didn’t want to? We can be sure that, like us, they were not perfect as grandmother and mother. But we know that despite their imperfections they were successful in raising someone who chose to devote his life to Christ and His church, as we read in 1 Corinthians 4:17.
So, what can we learn from these women? We learn that the relationship between us and our children and grandchildren is incredibly impactful—even essential—to their spiritual upbringing. We also learn that even if our spouse is not a believer, we can still have a relationship that results in blessing these young souls. Acts 16:1-2 tells us that while his father was a Greek unbeliever, Timothy’s mother was still successful in teaching him about Christ.
It is universally agreed that the relationship between a mother and child is important. But there are also multiple verses and examples in the Bible that show us the importance of grandparents and the positive and negative results of this relationship. Whether we live near, or even with, our children or grandchildren, or clear across the country or the world, we are still called to maintain a relationship that will strengthen their relationship with the Lord. Author Mickey Elliott says, “It is the grandparent's responsibility to encourage, love, bring peace and unity. Never speak negatively about either parent to the grandchildren, but always encourage love, forgiveness, unselfishness, and understanding.”
How can we build and maintain these influential relationships?
- By example - living out our faith in words and actions.
But if a widow has children or grandchildren, let them first learn to show godliness to their own household. (1 Tim. 5:4 ESV)
Our children and grandchildren observe how we treat and serve others, how we react to life’s events, and whether or not we are striving to be like Jesus.
- By teaching - sharing God’s Word from day one at every little opportunity.
But as for you, continue in what you have learned and have become convinced of, because you know those from whom you learned it, and how from infancy you have known the Holy Scriptures. (2 Tim. 3:14-15 NIV)
Take advantage of “teachable moments,” sharing Biblical truths in everyday situations. This can be as simple as replacing, “What a beautiful day,” with “What a beautiful day God made for us,” as you look out the window together.
- By praying - unceasingly taking them before the throne of grace.
Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. (Phil. 4:6-7)
Pray with and for them—their health, their choice of friends, their future spouses, and protection from the tempter.
An unknown writer has said, “Having [kids and] grandkids is a blessing. Helping to shape their lives is an honor,” and Scripture supports this statement. I particularly like the Contemporary English Version’s rendition of Psalm 127:4-5, “Having a lot of children to take care of you in your old age is like a warrior with a lot of arrows. The more you have, the better off you will be.” And Proverbs 17:6 (NLT) tells us that “grandchildren are the crowning glory of the aged.”
May we all be mindful of the spiritual legacy we will leave our children and grandchildren.
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Written by Michelle J. Goff, Founder and Director of Iron Rose Sister Ministries 
On the 4th of July (Independence Day), we sat outside at Grandpa and Grandma’s farm, watching the fireworks in the distance and delighting in our annual tradition of root beer floats. Those grandparents are no longer with us, but my nephew and niece have been warned by their mom that they will hear that story every time we enjoy Independence Day fireworks with family, sipping root beer.
On the maternal side of the family, Granddaddy loves to tell jokes. He collected them for years as a speech professor and occasional preacher. As kids, whenever we heard a good joke, we would call him up and retell it. These days, he regales us with his favorites, telling them as if for the first time. When he asks, “Have you heard that one?”, one sister has learned to cleverly respond, “Not today!” The first time he caught on to her joke, he winked, laughed, and said, “Oh, you’re definitely part of this family with that sense of humor!”
Whether time-honored traditions or long-standing jokes, we celebrate the connections they bring. From both sides of my family, another connection is their legacies of faith. I know this because of the stories passed down.
The Iowa grandparents led a quiet life as farmers. The Florida two were teachers in a big city, rampant with worldly influence. Both couples were challenged to live out their faith in their respective contexts. And since we grandkids lived at least an 18-hour car ride from the nearest, we relied more heavily on our parents to pass down the generational stories of faith.
Prayer was a vital lifeline for all four grandparents. Dean and Evelyn prayed that their crops would produce a harvest ample enough to sell and provide for their own needs. They prayed over whether they should take my dad and aunt in as teenagers (as foster parents). They prayed that God would provide preachers for their one-room church building, built by previous generations.
George and Barbara prayed that God would use them to plant seeds of truth and faith in their students. They prayed that God would lead them in starting a nonprofit called Christian Homes for Children in South Florida and use them to bless children who were not able to receive loving care in other places. George even wrote a book, Prayer Power, contributing the proceeds from book sales to that foster care ministry. Even earlier this year, Grandmommy wanted to pray with whichever family member visited her hospital room.
Their “God stories,” as I have endearingly termed them, remind me of God’s faithfulness throughout all generations and have inspired me in how I live out my own faith.
My mom, a gifted storyteller, has created an expectation that we share the God stories. We cannot keep them to ourselves! She never passes up an opportunity to demonstrate how she saw God working, and it doesn’t matter whether the other person is a believer. Her story becomes an intentional invitation to allow Him to author their story.
The beautiful thing is that the more we tell God stories and recognize His hand at work, the more we see Him and invite Him to be the living, active, all-powerful God that He is in our lives.
In a recent conversation, already needing to get back to work, I asked a couple of friends to give me five more minutes to share the full backstory of connections, because only then would the bigger God story of it all be revealed. Neither hesitated in granting my request, anticipating how they would be blessed by hearing it all come together as only God could orchestrate.
The following five minutes cannot be summarized in an 800-word blog post. I would need a map to illustrate what parts of the world I was referring to (five countries on three continents). Hand motions were required to draw connections, from the family where the story began through the interweaving of other families’ lives. We fast-forwarded and rewound our timeline as we navigated the intricacies of the tapestry God was creating. And yes, I showed pictures.
Iron Rose Sister Ministries and hundreds, maybe thousands, of women are reaping the blessing of those interconnected, generational God stories being passed down… and I’m only referring to that morning’s snippets of those families’ entwined God stories (Wyatt, Holland, Goff, Fincher, White, Yarbrough, Brizendine, and Batres).
The best part is that the eternal impact and blessing of the story is not yet fully written. The oldest generation has gone before us, leaving their legacy. It is our responsibility to carry on and pass down their stories of faith.
We may doubt our impact while on this earth. Yet when we share God stories that narrate another person’s faith, we affirm the ripple effect of one life on the legacy of God’s faithfulness.
I cannot wait to hear the God stories to come! Hopefully in heaven, God will gloriously reveal the millions of backstories, faithfully passed down. Oh, to sing those stories with the angels and the thousand generations (Deut. 7:9)!
What God story can you pass down or be a part of today?