I knew all my grandparents throughout my childhood and as a young adult. They were each generous with their grandchildren to share life lessons as well as to teach by example. Their teaching stood out in part because of their casual manner. After all, they had the benefit of giving me back to Mom and Dad at the end of the visit. But more than this, their sharing of their life was purely out of love. They weren’t teaching me so their home life would be improved. They simply wanted to expose me to good learning for my growth.
As a result of having known both good parents and grandparents, I have many rich memories and a broader base of examples and reasons to live according to sound principles.
Proverbs 22:6:
Train up a child in the way he should go: and when he is old, he will not depart from it.
Later in life one of my grandmothers became sick and was in the hospital. She was in her mideighties. My wife and I were both long-standing believers by this time. My grandmother knew our stand regarding God’s Word, and she had never expressed a negative about us. We were blessed that we had planned a trip home at the time she was in the hospital, which allowed us to visit her. The timing of our visit was ideal. Mom and Dad were there, and we enjoyed family time together. Everyone was cheerful.
During the visit, my wife and I had a short time alone with my grandmother. She confided that earlier in the day, the doctors had given her a rather bad diagnosis without much direction as to what they could do about it. We asked her if she was afraid. She said, “No, I’m not afraid of anything.” It wasn’t a defiant confession or boast. She actually seemed not to have considered the question before we asked, and having now thought about it, simply didn’t find any fear in her thoughts. We asked if she would like for us to pray for her. She said that she would be very happy if we would. Our prayer was simple, but focused. She appeared to believe along with us wholeheartedly. One of the verses that we both had in our hearts to share was III John 2:
Beloved, I wish above all things that thou mayest prosper and be in health, even as thy soul prospereth.
The simple truth that God cares about us and wants us to be whole communicated easily to a woman who had lived love and demonstrated care for her family, including ten grandchildren, for decades.
Two days later, my mom called to let us know that my grandmother had been released from the hospital and was back at home. Once at home, she recovered full strength and soon enjoyed resuming her regular activities. I am so thankful to have been taught in The Way Ministry not just great verses on wholeness, but also how to work God’s Word to see for myself that God is good to His children, and how to believe for His promises to come to pass.