A Grandfather’s Blessing

Pop’s Precious Grands 2019!

My favorite title over the last four years is “Pop” – that’s my Grandpa nickname! I really do enjoy being Pop. My stamina and energy are not what it once was, but those little guys warm my heart and make me smile a lot. I often think about how I loved my grandparents and I hope that I can be that supportive and loving to my grands. I think parents don’t ever quit being parents even when the kids get older and have established their own life.

I do thank the Lord several times every day for my children and the blessing and joy they are to me. I pray that they walk with the Lord every day and seek His heart daily as well. I probably see success different than some parents. I would rather my children grow up and be broke and know the Lord than to be wealthy or famous and not know Him. I pray for them to touch many lives with the gospel and the amazing, relentless, reckless love of God.

The story of Joseph is very special and at the end of his dad’s life, he takes his boys to meet him. Jacob is in his last days, but he sits up and blesses Joseph and his sons. Check this out….

¹⁵ Then he blessed Joseph and said,

“May the God before whom my grandfather Abraham
    and my father, Isaac, walked—
the God who has been my shepherd
    all my life, to this very day,
¹⁶ the Angel who has redeemed me from all harm—
    may he bless these boys.
May they preserve my name
    and the names of Abraham and Isaac.
And may their descendants multiply greatly
    throughout the earth.”(Genesis 48:15-16 NLT)

I think most grandparents want their family to continue to grow. I do pray for my children and grand children’s health. I pray for both their physical health and their spiritual health. Walking with the Lord is pretty simple, just not always easy. The noise of our culture often drowns out the Whispers of His Spirit and He seeks to direct my path and the daily choices I make.

I often wish that I could sit down and visit now with my grandparents knowing what I now know about life. I’d love to hear some of the stories of their lives that shaped them, because their presence in my life sure shaped me.  I am so thankful for the heritage of faith passed down from my grandparents and parents to me. I’m thankful for the heritage of faith and the spiritual journey of my wife as we serve our children and grandchildren. They are such a huge blessing from the Lord and at the same time, a great responsibility. I want to continue to influence them as long as I live to seek the Lord. I want them to know Him and pursue Him and His will for their lives and impart that deep faith in their children and children’s children.

Pressing On!

Dwayne