“After that whole generation had been gathered to their fathers, another generation grew up who knew neither the Lord nor what He had done…” Judges 2:10

We’ve all seen those messages in our email inbox that say: “Delivery Status Failure Notification. Delivery to the following recipient failed permanently.” It means something has prevented the delivery of our message to another recipient. There can be any number of causes, but it’s still the same result—an undelivered message.

Have you ever wondered what caused the delivery status failure noted in Judges 2:10 after Joshua and his generation died?

Remember, these were the ones who entered and conquered inhabitants of the land God promised to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. You would think the stories about God’s amazing power would have been the primary conversation around the tribal bonfires every night.

Yet somehow the next generation failed to get the message from the previous generation. We don’t know what happened, but we do know this much. That next generation grew up not knowing God or the amazing things He had done for them. Instead, they embraced the godlessness of the culture around them. And as God said would be the case, His protection and blessing was removed.

Sounds rather familiar, doesn’t it? Like the generation following Joshua and Caleb, we are a generation wrapped in cultural godlessness and rebellion. Unlike it was even fifty years ago, the majority of today’s young people are growing up knowing little about God and truth, even in many Christian homes.

Unfortunately, the loss of a truth-based culture and intentional discipleship comes with a huge price tag. A new generation is growing up without knowing the blessing of hope, purpose and contentment. It’s not hard for us to see the evil in our day, but can the world see the greatness and kindness of God in our day because of us? Do our lives make much of Christ in the eyes of the world?

King David, writing of a friend who had betrayed him, said, “He loved to pronounce a curse, and it has come on him; he found no pleasure in blessing, and it is far from him. He wore cursing as his garment; it entered into his body like water, into his bones like oil” (Ps. 109:17-18). What a legacy for a man or woman to leave behind! What will be said of us by the next generations? Will we be known as channels of blessing or cursing?

The power of blessing is incalculable. Remember that you may be the only source of personal blessing that your grandchildren, or other children of their generation, will ever know. This would be a good time for our generation to be on our knees seeking God’s wisdom for how we can be effective, intentional conduits of blessing for this generation. (Next week I’ll share a little about what that looks like)

In fact, I would encourage you to seek other grandparents you know in your church or community and ask them to join you for a time of prayer on September 8^th. Officially our nation’s recognized Grandparents’ Day, we are calling upon grandparents to make this a National Grandparents’ Day of Prayer each year. Don’t let it be just a one-time event. Commit to meet regularly to pray for each other and your grandchildren. Visit our web site for more information.