Christian Grandparenting Blog

Praying for family and friends is pretty common among Christians. Sometimes we pray for safety during travels or for a successful job search. We ask for God’s favor over health care crises or legal challenges. But, some of our toughest prayers are for eternal salvation of loved ones who have strayed from their faith. These are our prodigals.

One of the most sensitive topics is whether grandparents should discipline their grandchildren. Close behind is the question of how to handle the situation when our adult children have different discipline approaches or rules than we do. Disputes may arise over things such as food, bedtime, manners, screen time, smart phones, internet usage, and social media. Grandparents had to handle some of these with their own children, but many of them are new challenges for today’s parents.

It is true that “ideas have consequences, and bad ideas have victims”. This truism might never be more applicable than to today’s insistence upon a gender identity ideology based upon “feelings” and the push to “discover yourself”. You need to do your own digging into the truth about gender identity—one based upon reality, not cultural tastes, or feelings.

What do sugar and screen time have in common? Dopamine. Whether our grandchildren are digging into ice cream sundaes or swiping the screens on their iPads, the effect is the same. A neurotransmitter called dopamine is released in their brain. This chemical travels via neural pathways to the brain’s reward center, thereby providing a feeling of pleasure. Digital screens are here to stay. So, what are we as grandparents expected to do?

As Christian grandparents, we are called to share our faith in Jesus to the next generation. This begins with developing a strong and trusting relationship with our grandchildren, one that is built on an exchange of ideas and interests shared through conversations. When we suffer from untreated hearing loss, our relationship with our grandchildren is affected.

When we think of freedom, we often associate it with being free from physical captivity or slavery, but many people today are living in spiritual slavery without realizing it. They chase false gods of money, success, personal comfort, and romantic love. These things leave them with an emptiness that no earthly thing can fill. The good news is that we don’t have to live in spiritual bondage. 

More than we may realize, children’s brains can memorize the exact wording of popular phrases, songs, poems, and prayers long before they understand and process the meaning. If you sense your grandchild is doing this, you can take full advantage of that teachable moment, especially when it comes to words of a prayer.

Let’s think back to when our children were toddlers. As soon as they became aware of their surroundings, they began inherently learning about cause and effect. For example, they discovered that when they threw a ball up into the air, it came down. When they [...]