CELEBRATING GRANDPARENTS' DAY

Hi Friends,

Sunday, September 9th, is Grandparents Day. So enjoy your day and count each member of your family as a blessing. Just a brief history lesson: National Grandparents Day was started by West Virginian Marian Lucille McQuade. The day always falls on the first Sunday after Labor Day. McQuade saw the special day as being a family get together day--nothing fancy--but a day of family fellowship.Congress passed the legislation proclaiming the day and on August 3, 1978, President Jimmy Carter signed the decree. The purpose was to honor grandparents, giving them an opportunity to show love for their grandchildren and to help children become aware of the strength, wisdom, and guidance that older people can offer.

Today, my 10th great-grandchild was born. Yes, that's right, we're starting on the second round of grandchildren. We have nine grandchildren and two children. God just keeps blessing us. I couldn't be happier. If you don't have grandchildren, by all means adopt some children near by. As a long distant grandma, I learned early on that senior adults in churches and community seem to adopt little ones who are close to their long distant grandchildren's age. It also works the other ways, if grandparents are long distance, then the little one find someone to represent their grandparents. This is not a bad thing because you can keep up with what your grandchildren like and they get to find out how to relate to a senior adult.

Now that brings me down to the important thing. That is keeping the circle unbroken. We
all want our children and grandchildren to be in heaven with us. So I pray that each and every person reading this will resolve to pray for each member of your family. Some suggestions are:

Ways to Pray for your Grandchildren

--Pray for their protection, daily. I like to name them one-by-one.

--Ask God to guard their minds and hearts in Christ Jesus.

--Ask Him to raise up godly mates for them in due season.

--Are they still in the womb? Then pray for a safe and healthy pregnancy for the mom along with an easy delivery. Ask that the child be born healthy and whole, plus be filled with the Spirit of God.

--Pray for their school needs, their tests. Ask God to make their minds keen and alert, and to help them focus.

--Pray for their anxieties.

--Pray for their personal needs.

--Pray that your little & big ones be surrounded by Christian friends, as well as asking for them to be such a friend.

--Lost grandchildren? Ask God to protect them from the evil one, to let them see His love for them,

to give them a new heart and a new mind.

--And read one of the most important commandments that God gave parents and grandparents in Psalm 78 (ESV). Share your testimony and the church’s testament with them regarding God, the Father.

78 Give ear, O my people, to my teaching;
    incline your ears to the words of my mouth!
2 I will open my mouth in a parable;
    I will utter dark sayings from of old,
3 things that we have heard and known,
    that our fathers have told us.
4 We will not hide them from their children,
    but tell to the coming generation
the glorious deeds of the Lord, and his might,
    and the wonders that he has done.

5 He established a testimony in Jacob
    and appointed a law in Israel,
which he commanded our fathers
    to teach to their children,
6 that the next generation might know them,
    the children yet unborn,
and arise and tell them to their children,
7     so that they should set their hope in God
and not forget the works of God,
    but keep his commandments;
8 and that they should not be like their fathers,
    a stubborn and rebellious generation, a generation whose heart was not steadfast,
    whose spirit was not faithful to God.

You never know how you may touch your family for eternity!