Maybe you were blessed with good and godly grandparents like I was. Even years after they’ve passed, I can still remember playing catch with Grandpa in the driveway, losing every game of Yahtzee to Grandma, and devouring greasy Pizza Hut pan pizza at their house on Friday nights. I even remember Grandpa laughing hysterically after searching for his false teeth for three days, only to realize they were in his mouth the whole time.
They weren’t perfect. They bickered over things that didn’t matter and pushed each other’s buttons plenty. But there was an undeniable love between them, even in their final, health-challenged years. They gave me a beautiful picture of what godly grandparenting looks like.
About a year ago, my wife and I became grandparents ourselves, and we’re loving every moment of it. People always say grandparenting is the best season of life. But what many miss is that grandparenting isn’t just wonderful, it’s biblical.
Psalm 78 paints a beautiful picture: a father saying, “Draw close and listen. I will tell you the things our fathers told us… and we will tell them to the generation to come.” It’s a four-generation chain—grandparent to parent to child to grandchild—faith passed down like a story told at the table, not a document handed over.
In one simple statement: Grandparenting is discipleship.
This isn’t optional. It’s commanded. And it’s counter-cultural. Our culture sells us a version of grandparenting that looks like a well-earned retirement lap. Move somewhere warm, enjoy the golden years, focus on yourself. But Scripture never presents grandparenting as a permanent vacation. Enjoying this season is a perk, not the purpose.
A better way to view grandparenting is this: discipleship isn’t a baton to pass; it’s a torch to carry. In a baton relay, once you hand it off, you’re done. You step off the track. But in an Olympic torch relay, nothing is simply handed over. Each torchbearer lights their own flame directly from the person before them, walking side by side for as long as possible before the handoff completes. The fire isn’t passed. It’s multiplied.
That’s discipleship. That’s grandparenting. You’re not finishing your leg of the race and walking away. You’re staying present, sharing your story, building traditions, and modeling faith through both good times and hard ones, all so the flame keeps burning long after you’re gone.
With over 30 million Christian grandparents in America, grandparents are second only to parents in their potential to influence the next generation. That’s not a small opportunity. That’s a sacred assignment.
So whether you’re a grandparent or not yet, ask yourself: What flame am I carrying? Who am I walking beside? What story am I telling that future generations need to hear?
Because in the end, this was never about just finishing a race, but about carrying a torch that outlives you. And one that was never meant to end with you, and God-willing, never will.
**These thoughts are from a message I preached at our home church yesterday. If you’d like to listen to the full message, you can find it here.
