12 Things I Want My Grandkids to Know

And Maybe They’re Things Your Grandkids Need to Know Too…

I’ve been doing this ministry thing for over half a century.

I’ve preached a lot of sermons. I’ve stood at altars with people on some of the best days of their lives and some of the hardest. I’ve watched churches grow, ministries change, trends come and go, and God do things I could never have planned. 

But the older I get, the more I realize something:

The things that matter most are really pretty simple.

These days I think a lot about my three grandsons—Rhythm, Royal, and Sparrow. And I find myself thinking less about what I want to give them and more about what I want to leave in them.

There’s a big difference.

You can leave your grandkids money. You can leave them property. You can leave them your stuff.

But the greatest legacy isn’t what you leave to someone.

It’s what you leave in them. 

I’m about to release my new book, Grandparenting on Purpose. A big part of the book is about being intentional in passing our faith to our grandchildren so they can pass it to their children and their children’s children. 

Deuteronomy 4:9 tells us not to forget what our eyes have seen but to teach those things to our children and to their children after them.

That verse has become increasingly important to me because I’ve realized something:

I am the keeper of my family’s God-stories.

And so are you.

You can’t pass on what you haven’t identified as important enough to pass on. 

So I started asking myself: If I could make sure my grandkids really understood just a handful of things before my assignment here is finished, what would they be?

I came up with twelve.

Maybe my list will help you make yours.

1. I Want Them to Know God Is Faithful

I’ve followed Jesus long enough to have questions I couldn’t answer.

I’ve experienced disappointments I didn’t understand. I’ve prayed prayers that weren’t answered the way I wanted. I’ve watched doors unexpectedly open and watched others close that I desperately wanted to stay open.

But through all of it, I have never found God to be unfaithful. 

Deuteronomy 7:9 calls Him “the faithful God.”

Lamentations 3 reminds us that His compassion never fails and His mercies are new every morning.

Our grandkids are going to discover that people disappoint you. Plans change. Life surprises you.

I want mine to know where to stand when everything else starts moving.

Plant both feet on the faithfulness of God.

2. I Want Them to Know Jesus Has a Plan for Their Lives

I don’t want my grandkids growing up believing they’re accidents trying to manufacture significance.

I want them to understand they were made on purpose, for a purpose.

Ephesians 2:10 says we’re God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus for good works that He prepared in advance for us.

In other words, there are assignments with their names already on them.

One of the guiding Scriptures of my life has been Psalm 37:23: “The Lord makes firm the steps of the one who delights in him.”

I’ve learned God usually doesn’t show us the whole staircase.

He shows us the next step.

Then our job is to take it. 

That’s something I want my next generation to understand.

3. I Want Them to Know Relationships Matter

Who you walk with matters almost as much as where you’re walking.

Proverbs says iron sharpens iron.

So I want my grandkids to choose people who sharpen them instead of people who dull their edge.

And when it comes to dating and marriage, I’ve got one of those Big G sayings I want them to remember:

You will never marry someone you don’t date.

So know before you go.

Don’t date somebody hoping they’ll eventually become the kind of person you should marry.

Watch character. And when God brings the right person into your life, love them intentionally.

After nearly five decades of marriage to Julie, I know this much:

A good marriage isn’t built accidentally. It’s built one decision at a time. 

4. I Want Them to Know They Can Hear God’s Voice

Jesus said in John 10:27, “My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow me.”

I want my grandkids to recognize God’s voice.

They’re growing up in a world noisier than the one I grew up in. Everybody has an opinion. Phones talk to us. Social media talks to us. Friends talk to us. Culture never stops talking.

That’s why the next generation desperately needs to learn to recognize the voice of God above all the others.

Read His Word. Pray. Listen.

And every once in a while, turn everything else off.

Sometimes hearing God starts with getting quiet. 

5. I Want Them Planted in God’s House

Notice I didn’t say I want them to attend church.

I want them planted.

Psalm 92:13 says those who are planted in the house of the Lord will flourish.

I’ve watched people treat church like a gas station. They pull in when they’re running on empty, get enough to keep going, and disappear until the warning light comes back on.

I don’t want that for my grandkids.

I want them to find a Bible-believing, Spirit-Filled church. Show up. Serve. Give. Build relationships. Let people know them. Let people pray for them. And don’t run every time something happens they don’t like. 

Here’s the picture I want them to remember:

A potted plant can be moved whenever the weather changes. A planted tree develops roots. Be a tree. 

6. I Want Them to Know Our Family’s God-Story

Every family has stories.

Tell the funny ones. Tell the vacation stories. Tell the stories everybody has heard a hundred times.

But please don’t forget the God-stories.

Psalm 78:4 says we’re to tell the next generation about the Lord’s power and the things He has done.

Tell them how God provided. Tell them how He called you. Tell them about the doors He opened.

Tell them how He protected you. Tell them about answered prayers.

And especially tell them about the hard seasons God brought you through. 

Psalm 145:4 says, “One generation commends your works to another.”

Grandparents, don’t let the God-stories stop with you.

7. I Want Them to Have Scriptures They Can Build Their Lives On

The Bible isn’t decoration for a coffee table.

It’s ammunition for life.

Psalm 37:23–24 has carried me through a lot of seasons. So has Philippians 4:13.

I want my grandkids to find their verses. Memorize them. Write them down.

Underline them. Put them somewhere they’ll see them.

Because one day life will get dark, and they won’t need a verse they once saw on social media.

They’ll need the Word of God that’s already inside them. 

8. I Want Them to Know How to Talk to God

Prayer doesn’t have to sound religious. God isn’t grading your vocabulary.

He’s interested in you. Talk to God when you’re happy.

Talk to Him when you’re scared. Talk to Him when you’re confused.

Talk to Him when you’re angry. Talk to Him when you’ve messed up.

Talk to Him when something wonderful happens.

First Thessalonians 5:17 simply says, “Pray continually.”

Here’s what I want my grandkids to understand:

Prayer isn’t an event you attend. It’s a relationship you live.

And since conversations work both ways, sometimes quit talking and listen. 

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9. I Want Them to Know How to Work

Nobody owes you a living. Colossians 3:23 says whatever you do, do it wholeheartedly as unto the Lord.

That’s a principle I want passed down.

Show up. Be on time. Keep your word. Finish what you start.

Do more than you’re asked when you can.

If you’re sweeping a floor, sweep it well. If you’re running a company, run it with excellence. And if you’re serving God, don’t give Him your leftovers. 

Work like your name is on it—because it is.

10. I Want Them to Understand Honor and Authority

This one won’t get as many likes on social media, but it can take a young person a long way.

Learn to honor.

Ephesians 6 connects honoring your father and mother with a promise: “that it may go well with you.”

I’ve always paid attention to that. Honor has a promise attached to it.

And the principle of honor doesn’t disappear when you turn eighteen.

There will be teachers, coaches, bosses, pastors, and leaders. You won’t always agree with them, and you don’t have to.

But you can still learn honor.  After watching leaders for more than fifty years, I’ve noticed something:

People who learn to carry honor well usually learn to carry authority well. 

11. I Want Them to Know Family Is Worth Fighting For

The older I get, the more important family becomes.

Not less. More.

This world gives us a thousand things to chase—careers, money, recognition, success, experiences.

But here’s something I want my grandkids to remember:

Don’t win everywhere else and lose at home.

Joshua said, “As for me and my household, we will serve the Lord.”

That’s not just something to put on a sign in your kitchen.

It’s a decision. As well as a daily choice.

Be the person who brings family together. Call. Show up. Forgive quickly. Say you’re sorry. Celebrate birthdays. Make memories. Take pictures. Tell stories. Eat meals together.

And when family gets complicated—and it will—don’t throw people away too quickly. 

Family isn’t something you squeeze into your schedule. Family is part of your assignment.

12. I Want Them to Be Able to Point to My Life and Say, “Big G Trusted God”

This might be the most important one.

I don’t care if my grandkids remember every book I wrote.

I don’t care if they remember where I spoke, every church I served, or every ministry idea I ever had.

But I desperately want them to remember this:

Big G trusted God.

Hebrews 13:7 tells us to consider the outcome of the lives of those who taught us God’s Word and to imitate their faith.

That’s the legacy I want. Not fame. Faith. 

I want my grandkids to remember times when things didn’t look good, but Big G kept trusting.

When the answer didn’t come quickly, he kept believing.

When life got hard, he didn’t quit. Paul said near the end of his life:

“I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith.” — 2 Timothy 4:7

That’s how I want to finish. Not perfect. Faithful. 

And isn’t that really what grandparenting on purpose is all about?

We’re not trying to make little copies of ourselves.

We’re trying to leave behind men and women who know Jesus, trust God, love their families, serve His Church, know His Word, work hard, honor others, and have their own God-stories to tell.

Because someday our grandchildren will be the grandparents.

And they’ll sit around a table with another generation looking up at them.

What will they tell them? Hopefully they’ll say:

“Let me tell you about something God did for our family a long time ago.”

And the story will keep going.

That’s how faith travels from generation to generation. 

So here’s my challenge to every grandparent reading this:

What’s on your list?

What are the things you know now that you don’t want your grandchildren to have to learn the hard way?

What are the God-stories only you can tell?

What Scriptures carried you? What prayers did God answer?

What do you want planted in them while you still have the opportunity to plant it?

Don’t just think about it.

Write it down. Tell the stories. Have the conversations. Be intentional.

Because your grandchildren don’t just need what you’ve accumulated.

They need what you’ve learned.

But it’s up to you to be intentional to pass it on!