Sunday devotional, 9/9/12
There are many days set aside during the year to honor various things. Some of the more silly ones have been: "National Do-Dah Day", "National Flip Flop Day" and "National Stupid Guy Thing Day" to name a few. Others are more serious, such as "National Cancer Survivors Day", "National Abused Women and Children's Awareness Day" and "National Flag Day." Sometimes you may wonder who really decided to push for making some of these National days, like National Grandparents Day. Was it one of the major greeting card company's idea in order to sell more cards? National days actually are declared by Congress in order to bring attention to certain causes, honor certain people, or sometimes just to be silly it appears.
Today is the second Sunday of September, set aside to honor grandparents. For some that means a phone call to talk with those not nearby. For others it may mean getting together for a meal or celebration. Some will buy one of those special greeting cards and send it via snail mail, or if they are blessed with grandparents who are computer savvy perhaps an e-card will be sent. Some of us have grandparents who are no longer with us on earth, and we may visit their graves or just remember the more memorable times with them. For a lot of people, the day will pass without them even noticing that it was National Grandparents Day. What is more important than just honoring them on a certain day set aside by the government is how we honor or treat them every day of the year.
God's Word tells us how we are to treat our family. We are to honor our father and mother (and all those in authority over us), and we are to help provide for our immediate family who are still alive. This is especially true if our parents or grandparents are unable to help themselves, as was the case for widows in Biblical times (no government assistance/life insurance/retirement plans etc).
Give proper recognition to those widows who are really in need. But if a widow has children or grandchildren, these should learn first of all to put their religion into practice by caring for their own family and so repaying their parents and grandparents, for this is pleasing to God... If anyone does not provide for his relatives, and especially for his immediate family, he has denied the faith and is worse than an unbeliever. 1 Timothy 5:3-4, 8 NIV
While God does not expect us to put ourselves or others in danger by keeping a grandparent at home in an unsafe situation, He does expect us to treat them with dignity and respect and to help care for them in whatever way we can. That help may be in the form of emotional support, physical care, or financial assistance. Or it may be by helping a grandparent realize they have to make some tough decisions such as when to stop doing things that are beyond their physical capabilities for safety's sake. Whatever is done to provide for our immediate family, it should be done through faith in love. May God guide us as we seek to find what is healthy and safe, respectful and honoring in caring for our families.
written by Jan Andersen
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