Last Updated on May 30, 2024
I so wanted this to be a lighthearted blog about grandparents, but my experience both as a grandchild and a mother of grandchildren has been more challenging than I hoped.
It’s also been more hopeful than I imagined.
Like many, my relationship with my mom has been difficult. The same could be said about her relationship with her grandchildren, but God uses even difficult circumstances in the most unexpected and surprising ways.
For quite a while, I’ve cared for my mom. Caring for an aging parent can be inconvenient, particularly as a single parent with oodles of children. Sometimes it can even be close to the last thing I want to do.
My family has handled a lot. But God keeps faithfully blessing us. I’ve seen my children choose respect and kindness when another response could be justified.
Regardless of how we feel as a family, we have determined to honor my mom with our actions and words. It hasn’t been without its wobbles and wounds, but my children have become more compassionate, forgiving, kinder, and more understanding.
When God steps in
Years ago, when my mother became extremely ill, my oldest daughter and I cared for her until the ambulance arrived. It was scary and messy, but she did it without complaining. My oldest son calls her weekly to check in. My youngest daughters always greet her with smiles and hugs.
Two years ago, my mom had a stroke. I was out of town, so my middle son took off work and drove an hour to comfort his grandmother and meet with the doctors. By the time I got there, my mom was settled, but the effects of the stroke were obvious. Things became a little less certain at that point, but God stepped in and did what He does and worked things together for good.
My mom’s speech is slurred and her step unsure, but her heart has been softened.
I don’t know how God did it, but the woman who left that hospital doesn’t search for ways to wound with words anymore. She doesn’t point out real or imagined flaws in my children or me. She even repeatedly expresses love for us and thanks us.
Others have commented on how she says nice things about me—for the first time! (There’s both a compliment and a zinger in that, to be honest.)
What I want to share is that God still creates beauty in family relationships that won’t be written into fun and sweet blogs about grandparents.
Families are complicated, and relationships can be hard, but then God steps in and does something shockingly unexpected that just changes the whole thing for the better, and our families grow stronger together and in faith.