What first comes to mind in association with the biblical character David?
Goliath?
Bathsheba?
King of Israel?
The Psalms? (David was the author of seventy-five psalms!)
What about David, the strategic grandparent? David lived to be over seventy years old and he was the father of at least twenty children and a huge number of grandchildren.
David was thinking strategically. In Psalm 71:18 he wrote, “So even to old age and gray hairs, / O God, do not forsake me, / till I proclaim thy might / to all the generations to come.” When David wrote this psalm, he was almost certainly a grandfather. In it, he reflects on his adversaries, who are saying, “God has abandoned the old man.” He had limited time left, and was thinking about how he wanted to use it. He is no longer considering how to conquer more lands. Now he is pondering how to pass on his faith. His thoughts focus on “How do I use my remaining time?”
David was praying strategically. Psalm 71 is a prayer addressed to God. He is asking God for something specific, not general. What does David ask? He desires to be able to tell one more generation, his grandchildren, about God’s presence and action in his life.
David was acting strategically. David had a soothing voice. As a young man, he sang before Saul to calm the king’s troubled soul. Even in this psalm he says he is still singing, gladly, and with full voice: “My mouth is filled with thy praise… My lips will shout for joy” (Psalm 71:8, 23). He wrote a song of faith and he sang it with his grandchildren.
King David is a great example of a strategic grandparent. What would happen if grandparents began to think, pray, and act strategically as King David did?
For Discussion: Read and discuss Psalm 71.
For Action: Pray Psalm 71 in your own words.
Mike Shaughnessy is the founder of Grandly: The Strategic Grandparents Club and lives in Lansing, Michigan. His book, The Strategic Grandparent, published by The Word Among Us press, will be released in May 2020.
You can now pre-order the book on Amazon and The Word Among Us Press.
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