The day finally came, the day long awaited. In my arms was placed a brand new bundle of baby and blanket. Tiny face with eyes closed. Tiny fingers clenched. “His name is Theodore Bruce.” Oh, such a sweet sight to behold – my grandson, the son of my son!
This was the one I had prayed for since my son Nathanael was a baby. Back in those days of early fatherhood 30 years earlier I had decided in my heart to regularly pray not only for his life but for his wife-to-be as well. And, since I was praying for that future wife why not also for the children of their love together? “Praying it forward” was my way of standing in the gap as a man of God for the generations to come. So, just as there was joy in my heart almost 7 years ago when the day came that I actually beheld Bridgitte as the bride of my son, my soul now rejoiced in the blessing of this moment. However, this time I really got a better understanding of Simeon’s heart when he first held baby Jesus in his arms and said with elation, Sovereign Lord, as you have promised, you now dismiss your servant in peace. For my eyes have seen your salvation, which you have prepared in the sight of all people… (Luke 2:29-31). My eyes saw the one I had long prayed for from the heart (with hope of siblings and cousins to come). Indeed, I had lived to see my children’s children (Psalm 128:6).
Heart matters when it comes to being a man of God. It matters when it comes to being a husband. It matters when it comes to being a father and becoming a grandfather. All the roles we have as men and women are a blessing from God. They are not to be assumed nor taken for granted, for each role comes with God-given responsibilities. The heart must rightly see God, in order to rightly see the way through the challenges that each role presents. Only the heart that fears the Lord and seeks to walk in his ways will know the blessings divinely designed (Psalm 128:1-4).
Although there is happiness to be found, Life holds no guarantee of it. If anything it guarantees hard work, hardships and even heartaches. Some of you know this intimately. While you walk this earth there is an ongoing battle for your heart in the spiritual realms that often wages on unrecognized and unseen by the general populous. So it is that you must be vigilant in guarding your heart (Proverbs 4:23). You must continually assess where your treasure truly lies (Matthew 6:21). And, above all, you must seek to love and serve the Lord wholeheartedly (Deuteronomy 6:5, 10:12). Remember, by faith your heart is His home (Ephesians 3:16-17). Believe it!
Yet, man of God/woman of God, it is not your heart alone that matters. So too matter the hearts of those around you, those currently under your watch as well as those you watch for in the generations to come. In other words, not just your children but your children’s children require your heartfelt prayers as you stand in the gap on their behalf! They are counting on your heart to be healthy and mature (Psalm 112:7-8). They are counting on you to be there for them, even before you see them or hold them in your arms.
I don’t know what is in store for Theodore Bruce, the son of my son. Only the Lord holds the future of our days and his. However, I do know that his father and mother (Nathan & Bridgitte) love him deeply and stand in the gap prayerfully for him, as did both sets of their parents with them in the generation before. As his parents they will speak to him of Jesus and the Gospel as their parents did to them long ago. And I know that as the Lord gives me breath and allows me to see my children’s children, so will I continue to pray for them and speak to them of Jesus, not only as a grandfather but as a man of God and wholehearted disciple of Christ.
—RWO/MAST
Comments by Ric Ochsner