The Blessing of Building!

During the last twenty and a half years, we have been blessed with twelve grandchildren. In the early days of our grandparenting, we began to accumulate various toys in one of our extra bedroom closets to stimulate these eager minds. We have cars and trucks, action figures, all sizes of building blocks, bags full of plastic Tinker Toys and containers loaded with every conceivable shape of Legos. Our grands have grown up using their imaginations to create and build things.

 Our Proud Builder!

Just this past Sunday, we had family over and after lunch they literally were “all over the house!” Some were in the back chilling with their cell phones while others were sprawling all over the family room floor. At least one was cocooned in a sofa blanket as the others relaxed in recliners half-way watching football on the television but mostly they were laughing, chatting about nonsense, but enjoying each other! It was family at its best!

Our youngest grandson caught me heading down the hallway and asked, “Poppi, do you still have those logs I like to build?” I answered, “Sure and then we quickly retrieved the storage container under the bunk beds!” Eight-year-old Dawson Michael never wasted a moment as he began building his latest creation! It was fun to see what he had imagined as it came to life!

Child development experts tell us that building and creating things are necessary exercises during playtime. Children 16 months to two-years old start in earnest to stack blocks (and knock them down!!) as they create things with all sorts of objects. This continues for years thereafter and is considered a key developmental milestone in building spatial, language, and problem-solving skills!

Neighbor Boys
Building a Snowman!
It is interesting to note that the word “build” is used 162 times (KJV) in 152 verses. All forms of the word, “create” are used an additional 84 times (NIV). It is evident that God expected His followers to learn the importance building and creating in life. Jesus said, “Those who hear His words and do them are wise builders!” (Matthew 7:24-27).

Spiritual growth is like building, in a sense. As God saves us and then lives in us through the Holy Spirit, He expects us to bear fruit and grow into Christlikeness. One of our pastors mentioned in his sermon last Sunday that “When we are committed to growth, it has a ripple effect!”  Our families are impacted by our individual commitment to growing in the faith.

As a pastor, I was always blessed to see family members coming into the worship center each Lord’s Day and squeezing into their places! Recently, we even had a handsome, inquiring youngster who joined in our senior adult Sunday Bible study class! It was a blessing to see him proudly sitting between his grandpa, the teacher, and his grandma! He blessed us with his questions and interaction!

Let’s celebrate this next generation by sharing our faith story with them! And then, make some space for them to join us in worship and study as they grow in Christ. Only God knows all the blessings that this ripple effect will have over time and eternity!

Mike Keppler, retired pastor,
active churchman and
doting grandparent.
Contact: drmjkeppler@gmail.com
©2018-2025 All rights reserved.
Serve by Design. mjkministries.com


Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

"Pray and Move Your Feet!"

Image
There is an old West African proverb: “When you pray, move your feet.” I have said something similar in a little different way: “Be careful in your praying. You may be (and often are!) the answer to your own prayer.” Others see this almost as a command to “Put feet to your prayers!” What do we mean by these various sayings? Prayer is not just an important spiritual discipline for the Christian, it often leads to an “in the flesh” response and connection between the pray-er and the prayer request. Prayer and Action! pngimg.com While prayer is one of the spiritual disciplines, this doesn't mean it is just an academic, theoretical or forensic exercise! I have heard it said, "God inhabits the praises of His people." This suggests that it blesses God to hear the praise of His people in prayer. I believe that the Lord gets an even greater blessing when our praying is “incarnated” in devotion, commitment and service for Him. Our best efforts at praying involve action plans to ...
Read more

Uncle Billy Moments!

Image
Photograph courtesy of Paramount Pictures Many of you will remember the beloved uncle who partnered with Jimmy Stewart’s character in the Christmas favorite, It’s a Wonderful Life. Uncle Billy was absent-minded and habitually wrapped a "reminder string" around his finger so he wouldn’t forget things. There is that pitiful exchange between the uncle and his nephew George Bailey. After a costly lapse in judgement in which $8,000 falls into the villainous Potter's hands, George, fearing the bank examiner's reprisals, called Uncle Billy, “A silly, stupid old fool!" Indeed, it was a sad occasion for the Bailey Building and Loan at the cusp of the Great Depression when that amount of money in today's dollars would exceed $114,000 in value. This was for me an unforgettable (and I use that word carefully) confrontation by the two characters in the film. I had an Uncle Billy moment last week. One that I am still embarrassed about. I absentmindedly left my bank ...
Read more

Sayings That Shape Us!

Image
Joseph D. Keppler December 9, 1929 - February 14, 2024 (I shared the following eulogy at my Dad's funeral, February 19, 2024).  I have so many wonderful memories from growing up with my parents. I say “growing up” because it became clear when I started grade school and heard one of my peers exclaim, “Your parents are so young!” And they were! Mom and Dad eloped on June 10, 1950, and had to go all the way to Corinth, Mississippi to get a justice of the peace who would marry a 16-year-old girl to a 20-year-old sailor, who after four years of active duty, was now in the Naval reserves! That sailor and his gal would become dad and mom, grandpa and grandma, to this great family. Mike, Grandpa, and Matt "A quick pic between oil changes!" I learned so much from dad who had married young, took on a family of four kiddos, and started his own business in those first fourteen years of marriage. Growing up in a family business taught me many lessons for sure! Watching dad and mom in ...
Read more