How often have you heard the following interchange?

Questioner: "How do you like being a grandparent? "

New grandparent: "I love it! And the best part is that I get to send them home when I've had enough."

When Cathy and I became grandparents three years ago, it didn't take long to begin hearing that standard question. At first, we dutifully gave the expected answer. But as we thought about it, we realized that answer didn't reflect our attitude toward being grandparents. So we have a new response: "We love being grandparents, but the worst part is that you have to send them home."

Children are too often seen as an imposition on adult life. A father might turn down an offer to play golf with his buddies, complaining: "I have to babysit the kids." Fathers as babysitters?! I think God had much more in mind than babysitting when he gave children to fathers. And the same goes for grandparents. Our grandkids are not objects that we use for our entertainment. (Is that why many grandparents foolishly indulge their grandkids' every whim and won't say "no" because it might raise a child's ire?) God has a greater purpose for grandparents than the spoiling of their grandchildren. He has told us to teach God's truth to our children and "to their children after them." May God help us give our grandkids what they need -- not what they want.

After I wrote the above post, my wife read it and related an interesting story. A few days earlier she had been with a friend whose 11 year-old granddaughter was with her. Cathy told her friend our new way of talking about our role as grandparents. After hearing Cathy say that the worst part of grandparenting was that you had to take the children home at some point, the friend's grandchild said: "I'm going to ask my mom if she [Cathy] can be my babysitter." It took Cathy a second to understand what she was saying, but soon realized what an insightful comment that young girl had made. Children want to be with adults who want to be with them. And they have rather keen insight into who is genuinely interested in them and who is not.