Grandma, have you checked your spiritual job description in the Bible lately? Are you doing the job effectively and efficiently as the Bible tells you? You have an important, precise detail of service for God. The following is what we will think of in this article as God's explicit job description of spiritual work for Grandma or older women:

Likewise, teach the older women to be reverent in the way they live, not to be slanderers or addicted to much wine, but to teach what is good. Then they can train the younger women to love their husbands and children, to be self-controlled and pure, to be busy at home, to be kind, and to be subject to their husbands, so that on one will malign the word of God.       Titus 2:3-5 (NIV) 

The NKJV concludes Titus 2:5 with the words: "that the word of God may not be blasphemed." The MacArthur Study Bible (p. 1887) comments on "not be blasphemed": "...When Christians claim to believe God's Word but do not obey it, the Word is dishonored."

In his letter to Titus, Paul gives Titus a definite student body — older women — and a specific subject mat­ter — "Grandma Work." Grandmas, in turn, are given a definite set of stu­dents — younger women — and a given curriculum to teach — "Wife and Mother Work." The following illustrates the content of the verses:

1. "Grandma work"

1. Teacher: Titus (Scripture)

2. Students: older women

3. Subject matter

   1. To live reverently

   2. To not slander

   3. Do not be addicted to much wine

   4. To teach what is good

   5. To train the younger women

2. "Wife and mother work"

1. Teachers: older women

2. Students: younger women

3. Subject matter

   1. To love one's husband

   2. To love one's children

   3. To be self-controlled

   4. To be pure

   5. To be busy at home

   6. To be kind

   7. To be subject to one's husband

3. Educational objective: No one will malign (blaspheme) the word of God.

Isn't it a beautiful example of divine wisdom to establish such an effi­cient, spiritual, educational system within each family and within the church? It provides for a built-in, trained, replacement teaching staff for each family and each church for every generation as one generation replaces another.

My grandmother took Titus 2:3-5 very seriously. She had a happy, pleasant personality with a good sense of humor. She could and did speak naturally and easily about her spiritual beliefs and values. She read her Bible faithfully, knew its con­tents, and sought to live it and speak it. She was a prayer warrior and prayed diligently for her family and descendants. Her life was an ex­ample to her daughters, daughters-in-law, and granddaughters, as well as to all of her family. She was a cheerful, busy homemaker, and she stressed contentment by counting her blessings rather than numbering her losses. She taught the wives, moth­ers, and granddaughters in her fam­ily by example and by espousing the values of loving one's husband and children and caring and providing lovingly for one's family and home. I thank God for a dear Christian grandmother and a dear Christian mother whose lives witnessed to the teachings of Titus 2:3-5.

Grandma, are you accomplishing your teaching assignment from God? Are you doing your God-given spiri­tual task? Is your life in accordance with what Titus 2:3-5 demands? Are you faithfully teaching the wives, mothers, and granddaughters of your family and church the curriculum God set forth for you?

Grandma, guard yourself against the persuasive feminist voices of today. Be sure that you, by example and/or word, are not inadvertently teaching your female family charges to pursue self — gratification, career choices and advancements, and money as priorities rather than the curriculum God has set down for you to teach. Are your next generation women carrying out their "Wife and Mother Work" properly, and are they well prepared for their "Grandma Work" because of your life, work, and teaching in their midst? Read and meditate on Titus 2:3-5. Then by life and precept, fulfill your biblical, spiritual job description for "Grandma Work."

Happy Mother's Day, Grandmas, members of God's "Grandma Work" staff! Also, Happy Mother's Day, Wives and Mothers, who are in the "Grandma Work" training program! May God bless your work and make each of you a blessing to your fam­ily and your church family.