Last summer I had the honor of road-tripping with my grandparents from Idaho to North Dakota and back. My grandparents had taken all of their grandkids on this same trip to where my grandpa grew up around the time each of us turned thirteen. I had so many good memories from that first trip, and one day I sent my grandparents a text saying something about how fun it would be to do again sometime. My grandpa quickly replied, “Let’s do it!” It was a joy to see historic locations, tour museums, witness beautiful landscapes, attend a musical, and revisit grandpa’s childhood. Even more special were the car conversations and living life together for two weeks.
As I’ve been working towards publishing my latest novel, Grandpa’s Comrade, memories from last year’s road trip have been running through my mind. (Grandpa’s Comrade launches Nov. 11, 2025!) I’ve been thinking a lot about the importance of multigenerational relationships. It’s tempting to seek out interactions with only those who are like me—those in my same season of life and similar ages. Maybe it’s just because I’m still in my twenties, but sometimes I find myself thinking that “real” friends are only those within my generation. But how untrue that is!
In the book of Titus, Paul is instructing Titus, the pastor of the church at Crete, about running a church. In chapter 2, he specifically addresses the importance of multigenerational relationships within the body of Christ. When we don’t pursue relationship with believers who are older or younger than us, we harm the strength of the body of Christ. But when we pursue multigenerational relationships, we are able to learn from one another and further our growth in the grace of the gospel.
Since my mind has been thinking about the importance of these relationships, I decided to dig into what Scripture says about it. Here are 6 biblical truths about multigenerational relationships:
1: Treat our elders with respect.
‘You shall rise up before the grayheaded and honor the aged, and you shall revere your God; I am the Lord. Leviticus 19:32 (NASB95)
Respect for others, particularly those older than us, has not been taught well to our generation. But a part of showing honor to God is showing honor to those older than us. Everyone deserves to be treated with respect as image-bearers of God, but God especially desires that we show honor and care for those who are young, the elderly, the disabled, and those in need. The people that society deems the least are those on whom God places high regard.
2: Those who are older than us (usually) have more wisdom/understanding because they’ve lived longer.
“Wisdom is with aged men, With long life is understanding. Job 12:12
The glory of young men is their strength, And the honor of old men is their gray hair. Proverbs 20:29
You younger men, likewise, be subject to your elders; and all of you, clothe yourselves with humility toward one another, for God is opposed to the proud, but gives grace to the humble. 1 Peter 5:5
It’s just a fact of life that the longer you live, the more you can learn. The elderly have lived long lives and therefore learned a lot. One of the blessings of friendship with those in older generations is getting to hear the life-lessons they’ve gleaned over the years which can help us make wise choices as we navigate life.
3: You don’t have to be old to have wisdom.
I understand more than the aged, Because I have observed Your precepts. Psalm 119:100
Older does not always mean wiser. True wisdom comes through the Word of God. Some of our elders are truly wise because they’ve saturated their lives in God’s Word. Others may have worldly wisdom or street smarts, but they may not have true wisdom if they haven’t saturated their lives in God’s Word. It’s important to have discernment when listening to the advice of our elders and make sure that we are only applying advice that aligns with God’s Word. And don’t neglect saturating your own life in God’s Word! You don’t have to wait till you’re a senior citizen to pursue wisdom. Ask God for wisdom and dig into His Word to find it!
4: God cares for us from womb to tomb.
“Listen to Me, O house of Jacob, And all the remnant of the house of Israel, You who have been borne by Me from birth And have been carried from the womb; Even to your old age I will be the same, And even to your graying years I will bear you! I have done it, and I will carry you; And I will bear you and I will deliver you. Isaiah 46:3-4
God cares about life from the moment of fertilization to the moment we pass away. We should never devalue anyone in society based on how young or old they are or how much they can “contribute” to society. Every life matters to God, and every life should matter to us, too.
5: Seek out relationships with other generations in order to learn from them; it blesses you and them!
Older men are to be temperate, dignified, sensible, sound in faith, in love, in perseverance. Older women likewise are to be reverent in their behavior, not malicious gossips nor enslaved to much wine, teaching what is good, so that they may encourage the young women to love their husbands, to love their children, to be sensible, pure, workers at home, kind, being subject to their own husbands, so that the word of God will not be dishonored. Titus 2:2-5
Discipleship is all about being in relationship with someone younger than you in order to show them what it looks like to live out God’s Word day by day. Titus 2 talks about the importance of older Christians teaching younger Christians. These types of relationships are the strength of the church. If you don’t have an older Christian pouring into your life right now, pray and ask God to show you who you might ask to be a discipler in your life.
6: God can use anyone, regardless of their age, to advance His kingdom.
“Remember the days of old, Consider the years of all generations. Ask your father, and he will inform you, Your elders, and they will tell you. Deuteronomy 32:7
In Deuteronomy 32, Moses is telling the Israelites to ask their elders to tell them the wonders God did for Israel in the past. Hearing the stories of those who’ve gone before us is inspiring and reminds us of who our God is. We should seek out older believers to hear their stories of God’s faithfulness, but we shouldn’t expect only older believers to be proclaiming God’s goodness.
O God, You have taught me from my youth, And I still declare Your wondrous deeds. And even when I am old and gray, O God, do not forsake me, Until I declare Your strength to this generation, Your power to all who are to come. For Your righteousness, O God, reaches to the heavens, You who have done great things; O God, who is like You? Psalm 71:17-19
The Psalmist here says that he’s been proclaiming God’s deeds since he was a young man all the way into his old age. Whatever our age, we are to proclaim the goodness of God! Scripture is full of stories of those serving God at both young and old ages: David, Jeremiah, and Timothy were called as young men to serve the Lord; Abraham, Moses, and Anna the prophetess were serving the Lord in their old age.
Multigenerational relationships are a gift from God to the body of Christ. May we be faithful to steward these relationships well to the glory of God!
With love,
Kelsey
P.S. Want to take this topic deeper? Check out the latest episode of Wholeheartedly with Kelsey Lee: Does Older Always Mean Wiser? What the Bible Says about Intergenerational Relationships
