MINISTRY / Declaring God’s power to the next generation
When I am old and gray: declaring God’s power to the next generation
Even when I am old and gray, do not forsake me, my God, till I declare your power to the next generation, your mighty acts to all who are to come. — Psalm 71:18
As people grow older, they often see more clearly what truly matters. One day, we will all leave this world. We cannot take with us our wealth, homes, achievements, or reputation. But in Christ, we can hope for something far more precious: to share eternal life with children who trust in the same Lord.
During Grace Bible Institute’s (GBI’s) 2026 Spring course on Luther’s Small Catechism, retired WELS pastor Daniel Koelpin was invited as a guest speaker. He reminded the students: Children are among the few things that you can take with you beyond the grave. We cannot take wealth or possessions, but we can share eternity with our children who share our faith in the Lord. When God gives the gift of a child, the best thing we can do is send him back to God who gave him to them in the first place.
A call to every parent
This is not only a reminder for the elderly. It is also a call to every parent, grandparent, church leader, and Christian. Raising and guiding the next generation to know the Lord is one of the most important tasks we have in this world.
GBI offers the Small Catechism course not only to help students learn biblical truth, but also to equip them to teach the next generation and new believers in their families, churches, and communities. More than twenty Chinese-speaking students joined the course from different parts of the world, most of them living in East Asia. Among them were church leaders, small group leaders, mothers, grandmothers, and brothers and sisters who faithfully serve in their churches.
They came to class not only for their own growth in faith, but also with a shared burden: How will our children come to know the Lord? How will the next generation be built up in the truth? How will the church pass the gospel from one generation to the next?
As the semester drew near its end, the instructor invited Pastor Daniel Koelpin and his wife, Carol, to share with the students how they used the Bible and Luther’s Small Catechism to teach their own children. Having served in cross-cultural ministry for many years, they brought more than information. They brought a testimony shaped by a lifetime of practicing the faith.
A lasting legacy
They reminded us that passing on the faith does not happen only in the classroom. It also happens in daily life: in how parents pray, confess their sins, forgive, face difficulties, and trust God day by day. Children not only hear what we teach; they also see how we live.
Pastor Koelpin said, Most of us will not become famous or remembered for notable things. We will be forgotten, but our children are our legacy, our impact upon the world.
These words lead us to think not only of our own children, but also of the many children and young believers in God’s kingdom. No matter what country they live in or what culture surrounds them, they need to hear God’s Word. They need someone to tell them of the Lord’s power and his wonderful works.
As Psalm 78 says: We will not hide them from their descendants; we will tell the next generation the praiseworthy deeds of the LORD, his power, and the wonders he has done. Psalm 78:4
The long impact of Grace Bible Institute
This is the work Grace Bible Institute longs to take part in: through Bible courses, theological training, and gospel-centered resources, GBI seeks to help Chinese-speaking believers around the world know Christ more deeply and be equipped to serve their families, churches, and the next generation.
One course may equip a mother to teach her child to pray at home.
One lesson on the Small Catechism may help a church worker guide new believers more clearly.
One testimony may encourage a grandparent to keep praying for grandchildren and telling them about the Lord’s grace.
We believe that what truly changes lives is not human wisdom, but the Word of God. What truly upholds the next generation is not success as defined by the world, but the salvation Jesus Christ has already accomplished.
May the Lord use GBI and every person who participates, supports, and prays for this ministry, so that more Chinese-speaking believers may be equipped, more families may be built up by the gospel, and more future generations may hear and believe:
The LORD is mighty.
Christ has accomplished salvation.
This grace will continue to be passed on to the next generation.