GROWING OLDER -- A WIN-WIN SITUATION

“We know that God, who raised the Lord Jesus, will also raise us with Jesus and present us to Himself together with you. All of this is for your benefit. And as God’s grace reaches more and more people, there will be great thanksgiving, and God will receive more and more glory. That is why we never give up. Though our bodies are dying, our spirits are being renewed every day. For our present troubles are small and won’t last very long. Yet they produce for us a glory that vastly outweighs them and will last forever! So we don’t look at the troubles we can see now; rather, we fix our gaze on things that cannot be seen. For the things we see now will soon be gone, but the things we cannot see will last forever.”  (2 Corinthians 4:14-18 NLT)

All of us are aging. Some of us handle it well -- we get better with age like good wine and cheese. We keep on keeping on, while looking forward to the ultimate experience of the Lord when He takes us home. Others of us, unfortunately, stick our heads in the sand of time and wish aging would go away. It won’t. So if you can’t beat it -- join it! Live the rest of your life for God’s glory, and look forward to the best of life to come in His presence. They call that a win-win situation. 

-- Stuart Briscoe in “Daily Study Bible for Men” 

#6046

A PRAYER AS WE AGE

“Even to your old age and gray hairs I am He, I am He who will sustain you. I have made you and I will carry you; I will sustain you and I will rescue you.”  (Isaiah 46:4 NIV)

All gracious God.... I am one of those called by You into old age, a call not given to all, not given to Jesus, not given to most in the world today. I humbly ask You, grace me deeply in each aspect of that struggle. As my physical eyesight weakens, may the eyes of my faith strengthen, that I may see You and Your love in everything. As my hearing fails, may the ears of my heart be more attentive to the whisper of Your gentle voice. As my legs weaken and walking becomes more difficult, may I walk more truly in Your paths, knowing all the while that I am held in the embrace of Your love. As my mind becomes less alert and memory fades may I remain peaceful in You, aware that with You there is no need for thought or word. You ask simply that I be there, with You. Amen.  

-- Sister Moya Hanlen as printed in “Weavings”

#5780

FINISHING WELL

Those who end well have disciplined lives… To get to this point, the New Testament uses numerous athletic images. In 1 Corinthians 9:25-27, Paul pictures a runner. He said run in such a way that you win. But then he added, “Every athlete exercises self-control in all things.” Therefore he said, “I discipline my body and keep it under control, lest after preaching to others I myself should be disqualified.” The writer of Hebrews said, “Since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us.” (Hebrews 12:1) He too is talking about discipline.

A Christian who finishes well will practice spiritual disciplines… There will be the disciplines of abstinence such as fasting, silence, solitude, frugality, sacrifice, and chastity. But there will also be the disciplines of engagement such as prayer, fellowship, worship, study, service, confession, and submission.

These will help guard our inner lives. The disciplines will not become an end in themselves. For they are really disciplines in response to God’s grace. Grace and discipline are spiritual friends, when kept in the right order. Spiritual disciplines become a means of grace that help us get to the finish line. 

-- Donald W. Sweeting & George Sweeting in “How to Finish the Christian Life: Following Jesus in the Second Half”

#5402

FINISHING STRONG

[The righteous] will still bear fruit in old age,” declares the psalmist, “they will stay fresh and green” (Psalm 92:14). I think of an older friend of mine, now in her eighties, who is still bearing fruit. She is limited in her physical mobility, but in her prayer life she ranges all over the globe, praying for Christian works and workers worldwide. She is not turning aside from God’s work, nor is she stagnating in her inner spiritual life. She will stay fruitful to the end because she will continue to serve God to the end.

None of us is ever finished “doing our share.” We can never repay the debt of love we owe to Christ. If we are running for the long haul we must determine to never to quit His service. If we want to run with endurance we must keep asking as long as we live, “Lord, what do You want me to do?” Only in that way can we expect to stay faithful to the end and be greeted at the finish line by our Lord’s voice saying, “Well done, good and faithful servant!” 

-- Jerry Bridges in “Staying Faithful Through the Years: How Can You Keep Walking with God Throughout Your Life?” from “Discipleship Journal,” No. 58


#4438

FRAMED BY LARGE PERSPECTIVES

“The Lord is near to the brokenhearted, and saves the crushed in spirit.”  (Psalm 34:18)

“Religion is for old people,” my buddy declared as we drove through the countryside. I found his comment a little insulting: I was a church goer, age nineteen. Was that so wrong? I lost touch with him; now it’s been twenty-five years since we’ve spoken. But he was on to something. At twenty, the road looks clear all the way. We arrogantly waste time, try a hundred new jobs or relationships or ideologies, believe any fool thing. The heart is not yet broken, not in the way it is when time crashes down on it -- soured dreams, career missteps, divorce, illness, the death of loved ones, the passing of so much we love. By old age the ghostly procession of the once-was can be unbearable.

My heroes include any elderly persons who keep the flame lit, who still feel inspiration aand outrage at ideas, current events, history, movies, books, national tragedies, spring flowers, the passing parade. Somehow they take it all in. Life enlarges their spirit, becomes fuel for the remaining journey, seasoned with humor, not bitterness. They age with dignity. Part of the dignity is keeping the inevitable heartbreak framed by large perspectives and by going deeper into the grief, not denying it.

-- Ray Waddle in “A Turbulent Peace”


#4068

EMBRACING THE PRESENT

We should not "borrow from the future" by living in fear of the next life stage. Neither should we live in the past by "idolizing" the life stage just completed. Live fully in the present. Enjoy it. Embrace it. Look for God there. However, in order to fully embrace the present, we must regularly let go of the past, and one of the most significant losses that we must periodically let go of is the loss of our youth.

-- R. Scott Sullender in Losses in Later Life


#3182