What
Growing Older Really Means for You
Therefore
we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are
being renewed day by day. - 2 Corinthians 4:16
A new
member of the bridge club showed up one afternoon wearing a beautiful gold
locket. Another player approached her and said, “That’s such a lovely piece. Do
you keep a memento in it?”
“Yes,”
the woman answered. “It’s a piece of my husband’s hair I keep to help me
remember.”
“Oh,
I’m so sorry,” the player replied. “How long ago did he pass away?”
The
newcomer quipped, “Pass away? Oh, he’s still alive. It’s his hair that’s gone!”
Someone
once said, “Do not regret growing older. It is a privilege denied to many.” And
with so much focus today on doing whatever it takes to stay young, many people
completely miss out on a biblical understanding of what it means to age. They
miss the fact that their gray hairs, baldness, wrinkles, and aches all have a
purpose in the plan of God.
So
what is the right biblical understanding of aging? Well, as we see in today’s
passage, aging is a lifelong tradeoff of the physical for the spiritual. Young
people may have more physical vitality, but are usually less mature
spiritually. As we get older, however, we may lose our physical strength, but
we grow spiritually and become more equipped to invest in others’ lives.
Be
willing to make that tradeoff. Don’t despise growing older. Instead, embrace
your aging as a sign that while you may lose physical vigour, you’re growing
each day in your spiritual strength!
Prayer
Challenge
Pray
and ask God to give you a right understanding of aging as a lifelong tradeoff
for something much better than physical strength.
Questions
for Thought
What
is the one thing that gives you the most anxiety about getting older?
How
might this proper understanding of growing older as a tradeoff change your
attitude toward aging, as well as impact your relationship with God and others?