WHAT IS SO GOOD ABOUT GROWING OLDER?

“Now, as you can see, the Lord has kept me alive and well as he promised for all these forty-five years since Moses made this promise—even while Israel wandered in the wilderness. Today I am eighty-five years old. I am as strong now as I was when Moses sent me on that journey, and I can still travel and fight as well as I could then. So give me the hill country that the Lord promised me. You will remember that as scouts we found the descendants of Anak living there in great, walled towns. But if the Lord is with me, I will drive them out of the land, just as the Lord said.” – Joshua 14:10-12.

Birthday parties are magical for children: the games, gifts, goody bags, everything. Will we have pizza or maybe hot dogs? Will we eat first or play first? Do you think there will be ice cream? Do you think she will have goody bags? Birthday parties were awesome enjoying your special day with family and friends. But then the candles start adding up on the cake. Birthdays come and go – maybe there’s a dinner, a few cards, some well wishes. We move up one number, and it’s business as usual.

Too many birthdays means you are getting older Some of us also fear growing older for physical reasons. Aging is often seen as a loss of control. Maybe our bodies can’t do what they once could; our memories aren’t as sharp; we begin to need more help than we used to. As the years pass, our fear of the unknown may grow stronger. How do we shift our focus from the fear that age means irrelevancy and uselessness to the rich, full lives God calls us into as the years pass?

God’s Word has much to say about growing old. For example, Psalm 92:12-15 declares, “But the godly will flourish like palm trees and grow strong like the cedars of Lebanon. For they are transplanted to the Lord’s own house. They flourish in the courts of our God. Even in old age they will still produce fruit; they will remain vital and green. They will declare, “The Lord is just! He is my rock! There is no evil in him!”

This passage tells us that we are to celebrate growing older. Scripture repeatedly reminds that growing older is an honor. “Gray hair is a crown of glory…” ( Proverbs 16:31) . The more years we live, the more experiences we’re given to learn from, and the more wisdom and perspective we gain to see life in new and productive ways. We can increase our contributions to God’s kingdom and grow stronger because of our spiritual roots and experiences. The media leads us to believe that youth somehow has more value, the truth is, we are treasured by God at every age. Not only that, but He gives us specific gifts to share with the world in every season of our lives. In Titus 2:3-5, Paul reminds the older women of their great purpose, to bless and nurture the hearts of the younger women and their families. The generations to come depend on our willingness to share what God has given us.

Discussion Questions:

How does one get good at getting older?
What does God expect of us as we age?