Advancing in Life, Advancing in Faith
Now that my retirement from full-time presidency is just a few months away, I find myself making lots of jokes about being old. I do that because though I’m in my late 60s, I still have lots of energy and don’t really feel that old. I guess all of us have ideas of what is old, older, and really old. When we are young, we want to be older, and when we are older, we want to think of ourselves as younger.
The scriptures refer to age quite a bit. Depending on how you search, you can find anywhere from 50 to 100 passages that refer to old age. Some of these passages refer to the wisdom of the older folks as well as instructions as to what we “older” believers are called to do during our senior years. Old age is a gift to be used for God’s glory, just as our work is to be for his glory in our youth.
Joshua 13 opens with, “Now Joshua was old and advanced in years.” Ten chapters later we read, “And Joshua was old and well advanced in years.” Well advanced sounds older than advanced. I guess Joshua was coming to grips with his advancing age, and he took ownership of his limited time left to give final instructions to the Israelites. Chapters 23 and 24 contain Joshua’s last instructions to the Israelites as they continue to take possession of different parts of the promised land.
One key point of Joshua’s message was that the Israelites needed to remember that God is the giver of their victories: “And you have seen all that the Lord your God has done to all these nations for your sake, for it is the Lord your God who has fought for you.”
Those of us who are privileged to get older have the opportunity to look back and remember all the ways and times that God fought for us in times of trouble and provided for us in ways far greater than we could have done on our own. Part of spiritual maturity and discipleship is the awareness that throughout our lives God has blessed us over and over again. Humility always acknowledges that God is the source of wisdom and blessing. As long as we believe that we are the reason for success, wealth, or longevity, we remain in denial of God’s role in our lives, and our pride keeps us from experiencing God’s joy and peace. And when we think that what we have is ours, we will be stingy in what we do with our resources.
I don’t know if you or I will be given the opportunity to give a parting speech to our family, friends, or coworkers before we breathe our last breath on this side of eternity. We do not know our expiration date. So while it would be nice to have a speech that tells the next generation all about God’s protection and provision in our lives and challenge them as Joshua did to serve the Lord and not self or any other gods, what we can do is take advantage of the moments we do have to offer encouragement, hope, and wisdom to those who are assuming leadership positions around us. You never know how your encouragement, words of wisdom, and prayers might just be the protection and the motivation someone needs to fully embrace God’s call in their lives.
Father, thank you for the time you give us to be a part of your kingdom now. Today we commit to sharing what you have done for us throughout our years. With the blessing of each new day, we commit to elevating your name and making sure that those who follow us know that our hope is in you. Forgive us when we are prideful about things we claim to have accomplished. In the days we have left, we seek to live in such a way that those who come behind us know our complete dependency on you and that you are our strength and our joy. Bless those who follow us that your will might truly be done on earth as it is in heaven. In Jesus’ name, amen.
Your Time with God’s Word
Joshua 23:1-16, 24:1-2, 13-28 ESV
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