Serving God in Your “Golden Years”

By Brian Mitchell

     If you are one of those "precious saints" called the "elderly", you can thank God, for you have arrived at the apex of life. You have arrived at the top of the mountain where you can breathe the rare atmosphere of a long life of experience, knowledge, honor, and have an excellent view that none of those below you have ever seen. Many moons have come and gone in your life. You have crossed many bridges, navigated many crossroads and have come out on top. You may have lost a step, and you may even be a bit stooped, but thank God you can still breathe and have a sturdy heart. The Bible speaks well of you when it says, "the splendor of old men is their gray head" (Prov. 20:29). But you are NOT Done!!!
    You have come through the hard knocks of experience and can teach others a few things about life. Life has given you a wealth of knowledge not learned in books. You have seen more changes in a lifetime than any generation has seen since the camel and tent days of Abraham. You saw the evolution of the automobile and witnessed the modern space ships flying to the moon. You lived in the days before the TV and into the days of wireless communication where you type a letter to a missionary in Russia and it will be there before you have a chance to get up from your seat. But you are NOT Done!!!

     It is not a sin to get old or to be old. Aging cannot be stopped and it will go on until death overtakes us or the Lord comes for His church. But the older generations have a tremendous responsibility to the younger generations coming up behind them. There is a responsibility that goes along with being in the elite elderly class. The tremendous amount of knowledge and experience that you have obtained through the years needs to be shared with the younger generation. You are NOT Done!!!
    Sadly, time has a way of robbing men of the feeling of usefulness. You may have developed a defeatist attitude that makes you think "I am so useless; What can I do?" Yet all of the knowledge and experience that God has given you can be used as illustrations to reveal His truth to others. There are many young people today that do not have or will never have what you have obtained in your lifetime. You have the advantage of perspective and God and others need you to make good use of it. You are NOT Done!!!
     You have a vantage point in these golden years that the younger ones do not have. It is like standing on a mountain of years and looking over the valley of time, so that you can see life lessons that those who live in the valley of youth do not see. You can help them. Your years are now valuable for the sake of counsel and advice. What a way to serve the Lord! You are needed now in perhaps ways you have never been needed before. How do you know whether God has called you "to the kingdom for such a time as this?" (Esther 4:14) You are NOT Done!!!
    There is no doubt that we will all grow old if we continue living upon this earth. However, “how” we grow old is far more important than how “old” we grow. Let us have the same attitude toward serving the Lord in our later years as Caleb, never quitting (or retiring), but always asking the Lord to continue giving him more challenges (“mountains”) to conquer and overcome with the Lord’s help. You are NOT Done!!!
    You are NOT Done Until God Says So!!! So never forget how valuable you are to God and others. You have much knowledge and wisdom to pass on to others and God is expecting you to do so. And those who are younger need you to.

- Brian Mitchell preaches for the Jackson Church of Christ in Jackson, MO.  He may be contacted through the congregation's website: http://www.jacksonchurchofchrist.net