"Good Old Age"

Although it is happening less and less, every so often I am still referred to as the 'younger generation.' It is usually because of a current need that I find myself in a hospital room, or at the Hospice House or a nursing home. In my capacity, I am there to minister to an older person who is part of the Immanuel family. Invariably, I leave being the recipient of ministry from the person who has been the focus of my pastoral visit. The spiritual lessons that are often reinforced to me are worth passing on to others in the 'younger generation.'

First, those who know Christ as Savior and Lord can experience 'good old age.' In our current culture, youth and newness are two idols often worshipped. Thus, the atmosphere exists where old age seems to be a curse, a disease, or an unfortunate inevitable happening. If someone would just invent a pill that would allow us to age without getting old! The phrase 'old age' appears fifteen times in the Bible. Four of those times the phrase is preceded by a descriptive word. All four times the word is a positive word. Three times we read of 'good old age' and one time 'ripe old age.' That is exactly what the Bible says will happen to the righteous as they grow older.

"The righteous flourish like the palm tree
and grow like the cedar in Lebanon.
They are planted in the house of the Lord;
they flourish in the courts of our God.
They still bear fruit in old age; they are ever full of sap and green,
to declare that the Lord is upright;
He is my Rock, and there is no unrighteousness in Him."
Psalm 92:12-15

The second lesson is that followers of Christ can (and should) begin well, live well and die well. These saints who have reached a 'good old age' provide proof to us that faith in Christ works over the long haul of life, with is triumph and turmoil, with its delights and discouragements. It is as though with the weakening of the physical eyes there is a sharpening of spiritual vision.

What a joy to listen to Jane Evans, at the good old age of 87, explain to the nurse who is taking her vital signs, just how wonderful it is to know that Jesus Christ lives in her heart and that she is looking forward to soon being with Him in heaven. What confidence is expressed when Frank Gering, at the good old age of 96, said to his wife Polly, as she visited him in the Hospice House, "Polly, don't worry about me, I am marching to Zion." What a testimony they present. Still bearing fruit in old age, they are declaring that the Lord is their Rock! We are indeed surrounded by a great cloud of witnesses!