From age to age

March 23, 2007

By William E. Richardson

“The Lord is the strength of my life” (Psalm 27:1, NKJV).

Some people gladly tell their age. Berniece Mauler did when she turned 87. Her co-workers at the Mason City (Iowa) County Auditor’s Office brought in a big cake. They topped it with 87 candles.

Friends lit the candles. Berniece tried blowing them out. Wisps of smoke from 87 candles set off the smoke alarms. They evacuated the building, including 40 prisoners in the county jail. The fire department soon arrived.

Berniece did eventually enjoy her cake, with ice cream on the side. The memories of that day were a perk for Berniece who was volunteering at age 87.

Are you at peace with all the realities of getting older? If you struggle with the aging process, let’s take a drive and think some new thoughts about having birthdays.

Like your license plate, age is just a number. Numbers ending in zero scare some of us. As if the second our age odometer turns a certain number, we’ll suddenly fall apart. Of course, change usually comes more slowly. How can we rethink numbers?

Someone I know was recently told not to think of their age as 40, but as 39.95, plus shipping and handling. It’s not the number that matters. It’s what we do with that year.

Keep your eye on the road. As we get older, we tend to spend more time looking through the rearview mirror. We can even dwell on the past at the risk of failing to focus on the road ahead. It’s where we’re going that matters most.

The apostle Paul understood. He declared that to finish his journey he needed to be constantly “reaching forward to those things which are ahead” (Philippians 3:13). God will help us. He wants to guide us along the best route via a Heavenly Global Positioning System.

Every mile counts. None of your journey is wasted. Every surprise for which no sign was posted helps you. Every long stretch of routine helps you. Even those days you ignored the idiot lights on the dashboard can benefit you.

Our experience at 45 surpasses our limited travels at age 20. The wisdom gleaned by 60 is priceless next to 45. God wants to use every mile we’ve traveled to our advantage.

There’s Moses’ example. God combined the experience of Moses’ first 40 years in Egypt with that of his next 40 as a shepherd. Together, all Moses learned helped him lead his fellow Israelites from Egyptian bondage to the Promised Land.

Are you ready to shift gears with a new outlook on aging? Are you ready to concentrate less on a number and more on the road ahead? Are you ready for God to use every mile of your life to guide you toward a strong finish?

William E. Richardson is senior pastor of Afton (Iowa) Assembly of God.