In Psalm 90, Moses offered a prayer regarding the eternal nature of God and the temporary life of man. Verse 10 says “As for the days of our life, they contain 70 years, or if due to strength, 80 years, yet their pride is but labor and sorrow; for soon it is gone and we fly away.” We have no way of knowing how old Moses was when he wrote this Psalm, but we can know that he realized that our days are numbered. With those passing days we experience changes.
When we are young, just when our “fly away” will take place isn’t of too much concern. But as the years pass we may notice some changes. Our bodies do not respond as they once did. Eyesight may have grown dim; weakness of muscles limits our activity, and joints develop pains and get stiff. But these things are not all that growing older may do to us. Friends and relatives grow old too, and they reach the end of life’s highway. One by one people who have been a part of our lives die.
Their absence and our limited ability results in isolation, and with it comes loneliness. Growing old can be difficult, if we let it.
I was helping a lady, whom I thought was much older than me, plan her funeral. As she told me about herself, she talked only about things in her past. She had nothing to say about the present or the future. And then she told me her age. She was 10 years younger than me. This conversation taught me the value of living in the present and looking to the future. Simply put, where we live, in the past or in the present, determines our concept of our age. Live each day as a gift from God. Life is precious, enjoy each day. “This is the day the Lord has made; we will rejoice and be glad in it.” Psalm 118:24
As we grow older, our ability to do what we used to do may diminish. This may bring about frustration and depression. It’s part of our makeup that we want to be useful, and if we can no longer make a contribution, our opinion of ourselves may take a downward turn. Here’s a thought, find something you can do rather than thinking only of what you can no longer do.
Moses was 80 years old when he became Israel’s leader. His brother Aaron could not have been much younger when he became spokesperson for his brother and for God.
It’s doubtful we can find such noble things to do when we have grown older, but surely there is something we can do. Proverbs 16:31 says, «Gray hair is a crown of glory; it is gained in a righteous life.» Find something you can do, something you enjoy, and your life takes on new meaning.
Living each day as a gift from God and finding some way to be useful are two ways of making our senior years more meaningful. There is a third way, a more important way, of making those senior years meaningful.
