“The glory of young men is their strength, but the splendor of old men is their gray hair.” Proverbs 20:29, ESV

 

I took my first breath 70 years ago and haven’t stopped since.  I celebrated this achievement with my family and absorbed the jokes about grey hair, noisy knees and the time it takes me to get up off the floor. Underneath the well-meaning jokes lies a truth we don’t like to admit. Aging is hard because it seems to steal from us. It robs us of certain qualities and capacities we assumed were safely ours. Our skin wrinkles. Our hair thins. Our vision and hearing diminish. Our physical strength and mobility decline. Cognitive skills take longer to remember and retain. Many move to a smaller space, with the advantage of having less distance between the bed and bathroom. We see our doctors more often than our friends, and often, we end up with more doctors than friends! And the greatest theft of all, our tomorrows are fewer than our yesterdays.

 

It’s easy to complain about the changes, and many do, but loss is only half the ledger. God speaks of the aged as being blessed. The senior years are fruitful and a time of glory (Ps.92:12-15). In other words, growing old adds more to our life than just years. This perspective is not loud in our society, but there are benefits available to all who walk through and beyond the “three score and ten.” What are they? Everyone will have to make their own list, but here are some riches I have noted in the credit side of life’s progression.

 

1. Aging sorts life’s priorities

When I was young, everything mattered. Every decision was crucial. Every relationship was a priority. I tried to push on the door of every opportunity. I had no grid to sift life, making priorities obvious. Age does that. Growing older offers a wisdom foreign to youth. You discover your shape, skills, passions and calling. You learn that you don’t have to jump on every bus that passes by. By grace, you become who God wants you to be, doing the works He has prepared beforehand (Eph.2:10). Rather than being moved by a fear of missing out, seniority offers a compass particular to you.

 

2. Aging makes sense of life’s plot

The third act of a play is where the mysteries of the plot are resolved. Life is similar.  As we enter our “third act”, we begin to connect the dots of our lives. Such understanding is not automatic, but available. We discover why we are the way we are. The pains of life start to make sense. Instead of seeing only the threads of our tapestry, we catch a glimpse of the whole. Not every “Why?” is answered, but with reflection and patience, God graces us with insight.

 

3. Aging bears witness to the works of God

We often speak of experience as a senior benefit, and it is. But experience is more than an accumulation of skills and answers. The more years we have, the more opportunity is given to witness the Hand of God. The aged have seen the provision and protection of God. They have witnessed the patterns of His methods and learned to trust the certainty of His promises. Whatever faith is garnered through the years of watching God is handed to a coming generation that needs the assurance of those who have walked before them.

 

4. Aging teaches us the lesson of humility

When we are first born, dependence doesn’t have to be taught. It’s all that we can do. We must be held, fed, protected, and nurtured into independence. The irony is that once we have mastered how to be and do on our own, we face the struggle of returning to dependence once more. This time we must learn it. It is not our default. We struggle to ask others for rides. We can’t manage the yard on our own. Our children do our banking. The time may come when we must be fed once more. All of this feels like a regression and presses against our pride. Yet the wisdom of God’s design has made life this way. God invites us to lean upon Him, like never before. Perhaps God wants us to return once more to the child-like trust and rest of being held and cared for in His arms. In our humility we find grace (1 Pet.5:5).

 

5. Aging expands our capacity for gratitude

I have seen it repeatedly. A senior who is confined to a bed or a chair, seemingly reduced to bare existence, and yet they smile with thankfulness. They are grateful for God’s Hand, their family, their life, and no change around them can shake the gratitude within. Again, it is not automatic nor inevitable, but the sap which flows through a fruitful aged plant is gratitude (Ps.92:14).

 

6. Age takes you closer to home

Here is the best gift of growing old. Every day moves you closer to heaven. In our youth, heaven is a theme for a song or a teaching of the Scripture. It is true, but distant. As that distance gets shorter, hope gets stronger. There are times I feel like I’m on the verge of a great trip, a journey that’s been dreamed but now is drawing near. There are moments of wonder and excitement. Since the best is yet to come, getting closer to the start isn’t a cause for fear or regret. The eternal adventure will begin in the presence of my Lord. Quite the gift!