Don't Grow Old

You want to know how many times I heard that phrase this week let alone just yesterday. From one to the next patient each said to me “don’t grow old.” The phrase kept coming and I wondered if they had all gotten together to coordinate telling me this on the same day! My reply, it’s inevitable. It really is! Every second we are older than the next. Why does this thought leave a sour taste amongst many of you? The worldly mindset does well to infiltrate our thinking. Don’t get me started on “never ask a woman her age.” Why?! Aging shouldn’t be viewed as a bad thing. It is not something to be feared, but something to embrace. Yes, there are many hard things that can happen with age. You don’t have to tell me, I see it on a daily basis. I spend most of my week hanging out with the aged, elderly, geriatric, over the hill, call it what you want and I see first hand how hard it is. Majority of my patients have ailments that include much more than just typical aging aches and pains. But hard does not mean bad; and there is beauty to be found in all stages of life. I would dare to say that some of the sweetest beauty is only found with age. You learn as you live. I pray you begin to challenge your thinking regarding aging. Why are we caring so much about the wrinkles, gray hair, and lack of mobility instead of learning how to love and serve others well? Why when asked how old you are you cringe and say 35. Please, that is 35, 68, 97 years of life you have been given. Another year older is not a thing to hate but long for. 2 Corinthians 4:16–18 says “So we do not lose heart. Though our outer self is wasting away, our inner self is being renewed day by day. For this light momentary affliction is preparing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison, as we look not to the things that are seen but to the things that are unseen. For the things that are seen are transient, but the things that are unseen are eternal.” This is the perspective shift we all need. Yes, aging is hard, but it is not to be feared or dreaded or despised. With a Biblical mindset hope, peace, and joy cannot be taken from you if it is found in Christ. May you cultivate gratitude for the days you are given. May you encourage one another always and may you learn to not only see the elderly, but serve the elderly because aging truly is hard. Life, however long it may be, can be full and rich pending one's perspective. I pray you age seeking God and His Word and not the world, it truly will make all the difference in how you view aging and every aspect of life.