Temporary Housing

“Even to your old age and grey hairs I am he, I am he who will sustain you, I have made you and I will carry you. I will sustain you and I will rescue you.”

Isaiah 46:4 (NIV) 

Everything about God is always. He had no youth and never will be a senior citizen. In his book, “God is Closer Than You Think”, John Ortberg says, “I am living in temporary housing these days. My house gets a little greyer and more wrinkled every year, not so subtle reminders that sooner or later I will be evicted.” 

There comes a time when we do not want to get old. However, God’s Word guides us into right perspectives on life. Growing old is inevitable and how you handle it is important. 

Bob Hope asked an actress how old she was. She said approaching forty. He asked from which direction?! 

God’s oldest have always been among His best. Psalm 92:14 KJV says, “They shall bring forth fruit in old age.” We have examples from the bible, Moses, Abraham, Caleb, Anna and John to mention a few. And from history we have Winston Churchill, who won the Nobel Price for Literature at 79. Oliver Wendell Holmes took up the study of Greek at 94, and J. C. Penney was 95 when he said, “My eyesight may be getting weaker, but my vision is increasing.” And Herbert Armstrong was still working in his 90s. 

God hasn’t kept growing old a secret. But there are many pitfalls we need to be aware of. Our goal is not to live long, but to live. A short poem by Robert Browning goes as follows: 

“Grow old along with me,

The best is yet to be,

The last of life,

For which the first was made.” 

As we grow older we dislike change more, but change is inevitable. Whatever your time of life—even if the lease is running out—there are opportunities for spiritual growth. Every season is a chance for growth. Remember you are never as old as you are going to be unless you are dead. Getting old isn’t a choice but our response to it is. We are above ground now, so let’s make the most of it. 

Prayer

Father, I pray as Moses did in Psalm 90, teach me to number my days, that I may apply my heart to wisdom.

Amen 

Study by Jill Newman