By David ReayTuesday 6 Sep 2022LifeWords DevotionalsDevotionsReading Time: 2 minutes
And now, in my old age, don’t set me aside. Don’t abandon me when my strength is failing. (NLT)
How good it is that our God does not decree a retirement age for each of us. He does not put us out to pasture, or put us on the shelf just because we reach a certain age. None of us has a use by date, a time at which we cease to matter.
Of course, growing older may well mean growing more frail and thus we may not be able to do all we once did. But not being able to do what we once did doesn’t mean we are useless, or that we can do nothing at all. There is a problem in the wider commercial world of companies getting rid of older employees and thus losing corporate memory. Bright young things bring energy into the present, but older heads bring past experiences into the present. Both are needed.
So, it is a shame, to say the least, to hear of churches where older people feel neglected or marginalised. The big strategy is to attract families, and this word itself has a rather narrow meaning: couples with kids! No problem with wanting to attract such people, but it should not mean that the “oldies” don’t matter as much.
The challenging task of church leadership is to both implement change for the future while respecting the traditions of the past. To see older and younger people be blessings to one another rather than conflicting parties in church plans. To respect and cater for the varying musical preferences of younger and older, always remembering God has no such preferences himself!
The Psalmist pleads with God not to forget him in his old age. It is a plea which has to be made to our fellow human beings as well.
Blessings,
David