Age

Good Morning,

I received a letter from a dear friend. He is seventy-five years-old and has spent all of his life in the ministry. He had a wonderful church and served there for many decades. Due to tempestuous weather, his church flooded. His home had two feet of water inside, his church auditorium had four feet of water, and their gymnasium had five feet of water. Everything was a complete loss. At age seventy-five, with a lifetime of service behind him, one cannot help but wonder, "Why?"

Thinking through other friends of mine, who are ten to twenty years older than myself, I see some of the more severe burdens of life weighing on these godly couples as well. My own dear Pastor, Dr. Jack Hyles, faced the most difficult battles of life in his 60s and early 70s.

I am reminded of the story of Abraham; we read of the continued testing of this great man of faith long after his one-hundredth birthday.

Genesis 22:1 “And it came to pass after these things, that God did tempt Abraham, and said unto him, Abraham: and he said, Behold, here I am.”

Abraham was over one hundred years of age, and God was still working on him, testing him, and proving him. I would love to say that as we age, the battles diminish and the peace increases, but from observation, I simply do not believe that to be the case. Another close friend of mine (in his mid-60s) had spent his entire lifetime serving God as a pastor, and he suddenly lost three key staff members, people who carried the load and had been well-trained in that ministry. It is extremely difficult to hire staff, and to lose multiple staff members at the same time, obviously multiplies the difficulty. I have watched godly, retired pastors face battles that separated them from their adult children, whom they had been very near to all of their lives. Of course, all of us have seen godly widows say goodbye to their lifetime partners. Suddenly their worlds are empty, and very often, financially pressured beyond words. Another dear friend in the ministry had his wife turn on him and the church when he was in his 60s. Where does a pastor go when his wife denies the church, the pastor, and the faith?

In many cases, a veteran pastor has built a church, labored financially to leave a debt-free congregation, and as the weakness of the body increases and the pressures of life escalate, many dear men see their ministry through more clear eyes and understand that perhaps it will not continue to be that which it had been. The direction of society, leadership in the church, and trends among members weigh heavy on the pastor's heart. When the older pastor views all these things, he sees the warning that perhaps the fruit of his lifetime of service and ministry will not continue after his departure.

How many godly, faithful, older men watched their lifetime ministry crumble into liberalism or shame or even close down within a few years of his retirement. What a grief to the heart of the pastor! My home pastor retired from a successful ministry with a church averaging 2,000 or more, and within a few years, he saw the buildings rented out and attendance dropping to 100. Again, age brings trials no one ever anticipates.

I remember enjoying a few days with Mr. and Mrs. Howard Jewell. This godly man had been in the spotlight of countless revivals and stood with the greatest of America’s evangelists, and yet in the last years of his life, he cared for his stroke-victimized wife. He sang and testified where he could, but the glamor and glory of former days were certainly a memory of the past. As he sang in our fledgling church (which was meeting in a tent), he was such a blessing; I was helped and so were our people. This dear saint of God was being tested more severely than ever in his ministry. Today, it is difficult to even find his name online anywhere; but in Heaven, his name was recorded, and I am sure he was richly rewarded.

Paul wrote to Timothy:

2 Timothy 1:15 “This thou knowest, that all they which are in Asia be turned away from me; of whom are Phygellus and Hermogenes.”

2 Timothy 4:10 “For Demas hath forsaken me, having loved this present world, and is departed unto Thessalonica; Crescens to Galatia, Titus unto Dalmatia.”

vs. 16 “At my first answer no man stood with me, but all men forsook me: I pray God that it may not be laid to their charge.”

Can you see the aged Paul being jailed, having suffered countless injustices, having stood for the truth all these years, and having none to stand by his side?

These words are a reflection of David’s heartache when he wrote:

Psalm 31:11 “I was a reproach among all mine enemies, but especially among my neighbours, and a fear to mine acquaintance: they that did see me without fled from me.”

vs. 12 “I am forgotten as a dead man out of mind: I am like a broken vessel.”

vs. 13 “For I have heard the slander of many: fear was on every side: while they took counsel together against me, they devised to take away my life.”

We are familiar with the prophetic words of our Lord:

Psalm 41:9 “Yea, mine own familiar friend, in whom I trusted, which did eat of my bread, hath lifted up his heel against me.”

And of Job:

Job 19:14 “My kinsfolk have failed, and my familiar friends have forgotten me.”

As we age, our popularity can fade and our strength can erode, or the health of a spouse may crumble leaving our security in this life more shaky than our palsied hands. I watched Dr. Wendell Evans lead the college alma mater at the end of the 2017 college year. He had “served his own generation by the will of God.” His voice was a little weak, his steps unsure, and his memory, though still brilliant, showed signs of failing. With health issues, he is not used as often as he once had been, yet I remind myself that his retirement party is awaiting him in Glory. His reward and full retirement package is being lovingly prepared by the Saviour Whom he has faithfully served.

In our own church, we have watched dear godly friends become frail, palsied, and forgetful. Over time, we find ourselves less important, less useful, and perhaps feeling that we are in the way. 

We might be wise to remember a few things about age:

1. We will all travel the path of aging, so be merciful and kind to those who are already on it.

2. We should exercise extra patience with those who are needy due to years.

3. We should remember that this world is not our home; we are just passing through.

4. We must remember that God is the hope of the world and the sustenance of our children - not ourselves or our wives. I can become frail of mind or body or even go on to Heaven, and God will take care of this world; He has been doing it for a long time.

5. We should not think too highly of ourselves or our work. We are to raise our families and work to honor and please God. What happens after our health fails is God’s business, not our own. We are to do it for Him, not for us.

6. Even though age is no reward, we are still here for a purpose. We are members of the body of Christ, and we each supply something that no one else can provide.

Ephesians 4:16 “From whom the whole body fitly joined together and compacted by that which every joint supplieth, according to the effectual working in the measure of every part, maketh increase of the body unto the edifying of itself in love.”

God knows where I am, what I know, and what I am able to do. It is He Whom I am to please and honor with my life. I can rest in that fact!

Pastor Goddard