Strength To Serve In Later Years

“Now also when I am old and grayheaded, O God, forsake me not; until I have shewed thy strength unto this generation, and thy power to every one that is to come.” (Ps 71:18 AV)

There is a reason David seeks the LORD’s strength until the day of his death.  It is not that he might enjoy life and consume all the blessings of life.  He desires God’s presence, purpose, and strength that he might share with the present generation and shew forth what God did do to a future generation.  In short, he desires to live longer and in strength that he might serve the LORD by benefitting younger generations.  Of special note is exactly that which David is praying.  He is praying that God would not forsake him so that this answer would be what would shew a younger generation the strength and power of the LORD.  We don’t know exactly when David wrote this.  However, a certain time comes to mind.  As David aged, he became a liability on the battlefield.  So much so that Joab and the elders asked David to stay behind.  They knew that if the king fell in battle, it would discourage the troops.  His life meant more than his participation in the war.  One can surmise he thought of his waning abilities and was concerned with what his twilight years might mean to the LORD’s kingdom.  Therefore, he is not asking for good health and long life that he might enjoy it.  Rather, he is seeking both that He might be able to encourage a younger generation.

As I write this, I cannot help but think of my situation.  I am approaching the latter part of middle age and will soon be considered by many an old person.  It hit me when AARP sent a mailer out and told me I qualify.  Getting older is not for the faint of heart.  It is a hard adjustment to make when one’s strengths begin to diminish.  Eyesight, hearing, and mental acuity all begin to wane.  Muscle strength, balance, and endurance begin to lessen.  We are hit with the reality that we are not as young as we used to be.  However, there are joys which I experience regardless of the ability to accomplish as much as I once did.  Meeting people and sharing the love of Christ is something I enjoy doing more than anything else in ministry.  Even more than preaching.  I enjoy talking to people I have never met before who are willing to carry on a conversation.  This is something the LORD gave me by serving in the hospitable South.  My only regret is I didn’t learn this earlier.  When I go door-to-door, it is a joy to share the love of Christ with others, even if they do not want it.  This is what comes to mind when I read the verse above.  This is my prayer, too.

What we do with our time and resources tells us a lot of what our goals in life are.  How do we spend our strength?  How do we exert the power of life God gives?  Do we do so with the hope someone will be touched by our ministry by the power and leading of the Holy Spirit?  Do we get up every day with muscles aching which we did not even know we had with the hope God will not forsake us so that we can tell that clerk about Jesus?  Do we waddle to our car as we head off to the doctor’s appointment with the hope a door of utterance is opened?  This is my heart.  Yes, I do want to enjoy the twilight years of my life.  I have the best mate God could ever bless a man with.  She is one in a gazillion.  There is no one like her.  She is my love, my best friend, my help, and my princess.  The LORD has given me six wonderful grandchildren.  I have the best family God could ever give a man and I don’t deserve any of it.  I look forward to growing older and enjoying those blessings of life.  However, the reason I ask for the LORD to forsake me not is so that three times a week I can go out into our community and hand someone a tract.  The reason I hope for strength and power tomorrow is for the opportunity to talk to someone at the checkout, smile at someone having a hard day, or reach out to someone with no hope and use my life as a testimony to God’s love.  This was David’s prayer and this will be mine.