I want to think a little about our aging Fellowship and in particular, aging saints. First let's me clarify what I mean when I talk about aging saints. This has only a little to do with a number. It is a little about how old they are in age, and it has a little to do with how long ago they were saved.
Physical aging has challenges every one of us will have to deal with no matter if we think we are immune or not. There are many physical and emotional and mental issues that are the unique portion of older people in general. Being born again does not exempt you from growing old. Also, being older does not mean you are wheelchair bound or bedridden. It simply means that your mind thinks you still can but your body will quickly remind you that you cannot. This can play havoc on an older persons mind, especially in our Fellowship churches.
Being old spiritually is another story. In a church where the emphasis is on the young you can begin to feel left out or ignored or irrelevant and dismissed. Middle aged men still think that their pastor will send them out to pioneer. Older men only dream of what they did or wish they had done. Being old in the Lord means too often that you have done everything and tried everything and there seems to be nothing left for you that satisfies. It also means that you know better and so when someone says something that is outrageous you can smile and nod and wait for point 3.
The church world at large thinks that the secret is getting older saints energized and active and to tap into their wisdom and experience. Except no one cares what the older has-been generation knows or thinks. No one seems to know what to do with the aging saints in our churches.
I am one of the aging saints. I do not know what the answer is either. I can tell you what doesn't work. I am enduring until the end. Hopefully one day soon someone will have a jolt of inspiration and we will be lifted into a destiny suited to our abilities.
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