Seniors
They deserve honor and respect.
" ... a good old age, having enjoyed long life, wealth and honor" (1 Chronicles 29:28).
They are eyewitnesses of God's power.
"Even when I am old and gray, do not forsake me, 0 God, till I have declared your power to the next generation, your might to all who are to come" (Psalm 71:18).
Seniors are a source of wisdom.
"Is not wisdom found among the aged. Does not long life bring understanding?" (Job 12:12).
God often uses seniors for special assignments.
"Moses was 80 years old, and Aaron 83 years old when they spoke unto Pharaoh" (Exodus 7:7).
Seniors are prayer warriors.
“The widow who is really in need and left all alone puts her hope in God and continues night and day to pray and to ask God for help" (1 Tim. 5:5).
Seniors tell of God's faithfulness.
"I was young, and now 1 am old; yet 1 have not seen the righteous forsaken or their children begging bread" (psalm 37:25).
Seniors are examples of right living.
"Teach the older men to be temperate, worthy of respect, self-controlled and sound in faith, in love and in endurance. Likewise, teach the older women to be reverent in the way they live, not to be slanderers or addicted to much wine, but to teach "what is good" (TItuS 2:2-3).
Proverbs 20:29 says, "The glory of young men is their strength, gray hair the splendor of the old."
Those who reached great ages and had gray hair were highly respected members of the community. And many of them accomplished great things for God at an advanced age.
1. Moses was 80 years old when he went with his brother, Aaron, to confront Pharaoh and lead the Israelites out of Egypt.
2. The prophet Isaiah was 60 years old or older when he wrote the book of Isaiah during his ministry to Israel. It was during this time that Israel was taken into exile.
3. The prophet Daniel was in his late 60s when King Darius threw him in the lion's den for worshiping God. As a result, the king acknowledged God's power, even if he did not come to believe in God as the one true God.
4. Samuel was the prophet who chose Saul as the Israelites' first king. But Samuel was nearly 80 when he arrived in Bethlehem and anointed David son of Jesse as the future king of Israel. However, Samuel didn't tell the family what the anointing was for because he feared for all of their lives.
5. The Apostle John, who followed Jesus, accomplished many things. But he was in his late 80s or early 90s when he was exiled to the island of Patmos. While there, he received his vision of the Apocalypse and the New Jerusalem from the Lord and recorded them in the book of Revelation.
6. Abraham and Sarah are one of the most famous older couples of the Bible. Abraham was 100 and Sarah was 90 years old when they had their son Isaac. The baby had been promised to them by the Lord the previous year (Genesis 17),
Noah was more than 500 years old when the Lord spoke to him and commanded that he build the ark; he was 500 when his three sons were born (Genesis 5:32). According to Genesis 7:6, Noah was 600 when the Lord sent the flood.
There you have it seniors who accomplished great things after they were labeled over the hill. Now you know how God views seniors.
Pastor Paul Leavens