Celebrate The Gray!

As I grow older, it seems that my body reminds me that I am aging with aches and pains not previously experienced in my younger years. Sometimes, these physical reminders can send me to a place in my thinking where I am feeling my life is coming to an end. Moreover, I feel my ability to serve the Lord is waning because of my age. In Isaiah 46, God speaks to the Israelites regarding false gods and their inability to supply what Yahweh has provided for them. I was drawn to verses 3-4, "Listen to me, you descendants of Jacob, all the remnant of the people of Israel, you whom I have upheld since your birth, and have carried since you were born. Even to your old age and gray hairs I am He, I am He who will sustain you. I have made you and I will carry you; I will sustain you and I will rescue you." (NIV) 

GOD IS OUR SUSTAINER

These verses resonated with me as I recognize the Lord calling me to listen to Him as He has been with me from the very beginning, even before I came into this world. ("I have upheld you since your birth and have carried you since you were born") Once I was conceived, God was immediately there and intimately involved. God has also promised that He will remain with me throughout my life. ("Even to your old age and gray hairs, I am He, I am He who will sustain you.") Since the Lord has carried me into this world, the Great I Am will keep me here as long as He desires and give me what I need to keep going. Furthermore, regardless of my physical limitations, God is ultimately my strength. ("I have made you and I will carry you; I will sustain you and I will rescue you.") Since I am God's creation, He will not abandon me but will deliver me. I don't have to worry about how my physical body is aging. I can and will walk through the days of my life depending solely upon God to walk with me, in life and in death. The Psalmist declares, "Even though I walk through the darkest valley; I will fear no evil, for you are with me; Your rod and your staff, they comfort me." (Psalm 23:4 NIV) 

A CROWN OF SPLENDOR

Despite my angst, the Lord celebrates my aging, "Gray hair is a crown of splendor; it is attained in the way of righteousness." (Proverbs 16:31 NIV) My prayer as I move through the seasons of my life is echoed by the Psalmist, "Even when I am old and gray, do not forsake me, my God, till I declare your power to the next generation, Your mighty acts to all who are to come." (Psalm 71:18 NIV) italics mine.
To God be the glory,
Pastor Sheree