An Everyday Promise

Life! What’s age got to do with it? Some people say, “Nothing.” Others say, “Everything.”

I tend to hang around the first group. Why? Because they’re the people who still want to engage with life---reading, thinking, questioning, being friendly, active, and outgoing.

In my mid-fifties, I was invited to head up a ministry for seniors aged sixty and up. At first, I felt very inadequate, but I found them to be very supportive

We enjoyed Sunday Bible class together, a once-a-month potluck with special entertainment, and outings now and then.   

These seniors were wonderful mentors. The majority were glad to have a group for their age, and new friendships were formed. But it wasn’t hard to understand those who said, “People aren’t friendly.” They were the ones who rarely came to the potlucks, and their response to Bible class was to come late and leave early.

The Bible is so true when it says if you want friends, you must show yourself friendly (Proverbs 18:24). Following that advice, I have made a very good friend this past year just by inviting her to lunch after weeks of noticing her sitting alone in church while I sat alone, too.

Perhaps I value friendship now because for 4 ½ years personal contacts were diminished. As a caregiver for my father, then my husband, I was rarely able to leave home, but the telephone was a refreshing option.

As life continues, I’ve been surprised at the number of friends who have called me because they are now caregivers. One of the ways I encourage them is to share some verses that kept me going.  

Every morning when I first awakened, I would say, “Thank you, Lord, for this new day and your new mercies. I’m counting on them” (Lamentations 3:22-25 (NIV). Take time to read it for yourself.

Those verses are still my everyday promise. That’s why I say, “Life! What’s age got to do with it?” 

Yes, I’m older, but I’m still me, and with God’s help I intend to keep on truckin’!