The Senior Saints Center

Is there really a bright side to growing older? A youth-oriented culture like ours makes old age sound as uninviting as a heavy coat on a hot summer's day. Stereotypes abound—as if seniors do nothing but complain about their aches and pains and gripe about the younger generation.

How do you view aging? If you had to assign a grade to each stage of life, would you give the later years an "F" for feebleness, frailty, and frustration? Even if you can sing like Sinatra or play baseball like Mantle, eventually the Grim Reaper will claim victory. Without God in the picture, aging seems like a gloomy descent into despair.

But God is in the picture, and faith makes all the difference.

What if you could tour a different kind of senior center? This cheerful-looking place isn't gloomy or dark; it's decorated better than any home you've ever seen. As you walk past the white, bright-looking gates, brilliant light glitters from the gold pavement under your feet. There's so much to see in this clean, safe place—a river, a fruit-laden tree, and many happy-looking people.

Your tour guide points to two men. "That's Enoch. Remember him? He walked with God for years. He's talking to Noah and listening to him reminisce about building the ark."

"Who's that couple over there?" you ask. "Sounds like they're talking about childbirth, of all things!"

The guide chuckles. "Oh, that's Abraham and Sarah. You don't hear many 90-year-olds talking about their experiences in the maternity ward, that's for sure! But when they were old, God made them the parents of a great nation. See the fellows standing near them?" (You nod.) "That's their son Isaac, and their grandson Jacob. When Jacob was old, he worshiped God as he leaned on the top of his staff and blessed his sons and grandsons."

Others are moving around the room. "Who are they?" you ask.

"Well," the guide continues, "there's Joseph, Moses, David, and Samuel. We call this the Hebrews 11 Room." These faithful folks served God well in their later years—Moses' most productive years were the last two-thirds of his life."

Gesturing to your right, you ask, "Then who are those people down the hall?"

"Oh, those are some residents of the New Covenant Wing—Simeon and Anna, Zechariah and Elizabeth, and the apostle John."

Curious, you move close enough to overhear a man enthusiastically addressing the group ". . . So it was hard for me to decide. Like I told the Philippians, 'To me, to live is Christ and to die is gain.' I wanted to depart and be with Christ, but I knew that as long as I lived on earth, God had fruitful labor for me to do. That's why I urged the older men and women to teach the younger folks and set a good example in the churches."

"Is that the apostle Paul?" you ask. But the tour is almost over, and the guide hurries you along.

"Before leaving," the guide instructs, "take a look at this plaque on the wall. It's a favorite motto around here."

Beautifully carved in Hebrew-style letters, the plaque reads: "The righteous will flourish like a palm tree, they will grow like a cedar of Lebanon; planted in the house of the Lord, they will flourish in the courts of our God. They will still bear fruit in old age, they will stay fresh and green" (Psalm 92:12-14).

"So," your guide asks as you leave, "what grade would you give our senior saints center?"

You pause a moment before you reply: "I'd give it an 'F'—for faithfulness, fruitfulness, and freedom."

And you think to yourself, "Maybe growing older isn't so bad after all."