Wonderful sisters in Christ of a certain age need to be confident in the goodness, power, and faithfulness of our God. More and more, it seems we’re allowing this confidence to slip further away from our grasp. Oh, we hide it well. Most of us are used to hearing and saying, “God is good all the time, and all the time God is good!” This truism is woven in our culture as a very common saying or colloquialism, and it has been for years. We say it as a matter of not only confirming our knowledge of the Lord, but also our familiarity with the struggle and affirming what He’s done, and continues to do, to help us all through it. As with many things, when something becomes a part of culture, there’s a risk that it’ll lose its’ impact; so much so that for many of us the overwhelming revelation of God’s goodness, power, and faithfulness slips by our consciousness. We don’t fully grasp the reality that healing and restoration are a huge part of His goodness, and it should be visibly apparent in our lives. We don’t believe we can move in such a way that a youthful spirit is maintained, and enduring hope and faith are our trademarks.
History has provided a visual image of many of our veterans in the Word, as well as elder members of our families and other communities. Many of them did not increase in faith in their senior years, but rather they acquiesced to many of the challenges that are associated with aging. We see this in the senior community today. A lack of hopefulness permeates, and as this hopelessness sinks in a person’s heart, it brings everything else down with it—health, agility, expectations, and the ability to respond to what God wants to do in, with, by and through us. Our failure to trust and believe what God can and will do in a body that is no longer 30 robs us of the incredible, limitless joy of witnessing His delivering and invigorating power. Some of us can’t even imagine a life baptized with this kind of joy, because we’re operating from the well of sameness and sadness that we’ve seen so many generations succumb to.
The notion that we can be something different and do things differently than those before us is for some unimaginable. This isn’t at all suggesting that aging doesn’t come with its own set of challenges. We know that it does, but to the extent that we’re trading in the fulfillment of our destinies simply because we have refused to up the volume of our faith is inexcusable. In Ephesians 4:23-24(NKJV), God tells us, “23 and be renewed in the spirit of your mind, 24 and that you put on the new man which was created according to God, in true righteousness and holiness.” This is not a suggestion. It is God’s command, and He would not tell us to do something we’re incapable of doing.
To renew is to make new again. It is not a surface reality, but a deep transformation that begins in the mind, trickles down into the heart, then begins to change attitudes, behaviors, and actions. This is true renewal. We can’t renew and remain the same. Doesn’t work that way.
There are many single senior sisters who question whether God will bless them in certain ways. Some want to cross paths with a wonderful man, others want increased health and wellness, some want to travel and try new things. As we age these desires will require us to spiritually mature and begin to operate in the realm of believing where these blessings exist. Many seniors are not willing to extend the flexibility of their faith muscles to do this. They want to remain on the same platform of believing they’ve been on the last 20 years. The spiritual lesson for both young and old alike is that we are on this planet to grow in Christ so we can do the things God has destined us to do. Our destiny in Christ is to carry forth God’s purpose. This is what keeps us thriving, but sadly, some of us have been around a long time and still haven’t pressed-in to figure out what God requires of us.
Our years on this planet do not equate to spiritual maturity. It is access to the heart, mind, and Will of God through Christ that constantly builds us up. The Apostle Paul said it like this in Ephesians 3:16-19(NKJV), “that He would grant you, according to the riches of His glory, to be strengthened with might through His Spirit in the inner man, that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith; that you, being rooted and grounded in love may be able to comprehend with all the saints what is the width and length and depth and height— to know the love of Christ which passes knowledge; that you may be filled with all the fullness of God.”
‘ALL the fullness of God’ is as powerful, fulfilling, and life-affirming as it sounds. God’s Will is that we comprehend this, but in order to comprehend it, our roots must grow down into Christ, and we must be grounded in His love. This is what elevates us higher. Being spiritually mature and having an unshakable faith, this is what moves us from glory to glory, where we are able to maintain all the stamina of a youthful spirit. It’s from this place that we are able to not only reach the higher realm of blessings but to hang out in that realm. It is there that Ephesians 3:20 will come alive, because we’ll trust God to do exceedingly abundantly above all we ask or think, according to the power that is at work in our own lives.■
Scripture quotations marked (NLT) are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Wheaton, Illinois 60189. All rights reserved.
“A Youthful Spirit and Mature Spirituality”, written by Reverend Fran Mack, edited by Kim Times for Sundie Morning Sistas ©2020. All rights reserved. All done to the glory of God through Jesus Christ, our Lord! SMS is dedicated to inspiring and encouraging Christian Women through the Word of God.