(Proverbs 20:29)
While sitting at home one night, my oldest son yelled at me to come & play a video game with him, this usually means that he has been practicing & wants to humiliate me with his mad gaming skills…but I went anyway. He brought out the video game “Wii Sports”, now I don’t know about you but this “Wii” deal takes way too much energy, I mean, if I’m going to play a video game I want the character to do all the work.
We started off bowling, which he killed me in, then we moved on to boxing where I had him for a few rounds, but then all I remember is hearing the 10 count as I got a close look at the quality of the canvas.
After he refused to play golf, seeing that he would take a beating there, he moved onto the fitness test part of the game. The fitness test takes you through several different activities, like batting, bowling, tennis & boxing, all done back to back as fast as you can. At the end of the test, it rates you on your fitness level, by showing what age you should be. Let’s say you did well, then your age would be younger, the worse you did the older you would be. Have I mentioned that I scored at age 72?
After a game like that & the gray hairs that keep popping up in my beard, the verse above really hits home, but the meaning here is not a bad one. As I’m now about Mid-way between puberty & retirement, I can see the benefit of both youth & old age.
How many times have you heard an older person say something like this, “Those young people sure do have a lot of energy, I’d love to have just half that much”. Young people have a lot to offer, their strength & vitality will be what keeps the older generation going. From their material production, to their service to our country, young people & their energy have a great value. But on the other hand so do the older people, the wisdom that they have gained over the years & their sacrifices through out their lives, whether work or military related have allowed a place where the youth can be free to spend their energy. This can be seen clearly at our church. The youth have stepped up & began to see what it truly means to walk with God & honor Him. They come together & worship on Sunday mornings, Wednesdays & now thanks to some of the youth, they have started a service on Friday or Saturday nights called “The Garage”. There are a large number of them who are really standing out for Christ & displaying that in church, whether they are singing in the choir or leading in the standing to honor God’s Word when it is read during service. The main point is that they are living out 1 Timothy 4:12 & that is a thing to be respected & honored. There is also another side to that. They are able to have a place to worship, because of the sacrifice & hard work of the ones that came before them, those who started out in that church when it was held in a tent. Though they are now gray headed, some have even gone on to be with the Lord, they once were young. They followed God, sacrificed & labored to provide a place of worship for those who would come after them. They are full of knowledge & most importantly godly wisdom, wisdom that needs to be shared.
In both sides, young & old, there are great benefits. So neither should be envied or looked down upon, for one without the other, would be total ruin.
In this getting older thing, I’ve learned that though I may not do so well in the realm of Wii fitness & my son may overshadow me there…he still has to go to bed at 9:00 & I can stay up as late as I want… MUAHAHAHAH… MUAHAHAHAH! This aging thing isn’t that bad.
Vern
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