Aging is a gracious gift given by God to cause us to ask about and work on the real issues of life. The Bible presents three main themes on aging. Achieving old age is a Divine Tribute. People in the last half of life are to be honored and respected. Growing older brings about Definite Testing along with blessing. Adults in the last third of their lives can glorify God uniquely. New understandings and spiritual depth can be developed. The process of aging well can be a Distinctive Triumph. How we see the issue of ministry with older adults depends largely on our vision of the old. In a culture striving to remain youthful and avoid any evidence of growing old, we would do well to allow our values about aging to be shaped by the age-related themes found in Scripture.
