Commentary: The secret to growing old gracefully

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Perhaps you have heard some of these. You know you’re getting old when:

  • You sit down in a rocking chair but can’t get it started.
  • Everything hurts…what doesn’t hurt doesn’t work.
  • You sink your teeth into a juicy steak and they stay there.
  • You bend down to tie your shoes and ask, “Is there anything else I can do while I’m down here?”
  • That sweet little gray-headed lady you helped across the street is your wife.

When the Riviera Hotel in Las Vegas tried to sign the renowned comedian George Burns to a 10-year contract at the age of 96, he chose a five year deal instead explaining, “You may not be around that long. We’ll sign a five-year contract and negotiate in five years.” Most of us won’t make it to 96 (Burns actually made it to 100), yet we can certainly determine to squeeze the most out of our years that remain. 

The apostle Paul penned, “Though our outer man is decaying, yet our inner man is being renewed day by day” (1 Corinthians 4:16). As you mull over this verse, consider the following:

You may hide the wrinkles but you can’t stop them. Despite a setback during COVID-19, the global cosmetic market continues to grow. It is expected to reach $132 billion by 2029.

Based on 362 recent reviews on RealSelf, facelifts range from $5,600 to $40,000, with the average being $16,800. Based on some of the results I’ve seen, is it really worth the money, or the risk?

Of course, we should care for our physical health through proper diet, adequate rest, and regular exercise. Attention to our skin with creams, moisturizers, sunscreen, dermatology visits, etc. is certainly wise as long as you:

Pamper the part of you that will live forever. Winston Churchill said old age could conquer his body, but not his spirit. The years, he said, could wrinkle his skin, but not his soul. This is what Paul called the inner man, the immortal part. Your body may be decaying, yet, ideally, your wisdom is increasing and your faith expanding. Hopefully, as Eliphaz promised his friend, “You will come to the grave in full vigor, like the stacking of grain in its season” (Job 5:26).

Obviously, the most important step in soul care is a personal relationship with Jesus Christ. Once assured of that critical connection, make sure that prayer, Scripture reading, and fellowship with other believers are part of your spiritual routine as well. As a believer, the Holy Spirit lives in you to provide assistance along the journey.

At 80, John Quincy Adams was asked by an old friend as he shook the trembling hand of the sixth president, “Good morning, and how is John Quincy Adams today?” The former chief executive responded, “John Quincy Adams himself is quite well, sir, quite well, but…the house in which he lives at present is becoming dilapidated. It is tottering upon its foundations. Time and the seasons have almost destroyed it. Its roof is pretty well worn out. Its walls are much shattered, and it crumbles with every wind. The old tenement is becoming almost uninhabitable, and I think John Quincy Adams will have to move out of it soon; but he himself is well, sir, quite well.”

No doubt, President Adams had a handle on these additional words from Paul, “Set your minds on things above, not on the things that are on the earth” (Colossians 3:2). Growing old gracefully means keeping a proper perspective on life. Our time on earth is only a blip on the radar screen of eternity.

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Rev. Gaddis has been a pastor for over 34 years, 25 of those in Georgia. He lives in Athens and can be reached at jtoddgaddis@gmail.com.