I'm Here, Now What?

One thing I've noticed about life - it changes. The days seem to go by slowly, but then all of the sudden you turn around and the years have flown by and you didn't even realize it was happening. Your kids are all grown, your husband has retired, you have GRANDCHILDREN, and you begin to wonder what's supposed to be next. As I have been pondering the next phase of life and all that God would have me do in the years to come, I've been surprised at the lack of women my age doing podcasts, videos, or blogs to encourage other women in our age group to keep running the race and to finish strong. This new stage of life promises to be exciting and just as filled with opportunities to serve God and impact the next generation as our childbearing and child-raising years were. Thus my decision to start a blog, and perhaps even a vlog and a podcast depending on how God leads.

Years ago I think it was Oprah who popularized the phrase 40 is the new 30. Of course, then it became 50 is the new 40 about ten years later. I also once heard someone say that 40 is the old age of youth and 50 is the youth of old age. It seems that the older we become the more we want to continue to seem young both to ourselves and to the younger generation. The Bible, however, has a totally different take on aging. Here are just a few verses about how we should view people who are older:

“You shall stand up before the gray head and honor the face of an old man, and you shall fear your God: I am the Lord." Leviticus 19:32

"Likewise, you who are younger, be subject to the elders. Clothe yourselves, all of you, with humility toward one another, for “God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble.” 1 Peter 5:5

"Gray hair is a crown of glory; it is gained in a righteous life." Proverbs 16:31

"Older women likewise are to be reverent in behavior, not slanderers or slaves to much wine. They are to teach what is good, and so train the young women to love their husbands and children." Titus 2:3-4

I have to admit that my favorite verse is that last one from Titus. It shows that our lives are not over after our children are grown; and neither is our usefulness in God's Kingdom and the Church of Jesus Christ. We have much wisdom and experience to share with the younger generation. We can continue to have many opportunities to serve - probably even more because we no longer have children at home who need our constant attention. The world is our oyster, the sky is the limit - our tech savvy and our internet usage plan not withstanding - we have much to give and God willing many more years of service ahead. I don't want to be that woman who sits around and mourns her empty nest. I want to busy myself with service to my King. I'm excited about the prospect of sharing the things I've learned over the years with younger women. I'm looking forward to the types of service opportunities these next years hold. I hope that my journey will encourage other women my age as we seek to live for Jesus in a new kind of world without homework, ballgames, cheer and band practice - a world where people need Jesus and we finally have the time to focus on sharing Him with them.

God bless and I hope you enjoy the blog!

Brenda