Daily Devotional For Monday, May 19, 2025

Good morning Southside! Its’ Monday all day. Praying for you as you head back to work or school or are able to rest if you are retired. Have you noticed we live in an age and culture that glorifies youth. It is as if you are young, in your teens, 20s and early 30s you represent the best, brightest and the most beautiful. I have not really given much thought to this until recently as I watch commercials. For people in my age category, it seems the commercials are more pharmaceutical – pushing meds for every ailment in the world from Crohns’, Psoriasis, to ED to heart meds and the list goes on and on. It really seems that in our culture today, if you are 40 and over, you are really considered being “over the hill.” 

Did you know that the phrase “being over the hill” originated in England in the early 1900s. It was considered that from birth you are to see your life like climbing a hill from the bottom to the top, and the top in this case is middle age, once you get there then you start descending on the over side of that hill. Climbing the hill from birth to middle age represents ascending at your best and descending that hill from middle age on,  represents descending in health, wisdom, usability etc. When we come to Scripture, it is just the opposite. Praise the Lord for this.

Ecclesiastes 9:4-5 says this, “There is hope for those who are still alive—it does not matter who they are. But this saying is true: ‘A living dog is better than a dead lion.’ (5) The living know that they will die, but the dead don’t know anything. They have no more reward. People will soon forget them” (ESY). If you notice, God says that it does not matter how old you are, He can and will use you to make a difference. Consider what God says about how we are to treat those who are “over-the-hill” in these Scriptures:

• Leviticus 19:32, “Show honor to old people. Stand up when they come into the room. And show respect to your leaders. I am the Lord” (ESY). When I was a child and teen, this was taught to me and expected by my parents.
• 1 Timothy 5:1, “Don’t reprimand a senior member of your church, appeal to him as a father. Treat the young men as brothers, and the older women as mothers. Treat the younger women as sisters, and no more” (JBP).
• 1 Peter 5:5, “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’” (ESV). Notice this last part comes from God in the context of respecting our elders” (ESV).
• Proverbs 16:31, “Gray hair is a crown of glory; it is gained in a righteous life” (ESV).
• Proverbs 19:20, “Listen to advice and receive discipline from the elderly, that you may become wise by the end of your life” (PAR).

I guess you get the picture. I will say that through the years, watching and ministering to families it seems that when you are young and have a family it is very stressful: mortgages, care payments, childcare expenses, constantly buying clothes for growing children, and etc. The stress is huge. Then as our children get older and can take care of themselves, our stress diminishes some. When we become empty nesters then we get our own schedules back, come and go as we wish and some even have the attitude of coasting. 

The truth is: the older godly person does have more wisdom. They have been around the block more times and have learned that stubborn foolishness only brings more sorrow and pain. God loves to use older people in the Bible, especially since most men were dead by 30 anyway. God called Abraham at the age of 75 to be a father and to establish a covenant with God to be the future nation of Israel. You know the story. Abraham was 100 and Sarah his wife was 90. When I think of this story, I do see some humor. Isaac their son is in diapers and Abraham and Sarah are in depends. HA. 

God called Moses when he was 80 years old to go back to Egypt to free the Hebrews in bondage to Pharaoh. These two old men were not out every day on the golf course taking it easy or relaxing in the sun at the beach, they were being used by God to do some great and unbelievable things. When it was time to conquer The Promised Land, Caleb was ready and willing. Look at what he said to Moses in Joshua 24:10-12:

“Now the Lord has kept me alive for 45 more years—as he said he would. During that time we all wandered in the desert. Now, here I am, 85 years old. (11) I am still as strong today as I was the day Moses sent me out. I am as ready to fight as I was then. (2 ) So give me the hill country that the Lord promised me that day long ago. At that time you heard that the strong Anakites lived there and the cities were very big and well protected. But now, maybe the Lord will be with me, and I will take that land just as the Lord said” (ESY).

When was the last time you saw an 85 year-old in the military willing and ready to fight. This tells me that as one of those who is “over the hill,” my life as an 18-year-old is not what I envisioned me doing today. Oh, I did have dreams and I did pursue them, but God had other plans and He does for you also. At this stage of life, I have come to the conclusion, after having multiple strokes, having a pacemaker installed, that God is less concerned about my productivity and more concerned about the posture of my heart. If you are in that age where someone younger might say you are "over the hill," don't think that way. Think you are still climbing that hill. To me age is not a birthday, it's an attitude. Be a Joshua and keep climbing all those hills for the glory of God and for future generations.

This allows me freedom and grace to age well, knowing that I am fulfilling my purpose for God as long as I bring God glory and honor. And well, that may and will look different in different seasons of life. I pray that as the years tick by, I grow in spiritual maturity and biblical wisdom and that my life always looks more like Christ today than it did yesterday. I like how the Apostle Paul puts in Philippians 3:10-12:

“All I want is to know Christ and the power that raised Him from death. I want to share in His sufferings and be like Him even in His death. (11) Then there is hope that I myself will somehow be raised from death. (12) I don’t mean that I am exactly what God wants me to be. I have not yet reached that goal. But I continue trying to reach it and make it mine. That’s what Christ Jesus wants me to do. It is the reason He made me His” (ESY).

To die like Christ and to suffer in His same sufferings means we are striving to crucify our old self to become more of the new self God wants. Jesus was obedient, even to death on the cross. See Philippians 2:8. 

Assignment: Take some time to reflect on where your heart is for God today, especially if you  are “over-the-hill.” Is the posture of your heart more obedient today, crucifying your own nature more so that God can use you in this season of life? Or, is your heart more stubborn, wanting to do more things for you than for the Lord Jesus Christ. What conquers the fear of aging – faith in Jesus Christ. Yeah, you might have some more aches and pains now than in youth, but let God use you. The younger ones need your godly wisdom and experience. So, find someone in your church who is much younger than you and mentor them for Jesus Christ. Pour your life into them and invest in them for the glory of Jesus Christ.  Even if there is more “snow on the roof than fire in the furnace,” go for it. Take a chance with God and He will bless you.

Scripture To Meditate On: Psalm 71:18, “Now that I am old and gray, do not abandon me, O God. Let me proclaim Your power to this new generation, Your mighty miracles to all who come after me” (NLT).

Prayer To Pray: “Dear Lord, use me please. Use me to mentor someone who is younger in Your ways so that they can fulfill Your purpose for their life. God, bring someone into my life to do this with and for – all for your glory. Help me to mentor a younger person so that they can learn from You and learn from my mistakes and disobedience so that they finish well for you by moving faster to crucify their old nature. This way they will mirror the character of Christ more in their own life. I love You Lord. In Jesus’ name, Amen!”

I love you Southside! – Pastor Kelly