I dedicate this devotional to my late friend and mentor, Loverna, who lived her life according to Biblical wisdom about the age-old problem, known as aging. In 2021, the global anti-aging market was valued at 62 billion U.S. dollars. The average American spends $15,000 in their lifetime. Together lets change this aging mindset.
Eternity Matters With Norma
Day 1
Scripture: Job 12:12
LEARN TO BE CONTENT NO MATTER YOUR AGE
“Wisdom is with the aged, and understanding in length of days” Job 12:12
I heard an adage that almost everyone gets to be young, but not everyone gets to experience being old! When I heard it, I immediately grabbed my laptop and archived it into a file. Because I am well into my seventh decade of life, I felt a nudge to write about this age-old problem. We live in a world that surrounds us daily with a deluge of ads and photos that have preyed on the minds of countless teens and adults.
When I was in my forties, a cousin told me I had beautiful skin. My skin and my eyes in those days were my most outstanding features. I will always remember how her comment made me feel but I also remember a comment I received when wrinkles began to appear, and it made me want to preserve my age. Like other women, and likely men as well, I was among those purchasing products such as cremes, hydrating acids, exfoliants, facial massagers, and masks; all to no avail.
I happened to mention to my mentor, Loverna, how aging was bothering me. A few weeks later, I received a precious letter from her. Loverna had seemingly aged overnight at a very young age, with the entire package of grey hair and deep facial wrinkles. She told me at first it bothered her, which would be the normal human reaction.
Loverna was a Pastor’s wife. She was filled with wisdom and had a smile and laughter that permeated her. Wherever she went a glow of peace and joy followed her. Loverna didn’t write the adage above, but she lived it.
I saw a Job-like quality in my friend who had endured many hardships throughout the years I had known her. She didn’t depend on outer beauty to be her Savior. When friends of Job were anything but supportive, Job knew who he was in God, and that is the same way my dear friend lived life!
PRACTICE: Every day tell yourself you are made in the image of God!
PRAYER: Father, help us to know who we are in You. Lord. You created life with aging in mind, or we would all be forever young. Help us to realize that our beauty is generated from the heart, not our faces. In Jesus’ Name. Amen
Day 2
Scriptures: Psalms 139:14, Genesis 17:17-19, Genesis 21:6, Proverbs 15:13, John 16:24
LIFE IS A GIFT FROM GOD!
My friend didn’t have one ounce of self-centeredness and lived life with grace and beauty that flowed constantly from within. She accepted her wrinkles as a witness to her lifetime of laughter!
She told me she learned to be content and thankful at every age, for life itself is a gift of God.
“I will give thanks and praise to You, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made; wonderful are Your works, And my soul knows it very well.” Psalm 139:14
When I think of how her wrinkles represented her lifetime of laughter, I can’t help but think of Abraham and Sarah. God had promised the couple a son in which the covenant would be established to his descendants after them. Take note that Abraham and Sarah were aged (he was a hundred and she was ninety). When God spoke to Abraham, Abraham fell to his face and laughed. It was then that God told Abraham to name their son Isaac which means ‘he laughs!’ Laughter has everything to do with how well a person ages because laughter spreads joy, is contagious, and makes a cheerful countenance!
In Genesis 21:6, Sarah said, “God has made laughter for me; everyone who hears will laugh over me.”
My friend had the key to aging gracefully! It came from deep within her spirit, not from a purchased product. Her laughter and joyful spirit made people want to be in her presence, which made the wrinkles seem unimportant.
PRACTICE: Begin being positive and look for things to make you laugh. Practice laughing and before long, it will become a part of your spirit!
PRAYER: Lord, You have spoken in Your word that our joy may be full. You desire that we be happy people, for You know the effect it has on us. We are told in Nehemiah 8:10 that Your joy is our strength! Lord, help us to be a people who spread joy and laughter, something that cannot be purchased! In Jesus’ Name. Amen
Day 3
Scriptures: Leviticus 19:12, Job 12:12, Psalms 51:10
AGE BRINGS HONOR!
The chapter of Leviticus 19 was a call to the children of Israel to be holy people who were set apart. The following verse is an instruction that is a key to aging gracefully.
“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
How we treat others is a mirror reflection of who we are. I recently saw a video of a criminal in Queens NYC that robbed an elderly woman who was going to her synagogue. He violently pushed her backward down the steps onto the sidewalk, robbed her, took her keys, and then stole her vehicle, leaving her in critical condition. Acts of evil erase all exterior beauty. There are no products that can remedy such ugliness. The only cleanser is a repentant heart.
Have you ever viewed someone as attractive and after being with them for a while, their appearance waned as you noticed them talking down to others? You saw their ego diminish their beauty.
God calls us to fear Him with a reverential fear and to honor those who age. Wisdom comes with a lifetime of experience and age according to Job 12:12.
One’s beauty does not come from our outer skin but from what comes out of the heart.
“Create in me a clean heart, O God; and renew a right spirit within me.” (Psalm 51:10) If we clean up what is inside, that beauty will reflect to the outside!!
PRACTICE: If you tend to have ugly reactions to others, you might want to look deeper into the mirror and seek God for lasting beauty.
PRAYER: Lord, may we realize that our outer beauty perishes, but what is stored in our hearts is what is lasting. May we run to You faster Lord, than we search for products. In Jesus’ Name. Amen
Day 4
Scriptures: Proverbs 16:31, Job 12:12
WEAR THAT CROWN OF BEAUTY
“Gray hair is a crown of glory; it is gained in a righteous life.” Proverbs 16:31
Just because we gray and add character to our faces doesn’t mean we can’t thrive as we age! Once we accept age as a crown well earned, filled with a lifetime of experiences, we can throw off that concept that we have lost our purpose because we see outer changes in our bodies.
Do you realize how many people who are 60 and above, are still contributing greatly to society? Gramma Moses never began painting until she was 76 years old. Her paintings hung in museums all over the world before her death. How about Kentucky Fried Chicken founder, Colonel Sanders? He was 62 when he branded the successful restaurant. At age 65, Laura Ingalls Wilder began writing ‘Little House on the Prairie.’ Noah Webster famous for the Webster Dictionary didn’t publish it until he was 70! Famous singer Tony Bennett who also began painting (later in life) performed on stage into his 90’s! Sixteen of the Presidents of the United States were 60 or older when they started their presidency. Age has nothing to do with success but has a lot to say about the beauty of aging. The longer we live, the more hands-on experience we have at living! That can’t be purchased over the counter.
The beauty of the crown is to keep your purpose. Too many people retire just because they turn a ‘magical age.’ Retirement is awesome, as long as it doesn’t rob you of your identity. Society sometimes makes older people feel like they have too old of ideas and nothing more to offer when the scriptures tell us the opposite of that mentality. “Wisdom belongs to the aged, and understanding to the old.” Job 12:12
PRACTICE: Practice telling yourself that you aren’t aging, you are gaining wisdom. Stop allowing your eyes to dictate your beauty.
PRAYER: Father, Thank You for the insights of aging; for time and experience build our wisdom. Help us Lord, to see beauty as the priceless gift that it is! In Jesus’ Name. Amen.
Day 5
Scriptures: Proverbs 17:6, 1 Samuel 16:7
THE GLORY BEHIND THE CROWN OF AGING
I realize that not everyone who ages will relate to this day’s devotional, yet I hope to paint the picture clearly through words.
“Grandchildren are the crown of the aged, and the glory of children is their fathers.” Proverbs 17:6
I was 49.5 years old when my first grandchild was born and 3 years later I became a grandmother for the second time. Twenty-four years later, my first grandchild married, giving me another grandchild through marriage. When I was 77 years old my grandson and his wife made me a great-grandmother for the first time.
There are no words to express the inner feelings of being a grandparent. Being a grandparent is watching your legacy birth in front of you.
When I think of my legacy and generations before me, I understand what I learned from my parents and from my grandparents who were gone before I was born. My earthly daddy was good about sharing with his children the lessons his father taught him: morals, values, hard work, who we are, and why our last names were so important.
No, not everyone has grandchildren, but everyone has had a parent and grandparent. There is beauty in a legacy when the legacy is one that has honored God. If you come from a family that did not; it isn’t too late for you to start your legacy and make a difference in the lives of others.
I have a dear friend who passed away 4 years ago at age 87. This gentleman never married and never had children. He lived his life with a disabled arm but never allowed it to disable him. His beauty was his character and although he didn’t have children, and never became a grandparent, he left a lasting legacy to every human he met. He gave of himself, his time, and finances all his life to better the community in which he lived. Beauty is far more than our hair, skin, and body shape; our beauty comes from the heart!
PRACTICE: Learn to accept that beauty comes from within!
PRAYER: Thank You, God, that You look at our heart to judge who we are! In Jesus’ Name. Amen
Day 6
Scriptures: 1 Peter 3:3-4, John 10:10, Romans 12:2
MIDLIFE CRISIS
“I refuse to disdain my old age. Embracing it is not always easy but is so ordained and has to be a good thing, not to be dreaded.” Loverna McCormick
So many people go through what people have dubbed as a midlife crisis. It tends to hit between 48 and 60 years of age. According to Miriam Webster Dictionary, it is a period of emotional turmoil in middle age caused by the realization that one is no longer young and characterized especially by a strong desire for change. This type of mentality has wreaked havoc on countless lives, even to the point of destroying marriages.
We humans identify our beauty with our younger years, and reasonably so because our skin was tight, our hair color was normal, our bodies had curves and muscles, we were full of energy and adventure and we seemed immortal.
“Your beauty should not come from outward adornment, such as elaborate hairstyles and the wearing of gold jewelry or fine clothes. Rather, it should be that of your inner self, the unfading beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is of great worth in God’s sight.” I Peter 3:3-4
I personally never went through a mid-life crisis but I admit after years of essential tremors, I feel it has added 10 years to my life. That is one of the reasons I felt led to write this devotional. I know many suffer from aging complexes, so there is a need for people to understand that the ‘later years crisis’ is a great opportunity to do things you never had time to do, go places, and discover new visions!
It’s time to renew and refresh your mind that life has no age barriers as long as you have breath! Read, start a new hobby, go to school if you want, and make friends with all age groups. (Being around someone younger makes you feel that way).
Today’s scripture proves that our beauty is not defined by how we appear, but rather by how we act. We act the way we feel inside and to get that inner nourishment, we need the truth of God daily incorporated into our life. The enemy came to steal from us, to rob us of life, but God came to give it in abundance! John 10:10
PRACTICE: Make a list of new visions and begin doing them!
PRAYER: Father, thank You for the inner beauty that defines our age. In Jesus’ Name. Amen
Day 7
Scripture: Psalms 71:18
NOT YOUR OUTER, BUT YOUR INNER
It is up to us to define the path we desire to take in life. Too many elders stop living way before the end of their lives because they are either in poor health, exhausted, overweight, or just have lost the zest that is still living but caged up inside.
“Even when I am old and gray, do not forsake me, my God, till I declare your power to the next generation, your mighty acts to all who are to come.” Psalms 71:18
Do we realize the depth of that passage? We have one of the most important purposes, and that is to declare how we choose to live life, a lesson that will be carried on to our children, our children’s children, and beyond! It is called our testimony!
Do you want future generations to remember us slathering on anti-aging products or leaving an indelible mark on their eternal life? I won’t lie to you; I think it would be great for all of us ladies to have ageless skin and bodacious curves. And for the men to never experience being bald and have rock-solid arms with a v-line chest, but we live in the real world, not the world that society tries to sell us.
American author and poet, Martin Baubaum wrote, “Some people, no matter how old they get, never lose their beauty – they merely move it from their faces into their hearts.”
My dear friend Loverna was the mirror image of a happy soul who brought happiness everywhere she went! She was the kind of person you just longed to be around! She isn’t remembered for her wrinkles, but for a life well lived; one that the Father welcomes home and says,
“Well done, good and faithful servant; you were faithful over a few things, I will make you ruler over many things. Enter into the joy of your lord.” Matthew 25:2
PRACTICE: You are the son or daughter of the Most High King! Does your life reflect this?
PRAYER: Thank You for ministering to us Lord through Your word. Sometimes, Lord, we need a pep talk to make us realize that we belong to You and are created in Your image! In Jesus’ Name. Amen!