Devotionals

Senior Christian, Know Thyself

by Dale Buchanan 
01/26/26
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#2 in “Blessing for Senior Saints” series.

“LORD, make me to know mine end, and the measure of my days, what it is: that I may know how frail I am. Behold, thou hast made my days as an handbreadth; and mine age is as nothing before thee: verily every man at his best state is altogether vanity.”  (Psalm 39:4-5)

I remember well the day my wife of 53 years called me at the office.  “I am not going to drive anymore!”  She explained that she had lost feeling in her right leg and foot and couldn’t recognize whether she was stepping on the accelerator or the brake.  She had almost run into a store window while attempting to park.  She stopped driving.  Three months later, she graduated to heaven.  That was over eight years ago now.

When we attain “old age,” however you define that, it is hard to admit the changes that are happening in our bodies.  You have been strong all your life, but now you notice frailty setting in.  The tasks you performed easily are now becoming difficult and time-consuming. 

We think of ourselves as having lived a long time, but our age is but a handbreadth and is as nothing in God’s sight.  As David realized his old age frailty, he cried out in Psalm 39:7, “Lord, what wait I for? My hope is in thee.”  Moses wrote about aging in Psalm 90:12, and prayed, “Teach us to number our days, that we may apply our hearts to wisdom.”

If you are still breathing, God is not done with you.  Adjust your activities to fit with your physical stamina. Then keep right on serving the Lord!