Now also when I am old and gray-headed, O God, do not forsake me until I declare Your strength to this generation, Your power to everyone who is to come (Psalm 71:18).

Never Retire

General Douglas MacArthur wrote, “People grow old by deserting their ideas. Years may wrinkle the skin, but to give up interest wrinkles the soul. You are as young as your faith, as old as your doubts; as young as your self-confidence, as old as your fears; as young as your hope, as old as your despair.” Age is a number that should never define the character of the man. The Bible says that with the increase of age, the body’s development is slowing down and changing. This does not mean that the mind must quit using its faculties to learn more about the word of God and share the gospel of Christ.

Retirement for the masses is an idea that has only been possible in recent history and only in certain parts of the world. The hope of reaching a time when there are few responsibilities is appealing. It can be a wonderful time, but it can also be a dangerous period of waste. A person wants to work for forty years, retire with a gold watch, and spend the remaining years watching the sunrise and sunset leisurely. There is so much more to do. Ideas do not age. Knowledge does not come with wrinkles. Faith is not something that should be retired from. When faith is retired, it dies.

While the body goes through many changes with increasing years, the spirit of hope should increase. There is so much work to be done for the Lord. First, God does not give up on old people. The world may think the older generation is out of touch, but the opposite is true. When a man and woman spend their lives searching the word of God, learning all the nuggets of divine truth to help and guide them; they have an infinite storehouse of knowledge to share.

Retiring from a job is a privilege well deserved and well rewarded. There are no retirees in the kingdom of God because the work never ends. Few people would want to retire and then work again. The joy of working in the kingdom of God as an older person is it brings in so many dividends. There is knowledge to share from a lifetime of experience. Learning from the younger generations increases the capital of knowledge that must be shared.

As a Christian, the heart must be willing to work in the vineyard of the Lord until the eternal retirement in the presence of God. Then, and only then, will the labor be done. Until then, there is so much more to do, to learn, and to share.