Nearing Home by Billy Graham (best book club books for discussion txt) 📗

. . There the LORD showed him the whole land. . . . And Moses the servant of the LORD died there. . . . Since then, no prophet has risen in Israel like Moses, whom the LORD knew face to face” (Deuteronomy 34:1, 5, 10).

This is a remarkable passage. While Moses was prevented from entering the land because of his earlier disobedience, God allowed him to behold the land of promise in his old age. I often wonder if God, in His sovereignty, allows the eyesight of the aged to cast a dim view of the here and now so that we may focus our spiritual eyes on the ever after.

God’s Word records that Moses’ successor, Joshua, “was filled with the spirit of wisdom because Moses had laid his hands on him . . . and [Joshua] did what the LORD had commanded Moses” (Deuteronomy 34:9). Even after his death, the impact of Moses’ life lived on in Joshua, the great military commander for God’s people.

What testimony are you passing on to others following you? Remembering what God has done for you will invigorate you in old age. Others are watching your actions and attitudes. Don’t diminish the impact you can make; pass on foundational truths of God’s Word so that younger generations will be as Joshua, “filled with the spirit of wisdom.”

2

DON’T RETIRE FROM LIFE

Come with me by yourselves to a quiet place and get some rest.

—MARK 6:31

Don’t resent growing old. Many are denied the privilege.

—UNKNOWN

Enjoy life—it has an expiration date” was the bumper sticker on an old red Ford Thunderbird convertible parked next to a shiny new black T-bird. The age difference between the two cars? Almost fifty years. I had to smile when I learned that in the backseat of that third-generation 1961 model sat a teenager and a toddler, the driver’s grandchildren. The owner of the black car was his son—the three generations were on a family vacation. It brought me back to the years when my children were small and we would all crowd into one car. We understood what it was to “be close.” For most families today, this is a thing of the past.

A friend of mine related the parking lot scene to me. As she talked with the grandparents, others congregated to admire the ’61 Bullet Bird, as it was called back then. It also became known as the American Dream Car. John F. Kennedy was a big fan of these Bullet Birds and had fifty of them in his 1961 inaugural parade. I was fascinated to learn that the old car was the one getting all the attention while the new model with all the high-tech gadgets quietly took a backseat. Perhaps it was because no one was inside the newer model to show it off. But I rather think it was the contrast of seeing a silver-headed grandpa with two lively kids raring to hit the road with their grandparents. Then to learn that this car had been this man’s possession for fifty years made it personally authentic.

For a world captivated by high speed and instant gratification, its fascination with relics, antiques, and well-worn jeans seems disconnected. Yet when Coca-Cola changed its one-hundred-year-old formula in 1985, there was a public backlash and demands for the original, so within two short months the company was forced to return the beverage to grocery shelves under the name Coca-Cola Classic, spiking sales for the soft drink company. The conclusion of the marketers was that the formula had stood the test of time. The trade-secret recipe had trumped the new recipe, as proven by the millions of fans who did not want the “real thing” tampered with.

What does all this have to do with getting old? Old is authentic. Old is genuine. Old is valuable. Some say old is even beautiful. I was told about an elderly woman who said, “I wish I had enough time, money, and courage to get a face-lift . . . my face is drooping!” Her beloved husband said, “Dear, the most inexpensive and lasting face-lift is just to smile; it draws your features upward, and that draws people to you.”

Well, not all elderly people can climb behind the wheel of a dream car or get face-lifts, but we do have the choice to be content with where we are in life. After all, the alternative is not to be here at all. Can we say with the apostle Paul, “I have learned in whatever state I am, to be content” (Philippians 4:11 NKJV)? I have to admit that I miss the days of driving a car, but I am grateful for those who take me where I need to go. My aches and pains remind me that I am not as young as I would like to be, but I am thankful that I am still here to talk about them and that someone is kind enough to listen patiently. The mirror doesn’t lie, but I can smile into it because my dim eyesight camouflages my wrinkles. Even at ninety-two, my desire is to learn to be content. We should never get too old to learn or too old to smile!

A police officer pulled over a distinguished-looking woman, the story goes, and asked why she had exceeded the speed limit. The old gentleman sitting in the passenger seat laughed and said, “Well, young man, we were speeding to get to the place before we forget where we’re going!” Getting where we are going is important. Equally important are those who are following us because they are on the same journey; they just don’t realize it yet. The older generation may have a hard time keeping up with the younger, but let’s remember that as long as we are still breathing, we are leading the way. The generations that follow are learning about growing old from us. Are we good examples? While we have all made mistakes and would like to turn back the clock to correct