My father-in-law was a handsome man.  But in his later years he confessed that sometimes when he looked at himself in the mirror he'd think, "What happened to me?"  Although he felt the way he always had on the inside, he could see that time had taken its toll on the outside.

I don't know who came up with the idea of old age being called the "golden years."  As far as I can tell it must have been someone who sold cemetery lots.

They say old age is all in the mind.  I wish someone would tell that to my face and back!  The next time you visit a friend in a convalescent home, notice the photographs on the chest of drawers.  No, that dear one wasn’t born this way.  Yes indeed, Dad.  What happened to you?  What’s happening to all of us?"

I used to think that Ecclesiastes 12 was a chapter about young people, probably because it begins, "Remember now thy Creator in the days of thy youth."  When I first memorized that text, I thought that was as far as the verse went.  That’s the part that is quoted the most. 

But in reality, the rest of chapter 12 is not about youth at all; rather it's a poetic description of old age.  One paraphrase Bible puts it this way: "Remember your Creator while you're still young, and give Him the best of your life.  The years pass quickly, and soon you'll be old and will say to yourself, 'I surely don't enjoy life like I used to.'  When those days come, your eyesight will grow dim, and you will see little difference between a bright sunny day and a moonlit night.  The stars will fade from your view, and each day the sky will seem overcast and dark, filled with clouds of rain [could that mean cataracts?]  Your arms that were so strong and quick to protect you will shake and tremble.  Your legs will grow weak.  Your teeth will fall out, and it will be hard for you to chew.  Your eyes will be looking through half-drawn shutters.  Your ears will not pick up the noise on the streets, and you will barely hear the mill as it grinds out the wheat or the singing of birds in the morning.  The music of young girls will be stilled" (Ecclesiastes 12:1-4, The Clear Word).

Two thoughts come to mind when studying those verses.  First, it's difficult for me to conclude that old age is all in the mind.  And second, Solomon didn't listen to his doctor!  If he had, he would have known that living a health-conscious life can lessen the impact that the years will have on our minds, bodies, and spirits.  But I digress.

Though abiding faith in God does not deliver us completely from the negative consequences of life in the 21^st century, it does give us strength to endure.  The promise is that those who endure to the end will be saved (Matthews 24:13).  Jesus Himself told us that in this world we would have trouble; but He admonished us not to give up, because He has overcome the world (John 16:13).

Someone once said, with tongue in cheek, "I feel so much better now that I have given up hope!"  Seriously, we should never give up hope.  The Psalmist writes, "Though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil for Thou art with me” (Psalm 23:24).  And best of all, Jesus Himself, has given us hope and comfort when He said, “Lo, I am with you always" (Matthew 28:20).  Best of all He has promised to one day make all things new (Revelation 21:5).

As you read this you may be thinking, "So what's the point in worrying about those things now?  I'm only 25 (or 35, or 45).  The point, friend, is that wherever we find ourselves in the journey of life we need to have a game plan that takes into account the whole picture.  A young person who understands the significance of Ecclesiastes 12 will live a better life in every way--mentally, physically and spiritually.

If you have not yet reached the “Golden Years,” I have a suggestion that will be both a preparation for when you get there and a comfort for those who are already there. It is based on James 1:27:  "Pure religion and undefiled before God and the Father is this, To visit the fatherless and widows in their affliction, and to keep himself unspotted from the world."

The widows are usually the aged among us.  So why not identify a person in a convalescent home and begin to visit them regularly.  Take along your children.  This will be a blessing to your family and will bring some joy and hope to the person you visit.