When I was a little girl, one of my favorite choruses was “You Can Smile”. I don’t know how many of you have heard the little chorus; and since I can’t sing it to you, for which I know you are thankful, I will share the words. Continue reading “The Gift Of A Smile”
Roller coasters are fun for many people. I used to enjoy them when I was a teenager and perhaps in my early twenties. The last time I rode a roller coaster I was jerked around so much I was sore for days. I never rode a roller coaster again. Continue reading “Sweeter As The Days Go By”
“Those that be planted in the house of the LORD shall flourish in the courts of our God. They shall still bring forth fruit in old age; they shall be fat and flourishing;” Psalm 92:13-14
Did you know that Mickey Mouse is enjoying his retirement years? You wouldn’t know it, just by looking at him. He doesn’t seem a day older than when he first appeared on the scene. Yet Mickey Mouse is 94 years old. Not bad when the average mouse only lives for 2 years. Although Mickey is much older than me, he seems to get around a lot better than I do.
To say we live in a youth-oriented culture is an understatement. Older people in our society are often looked upon as a burden to the young. The market place gives little attention to the elderly, and when it does, it seems to perpetuate the myth that aging is always a bad thing. Let’s face it, what do you see advertised for the elderly on TV; you would think all we ever need is Burial Insurance, Denture Cream, Ex-Lax, and Depends. Even church ministry and outreach are geared toward the young. That helps to explain two worship services in many churches.
I recently studied an interesting Scripture in Numbers 8:23-26, where the Lord said to Moses, “And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying, This is it that belongeth unto the Levites: from twenty and five years old and upward they shall go in to wait upon the service of the tabernacle of the congregation: And from the age of fifty years they shall cease waiting upon the service thereof, and shall serve no more: But shall minister with their brethren in the tabernacle of the congregation, to keep the charge, and shall do no service. Thus. shalt thou do unto the Levites touching their charge.”
I was astounded when I first discovered this verse. The Levites were men officially set apart by God for various ministry functions in the service of the Lord’s tabernacle and later in His temple. And God directed them to retire from their fulltime regular ministries at the age of 50!
As they got closer to their “senior” years, God had them turn their regular ministry duties over to younger Levites. They could assist these younger ministers, but they themselves could not do the ministry work that they had formerly done. Essentially, this verse was saying to them: Do your “regular service” up until a certain age. For the Levites it was 50; for Aaron the priest it was considerably older. But the point is, at some point in our ministries there may come a time to turn our ministry roles over to the next generation. I am not referring to retiring from Christian service, but modifying your Christian service to something more adapted to your stamina and strength.
Moses led Israel until he died at the age of 120! Now that is certainly the exception, not the rule. The point here is that our natural strength, vigor, and health definitely matter and will help us determine the “when” for our transition into new, fruit-bearing activities, better suited with our age, energy, and health. Then we notice King David…
“Moreover the Philistines had yet war again with Israel; and David went down, and his servants with him, and fought against the Philistines: and David waxed faint. And Ishbibenob, which was of the sons of the giant, the weight of whose spear weighed three hundred shekels of brass in weight, he being girded with a new sword, thought to have slain David. But Abishai the son of Zeruiah succoured him, and smote the Philistine, and killed him. Then the men of David sware unto him, saying, Thou shalt go no more out with us to battle, that thou quench not the light of Israel.”
II Samuel 21:15-17
Here the aging King David desired to keep going out to battle with his men. But due to his age, he became exhausted. Others had to come to his rescue and save the once great soldier king from being killed by a Philistine. David’s men realized that they needed to step up and replace their elderly king on the battlefield, so they exhorted him to let them carry the burden of the battles from then on.
Next, we are reminded of the ministry of the older ladies in the church…
“The aged women likewise, that they be in behaviour as becometh holiness, not false accusers, not given to much wine, teachers of good things; That they may teach the young women to be sober, to love their husbands, to love their children, To be discreet, chaste, keepers at home, good, obedient to their own husbands, that the word of God be not blasphemed.”
Titus 2:3-5
Older ladies, you have a great ministry opportunity to the younger ladies in your circle of family and friends. The best teachers of womanly virtues to the young women are the older women who have learned important lessons over a lifetime. Our society is desperately short of godly role models. Sad to say, this is true even in many of our churches.
There is much fruit to be borne in your later years by being a good example of faithfulness, loyalty, honesty, integrity, prayerfulness, and other aspects of godly character. Even if in your later years you don’t hold some “official” role in your church, you can have a profound impact on others by the honorable example you set for them. Believe me, young people need to see such role models.
An important key to all this is found in our text verse: “…shall flourish in the courts of our God. They shall still bring forth fruit in old age; they shall be fat and flourishing.” It says they will flourish in the church. Stay devoted to the “house of God.” Be there when the doors are open. And go from there built up, energized spiritually, and flourishing in fruitful ministry opportunities even into your old age! I remind you…
Abraham and Sarah began their family when he was over 100 and she passed 90. They became a blessing to all the nations of the earth.
Joseph was the leader of his family until a ripe old age, Moses became the leader of Israel when he was 80 and continued to lead them until his death at 120.
The apostle John wrote the Book of Revelation when he was well into his 90’s.
At 65, Winston Churchill became British Prime Minister and while he was in his 70’s wrote his multi-volume work History of the British People.
At 72, Golda Meir became Prime Minister of Israel.
At 75, Ed Delano of California bicycled 90 miles a day for a total of 3100 miles in 33 days to attend his 50th college reunion in Worcester, Massachusetts!
Colonel Harlan Sanders began Kentucky Fried Chicken when he was 66.
“Thou shalt rise up before the hoary (grey hair) head, and honour the face of the old man, and fear thy God: I am the LORD.”
Leviticus 19:32
The late General Douglas MacArthur wrote something very profound about aging on his 75th birthday: “In the central place of every heart there is a recording chamber; so long as it receives messages of beauty, hope, cheer, and courage, so long are you young. When the wires are all down and your heart is covered with the snows of pessimism and the ice of cynicism, then, and then only are you grown old.”
In the secular world, when we reach retirement age, we can often afford to take life easy. We can enjoy life, travel around the world, take up new hobbies, or just sit on the porch. But where God is concerned, there’s no retirement age. Christians are to run the race to the end. Anna and Caleb are two Biblical examples. Older believers have entered a new and wonderful phase of life with different opportunities. These years can be among the most fruitful of your life for Christ, if you will make them so for Him.
As you get older, you will arrive at the apex of life. You have arrived at the top of the mountain where you can breathe the rare atmosphere of a long life of experience, knowledge, honor, and you’ll have an excellent view that none of those below you have ever seen. You have crossed many bridges, passed many crossroads, but you are still here—and you are here for a reason. The wrinkles in your face are marks of distinction that show character traits, laugh lines, and worries. Your tomorrows may be in short supply, but you can dream dreams of yesteryear, and rejoice in the life you have lived, and in the days that remain. You came through the hard knocks of experience and can teach others a few things about life. Life has given you a wealth of knowledge that cannot be learned in books. You have seen more changes in a lifetime than any generation has seen.
Notice this promise given in Isaiah: “Hearken unto me, O house of Jacob, and all the remnant of the house of Israel, which are borne by me from the belly, which are carried from the womb: And even to your old age I am he; and even to hoar hairs will I carry you: I have made, and I will bear; even I will carry, and will deliver you.”
Isaiah 46:3-4
My young friend, if God grants you long life, one day you will grow old. My elderly friend, one day you will make it home. Until then, live courageously for the One who died for you. Don’t throw your life away on the American dream of retirement. Don’t settle for anything less than the joy of magnifying Christ in your latter years. As for me, I want to be a fat and flourishing old man.
Dr. Worthington has been in the ministry for over forty five years and serves as President of Pathway Ministries and Christian Bible College.
It always brings tears to my eyes when I see our students walk across the stage at graduation. I have the privilege of handing them their diplomas so my eyes meet theirs as they come towards me. Many things go through my mind at that time. Continue reading “Well Done”
“Don’t kill it, Mommy! Please don’t kill it. We have to let it live.”
“But Son, I have to kill it. The ant will bring all of his friends in the house, and we will be invaded. We can’t have a houseful of ants.”
“I’ll get it, Mommy. I’ll take it outside by the trees. Then it can live.”
This was a ritual at my house when my youngest son was small. Continue reading “Constant Changes”
Which way do I go? I have no sense of direction. My husband worries about me when I drive places I have never been to. He always tries to go with me. Even with our phones and GPS’s, I seem to get lost. I have a tendency to get on autopilot when I drive. Continue reading “Which Way?”
The first day of school is right around the corner. With each new school term, the Lord always sends us a great batch of kids. We have some who have been with us for years, and others who are here for the very first time. We always miss the ones that leave us. Most left for reasons beyond their control, but it is still sad for all of us at Pathway when they are gone. We love all of our students so there is a hole in our hearts when they leave. We hope the best for them, wherever they may be. Continue reading “Meet The Challenge”
Sometimes I have the strangest dreams. I wake up mystified! One such dream was truly weird. I was approached by someone in my dream and threatened. He told me I better vote a certain way on a piece of legislation or his people would hurt my children. I remember being afraid at the time, but I quickly forgot about it. I went on with life as usual. As the deadline approached, he came to remind me about my vote. I asked the stranger, Continue reading “Selling Out”
As I watched her cross the platform to shake my hand, memories started flooding through my mind. You see, I had the privilege of teaching my granddaughter at Pathway. I have been her principal, her teacher, her counselor, her disciplinarian, her Children’s Church Teacher, and most importantly, her friend! I love her so much! She was such a little thing when Continue reading “Yesterday’s Memories… Tomorrow’s Dreams.”
It would be nice if prayers were always answered quickly, however that is often not the case. Habakkuk, addresses the people of Judah, who are suffering under the injustice of an evil government. He is crying out to God wondering why He has not interceded and answered their prayers (Habakkuk 1:1-4). In the verses that follow, God answers Habakkuk’s prayer by acknowledging He is well aware of what is going on, but He indicates that the time is not right to answer Habakkuk’s desires.
In teaching about prayer, Jesus said there were three levels of prayer: ask, seek, and knock. Simply ask and God can grant some things immediately. For other things you need to seek in order to obtain. You will have to look for the answer, perhaps in places you might not expect to find it. Finally, we are told that sometimes we have to knock. This is a repetitive prayer. Come back again and again with your petitions for the Lord. In other words, you may have to wait for an answer. That is what Habakkuk is going to have to do. God tells him:
“For the vision is yet for an appointed time, but at the end it shall speak, and not lie: though it tarry, wait for it; because it will surely come, it will not tarry.” Habakkuk 2:3
Sometimes our prayers will be delayed, and God never apologizes for doing so because the delay is always for the benefit of the kingdom. All of us are impatient. But God will work out His amazing purpose on His perfect time schedule. Of course there are other things that can hinder our prayers.
First, Prayer Can Be Hindered By The Holy Spirit.
Sometimes we utter foolish and unscriptural prayers. The Bible says the Holy Spirit accepts the ministry of helping us with this infirmity (Romans 8:26). We sometimes say foolish things to each other, so it is easy to assume we occasionally say foolish things to God. These prayers are monitored and edited by the Holy Spirit.
Second, Prayer Can Be Hindered By Sin.
Sin can hinder our fellowship with our Lord and rob us of a victorious prayer life. The Word of God also teaches us that a strained marriage relationship can also hinder our prayers (I Peter 3:7).
Third, Prayers Can Be Hindered By Satan.
We all remember the account of Daniel who had to wait three weeks for his prayer to be answered (Daniel 10). Apparently there was demonic conflict going on which hindered his answer from arriving for three weeks. This example is not a secret formula of waiting for 21 days and then Michael will always show up and deliver us, but there are lessons we all can learn. It certainly teaches us that there are things going on in the angelic realm that we cannot see. Apparently, God also wants us to keep praying until the answer comes. We can also learn that Satan considers the earth as his territory, and he looks at God as an invading entity. Therefore, warfare is required when God’s kingdom attempts to break through the lines of the domain of darkness (Colossians 1:13).
Prayer is a battlefield where the whole armor of God is required if you hope to be victorious. As God’s children, we can expect to receive volleys of flaming darts. We are going to be attacked on every side. We can expect spies and traitors within our own camp. We will endure insults, intimidation, and accusations. There will be a relentless effort to destroy our morale and determination. Indeed, prayers can be hindered by Satan.
Fourth, Prayers Can Be Hindered By Strategy.
If you recall, Revelation teaches us that God retains all of our prayers and will one day offer them on His golden altar in heaven (Revelation 8:3-4). It also appears that on occasion the answer to prayers may also be purposefully stored up in heaven, waiting the appropriate time of release. The Bible often speaks of something called the “fullness of time” that signals a release of held back promises. This is when history reaches a tipping point and all things are ready for a revealing to be released upon the earth. Could this also be true regarding prayer?
Consider the Lord’s Prayer (still not answered), the birth of the Messiah (a promise delayed by centuries), and John’s prayer of “even so come Lord Jesus” (still not answered). As we know, the answer to these prayers came (or will come) at the perfect time.
Now, let’s consider how many desperate prayers and fastings have been made on behalf of our nation over the past few years. We have prayed regarding the abortion holocaust, the moral crisis, and the weakness of the modern church. Recently, we have petitioned God with concerns regarding our government’s attitude towards Israel. We have prayed over radical Islam’s persecution of Christians and their overt acts of terror. We are concerned over nuclear proliferation in Iran. We have prayed over the direction the Supreme Court might be heading if the wrong justice is confirmed, thus insuring the court would perpetually lean to the left. What happened to all of those prayers for America? Could it be they were held in the vaults of heaven awaiting the perfect release point?
Could it be that America’s recent realignment against Israel, the possibility of a left leaning Supreme Court determined to legislate the church out of existence, and the continuing abortion holocaust, brought us to a tipping point? Has the answer to all those prayers finally been released? Although it is far too early to assess the success or failure of the Trump presidency, is this unlikely man in the White House a part of the answer to our pent-up petitions? I am not proclaiming a revival, an awakening, or a radical reformation; but has God granted us a season of refreshing in these last days? Although I still believe America is heading toward judgment, I still wonder if perhaps a limited spiritual breakthrough has occurred against the kingdom of darkness.
When Pent-Up Prayers Are Released, The Effect Can By Dynamic.
When God releases years of pent-up petitions it is like a dam breaking and flooding the countryside with His glory. It is God placing Himself in the very center of what needs to change. It is the power of heaven releasing itself against those who intend to stop the flow of His purpose.
The victory in Jericho occurred because God’s people followed His strategy, not because of powerful man-made munitions. Just like many people today, the inhabitants of Jericho never imagined their walls could be destroyed so quickly. But they were, and God’s people rejoiced over the breakthrough.
Our Breakthroughs Are Opposed by Powerful Forces.
What is a breakthrough? A breakthrough is a military concept. When one army is able to weaken its enemy’s forces to the point of collapse, a breakthrough occurs allowing that army to invade and take its enemy’s territory. Since a breakthrough can be expensive in manpower and munitions, they are not attempted unless it will gain, or lead to the gain of strategic ground. Of course, the enemy knows his adversary desires this strategic ground, so he will amass a great force to keep it protected. Intense fighting most always precedes strategic breakthroughs. The devil knows that America is strategic ground, and such a prize will not be yielded easily.
This same concept applies to spiritual warfare. Since the devil is the god of this world, the church is an invading force. We are the outsiders. Some churches have basically resigned from the conflict; others have just circled-the-wagons and are satisfied to just hold on. But some have picked up the banner and attempted a breakthrough. Just like the Moral Majority back in 1980, these saints decided to become the aggressors, not merely the defenders. Just as the Great Commission commands us to go and liberate those the devil has taken captive, we took it as our position to liberate America from those who were attempting her destruction. Our strategy involved years of prayer and action.
When God moves the church does not always respond, but Satan always will. As a matter of fact, every significant move of God will be preceded and accompanied by a season of increasingly difficult and discouraging opposition. Be assured, if we are not encountering opposition, it’s likely we are not attacking the devil’s ground at a strategic point. It is where the enemy is fortifying his forces that we must focus our assault.
So, in summary, I do not know what the legacy of President Trump might be. As of this writing, he seems to be off to a good start. People on both sides of the isle seem to be shocked with a President who appears to be keeping his word on a number of issues. Let’s pray our amazement will continue. I know better than to put my faith in a man, however it does appear (at least at this stage) that a flood of the pent-up prayers of God’s people are being answered. It could be that the wickedness coming from Washington over the past few years reached a tipping point. This tipping point motivated God’s people to fast, pray, and work even harder to save our nation. Perhaps the stench of our wickedness also reached the God of heaven who determined it was time to answer our prayers of the past years.
Finally, A Personal Application for You and Me.
Perhaps you are praying for a breakthrough in your personal life and have not seen any signs of victory, do not give up. Remember, intense fighting always precedes strategic breakthroughs. You are fighting an enemy who is stronger than you can imagine, however “greater is He that is in you, that he who is in the world” (I John 4:4). Don’t lose heart. Perhaps there is a breakthrough just around the corner and a new world of potential and possibilities will be opened for you as years of pent-up petitions are answered.
Dr. Worthington has been in the ministry over forty years and serves as President of Pathway Ministries.
