I want you to hear from someone – an older gentleman, like me – in our church who has accomplished a lot in his life – academically, professionally, and personally. He says that he has long struggled with pride. So, he doesn’t want me to share his name. What I love about his story is that he’s not looking back and saying, “I’ve done my part.” He’s still asking, “Jesus, what do You have for me next?” He wants to keep saying yes to the open doors, to the opportunities God puts in front of him, to keep using the gifts God has given him, and to keep walking in the good works God has prepared for him. His story makes me ask, “What is Jesus inviting me into in this season of my life?”
Keep Saying Yes: Completing the Work God Has Given You
Others recognized several of my accomplishments academically, athletically, and professionally during high school, college, and my early professional life. But in retrospect, they were all about me, without any acknowledgment of God’s providence and provision of natural talent.
I didn’t realize it, but I was very insecure, always in need of another “affirmation fix” and without humility. I was still just a cultural Christian with no real relationship with Jesus. That led to feelings of “Is that all there is?” and painful moments for me and my family.
However, God was faithful in calling me until I was 35, and when I was at the bottom, He changed my life. I didn’t change overnight, and it’s been many years of sanctification, but every day He’s making me more like Jesus. A lyric from a We the Kingdom song sort of encapsulates those feelings: “I’m not yet where I’m going, but I’m a long way from where I was.”
Even before I was a true believer, God was preparing me for future service. In my first career, I learned leadership skills that I would later use on mission trips and in small group settings.
When I was younger, I was an overachiever, but inside, I was insecure. I felt I had to succeed and achieve, or I had no worth. My subconscious message was, “Better death than failure.” As a result, I was uncomfortable talking to strangers or in public. In my second career, God allowed me to learn another valuable skill: the ability to be comfortable talking to people and to have a self-deprecating sense of humor. This has also helped me in small group settings and mission work.
Through my own marital issues and counseling, God taught me to be a better parent. That has helped on mission trips as I have engaged with children to entertain them or help them deal with trauma. It has helped me to be less self-conscious and allow myself to act silly in play.
I have now been on six international mission trips, been involved in mission planning, co-leading a small group, doing spiritual care at a local hospital, building and rehabbing homes and properties, and mentoring and discipling some young men and a few young couples.
These were rarely opportunities I sought, but God brought them into my life and gave me the nudge to get involved, using the skills He had taught me along the way. He has provided me training opportunities like International Mission Board Short-Term Missions Training, Culture Link Mission Training, and Perspectives Cross-Cultural Mission Training.
Why have I stayed engaged and on mission? I think, in part, the old saying, “I’d rather wear out than rust out,” is true for me. But even more, I realize how God has equipped me in so many wonderful ways, and I don’t want to waste those gifts.
I have discovered a joy in serving, whether that is swinging a hammer, sharing life with young people, sharing the gospel with people who don’t know Jesus, or encouraging those who do.
God has blessed me and changed me by increasing my faith through sharing the gospel. He has shown up in so many instances by providing a segue in a conversation that provides an opportunity to share the gospel.
He has taken away much of my fear of sharing the gospel and helped me to be more bold. He’s helped me learn more Scripture and given me a hunger to know it so that I can share it.
He’s changed me from self-centered wanting and needing to other-centered and joyful giving.
He’s given me an appreciation and love for the younger generations. If you have never been engaged in a multigenerational setting, I highly recommend it. It is one of my greatest joys, and it keeps me young.
One highlight from a recent mission trip was seeing God, in His sovereignty, orchestrate a meeting with several people in an airport while en route to our final destination. They heard the gospel and accepted Jesus as their Savior. Another highlight was seeing the tears in the eyes of the people we ministered to who felt unseen by their government. They found it incredible that people from so far away would care enough to come and be with them.
No matter what your age, God has something you can do for the kingdom.
People in their 20s and 30s are finishing school, starting careers, and starting families. You are busy, but if you look and listen in your spirit, God will show you opportunities. Can you pray with a coworker who is hurting, or your waitress or checkout person? Can you read Bible stories to your children?
People in their 40s and 50s are in the thick of their careers and possibly raising teenagers. But you also probably have more disposable income and more weeks of vacation. Can you lead or co-lead a youth small group? Can you go as a family on a several-day mission trip to West Virginia? Can you truly listen with a loving heart to your child or a friend who is hurting?
For people in their 60s and 70s, you may be reaching the end of your career and are now empty nesters. If you can afford to not work, look for ways to volunteer. You won’t believe how many places need you. What skills have you developed over the past 40 or 50 years that you can still use to make a difference? Can you do carpentry, plumbing, or electrical work?
Would you like to travel? Why not see the world and, while you’re doing so, bring clean water and the gospel to people who desperately need it? London, Paris, and Rome are all interesting to see, but so are Pearl Island, Guatemala, and Panama. And in the latter group, you can make a difference in someone’s life for eternal life.
As I heard Pastor Rick say once, “I want to go to heaven, and take as many others with me as I can.” Put another way, “I want to depopulate hell.”
No matter what your age, God has allowed you to accumulate wisdom. The older you get, the more you get. And if you are like me, some of the best wisdom has come through trials and failures. Don’t be afraid or ashamed to share what God has taught you with someone younger. Be a mentor or discipler. Sometimes someone just needs someone to compassionately listen. And we can do that at any age.
Ephesians 2:10 says, “For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them.” What are we missing if we don’t walk in them? We are missing out on doing what we were created for.
I believe if we just make ourselves available and have the courage to say yes, even though it feels scary or we think we are unqualified, God will lead us to His best plan for us. In that, I have found great joy.
