“We all, with unveiled face, beholding the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from one degree of glory to another.” [2 Corinthians 3:18]
NO SOONER HAD I TURNED FORTY than I started receiving catalogs promoting products guaranteed to combat the effects of aging. They promised me clearer skin, fewer wrinkles, more energy, prettier nails and hair. The implication was that as I get older, what matters most is looking and feeling younger.
The fact is, however, I am getting older. And in our fallen world, this means my body is slowly deteriorating. I look in the mirror and see lines that weren’t there a dozen years ago, along with a full head of gray hair. I’ve had to start using a larger print Bible. And even with regular exercise and watching what I eat, I just don’t have the physical stamina I had at twenty.
But I refuse to buy into the lie that those things are ultimate tragedies or that my biological clock can somehow be reversed. Naturally I’m not trying to hasten my physical decline, but neither am I consumed with fighting off the inevitable. As I get older, I want to focus on those things that God says matter most—things like letting His Spirit cultivate in me a gracious, wise, kind, and loving heart. I know there is a process taking place in my physical body that will not be reversed this side of eternity.
But I also know that “the path of the righteous is like the light of dawn, which shines brighter and brighter until full day” (Prov. 4:18). By God’s grace, our spirits can continue to grow richer, fuller, and stronger, even as our outer bodies are going the way of all flesh.
How do you try to balance accepting the unavoidable challenges of aging with the desire to be a good steward of your body? What can you do to cultivate and strengthen your inner life and spirit, even while your physical body is declining? [The Quiet Place]
