You’ve likely heard the proverbial statement: “We get too soon old, and too late smart.” It is attributed to the Pennsylvania Dutch, and for a lot of us it is a basic truth.
In addition to my college degree, I think back on all of the courses I took over the years. Included in these were several weeks of study and training at the B.C. Justice Institute, and a whole whack of first aid courses. Two questions come to my mind when I consider all this. Where did all this knowledge go, and when will I find a place to use it in my later years?
Some of this knowledge is stashed away so completely in my brain that I’m sure it is destined to never be recalled. Some of it I would like to forget. Come to think about it, there are also a lot of things I am happy to forget!
When I see the shared knowledge of seniors being respected and received I feel great. The retired farmer can share his or her knowledge of husbandry and crop cultivation. The retired logger and forester can share their mechanical and woods knowledge with a young people just starting out. Even a shopworn preacher like myself has some useful insights.
Yet, nothing in my training or life experiences has ever fully prepared me for when I, as a pastor, come face to face with those good folk facing death or dealing with tragedy. It is at these times that I have to pray humbly for the words and thoughts needed for the guidance and comfort of those who mourn.
God has always honored these prayers.
May you know the God of hope who truly knows us and seeks to honor our prayers. That is knowledge that always survives the storms of life.
