Elderly people in our country are often regarded as senile, ignorant of the “ways of the world,” slow, requiring too much of our time and assistance, or even useless. However in actuality, elderly people are some of the wisest people on the planet. They have seen a lifetime of the “ways of the world.”
They Have Experience
Their generation, as a whole, experienced a lot more than younger generations have experienced…world wars, the great depression, nationwide poverty, diseases that took lives because medications or vaccines had not been developed, and so on. Most of them worked harder, from toddler age to adulthood, than any of us ever have.
Old people weren’t born old. They were kids one time too, and rambunctious and rebellious teenagers, and newly married, and twenty-something with kids underfoot and jobs to maintain, and marriage problems, and all the other ups and downs that come with each life stage.
They Have Wisdom
Elderly people are full of wisdom learned from real experience and not from google, and their advice is golden. We need to listen to it! They have been there, done that. Just like we learn from our mistakes, elderly people have been through a lifetime of learning. They have so much to teach us.
Wisdom belongs to the aged, and understanding to the old.
Job 12:12 NLT
I understand that times have changed. Technology is everywhere. The external environment is different, but the basic threads that weave us together as people and as a society are still the same—love, hate, fears, hopes, desires, dreams, character, morals, and values.
Treat the Elderly With the Respect They Deserve
Our elders should be revered and acknowledged. They are one of our greatest resources, and they should be treated as such, instead of being ignored, pushed to the side, disregarded, devalued, and viewed as a hindrance to our busy lives.
Never speak harshly to an older man, but appeal to him respectfully as you would to your own father…Treat older women as you would your mother.
1 Timothy 5:1-2 NLT
Show Them They are Valued
Each one of us, Lord willing, will be old one day. We will have a lifetime of wisdom and stories to tell, and we hope someone will listen. So let’s value our senior citizens right now, and show younger generations how elderly people are one of our greatest resources and should be valued and treated as such.
Spend time with them. Listen to their stories, even if they have told it to you a million times. Take their advice to heart. They have seen more than we have.
I personally have a heart for older people. I think they are fun and full of life, literally. I love to hear their stories told from their first hand experience. That’s better than a history book.
Adopt an Elder
I am heart broken for those who are alone and ignored because people think they are in the way. If each of us could “adopt an elder,” those who maybe live alone or do not have family in their lives, or even if they do!
We could call them for a chat, ask them what we can help them with, or visit with them. Do you know an older person who could use a friendly call or visit from you?
Since my stepdad passed away, I have been amazed by the various people who have stepped up and called or visited my mom, who is 83, to check on her and see if they could help her in any way. What a blessing they have been to her…and to me! I am thankful to God for them.
Do you have an older person in your life who enjoys spending time with you and telling you their life stories? Tell me about it in the comments.
