Faith & Insight: King Solomon's solution to old age

"Remember your Creator in the days of your youth, before the days of trouble come and the years approach when you will say, 'I find no pleasure in them' " before the sun and the light and the moon and the stars grow dark, and the clouds return after the rain; when the keepers of the house tremble, and the strong men stoop, when the grinders cease because they are few, and those looking through the windows grow dim; when the doors to the street are closed and the sound of grinding fades; when men rise up at the sound of birds, but all their songs grow faint; when men are afraid of heights and of dangers in the streets; when the almond tree blossoms and the grasshopper drags himself along and desire no longer is stirred. Then man goes to his eternal home and mourners go about the streets." (Ecclesiastes 12:1-5)

The last year has been interesting for me. In the spring, I had both hips replaced. As I was hobbling along on a cane, I vented my frustrations to my granddaughter. "I don't want to act like an old man."

She shook her head, "But Papa, you are an old man."

Last month I fell and broke my arm. When people saw me in a cast, they said something about how I must have gotten in trouble with my wife " ha ha. Then people who knew what I'd been through usually said something like, "Getting old sure stinks."

I think that's what King Solomon had in mind when he wrote the words above. He calls them "days of trouble" filled with bad eyesight, shaky limbs, bad hearing, loss of teeth, paranoia, lack of strength, and gray hair (or the lack thereof). Ah, the golden years.

Solomon's solutions to the perils of aging follow the previous verses as he ends writing the book.

"Now all has been heard; here is the conclusion of the matter: Fear God and keep his commandments, for this is the whole duty of man. For God will bring every deed into judgment, including every hidden thing, whether it is good or evil." (Ecclesiastes 12:13-14)

Love God. Trust Him. Keep His Word. A better world is coming.

Never grow old, where we'll never grow old, in a land where we'll never grow old. " (James C. Moore, 1930)

- Bruce Henderson is pastor of the Airport Road Church of Christ in Carson City and a member of the Carson City Christian Ministerial Fellowship.