What I Want to do and be as I grow old(er)

In Part One of this 2-part series on getting old, for lack of a better phrase, I shared one thing I do not want to do as I grow old: complain. Clearly this post resonated with others due to the number of comments left on the blog and messages I received. Collectively we are a group of people who excel at complaining. At the same time, none of us want to remain this way.

I can say with confidence I’ve identified something I need to continue to address and something we, collectively, need to be mindful of as we age. None of us want to be the old curmudgeon (men) or termagant (women)(how’s that for an SAT word!). In Philippians 2:14, Paul says, “Do everything without grumbling or arguing.” Note: He says not some things, most things, or almost everything, but EVERYTHING without grumbling or arguing. Challenge accepted, Paul!

In this post I share what I do want to be and do as I age. Let’s look at the example of Moses.

Moses lived to be 120 years old. His life can be divided up into three, 40-year chunks. He spent the first 40 years in Egypt, the next 40 years as a humble shepherd, and the last 40 years leading God’s people through the wilderness. He built an incredible resume in his life as a faithful leader. He led God’s people out of slavery, brought down the 10 Commandments from the Lord, and led God’s rebellious people as they prepared to enter the Promised Land.

Moses was poised to be the person who would lead God’s people into the land the Lord promised to Israel. But Moses lost this privilege in a moment of anger recorded for us in Numbers 20. God instructed Moses to tell a rock to produce water for the Israelites. Instead of telling the rock to produce water, he struck the rock twice with his staff. In doing so, he disobeyed God and the Lord told Moses he would not be the one who would lead God’s people into the land He promised to them (Numbers 20:2-13).

I’m going to be honest (I hope I always am!). I don’t like this story. It seems so unfair to me that the Lord would keep His faithful servant Moses out of the land God promised to His people. For 40 years Moses faithfully led these rebellious people. He spoke Truth to them, shepherded them in trials, and obediently followed the Lord. But because of this misdeed, the Lord kept Moses out of the Promised Land.

How Did Moses Finish His Life?

Yet, at the end of his life, we see how Moses finishes. Deuteronomy 34:7 says, “Moses was a hundred and twenty years old when he died, yet his eyes were not weak nor his strength gone.” The ESV says his eyes were undimmed and his vigor unabated. He finished strong, both literally and figuratively. He didn’t let 40 years of wandering keep him down. He didn’t complain, knowing that the new generation would get to enter into the Promised Land and he wouldn’t. He didn’t waver in his last days. His eyes were not weak nor his strength gone. He finished well.

I want to finish well.

I read this passage about Moses two years ago and I’ve thought about it for two years. Not every day, but just about every week. When I think about finishing my life, I want to be like Moses: eyes not weak and strength not gone.

So many around us don’t finish the race well. Between moral failure, broken marriages, addiction, and so much more, many followers of Christ don’t finish like Moses. What if I was different? What if we all, as followers of Christ, finished the race well?

I try to keep this idea in front of me every week. In my office at home, I have a poster on my wall with the words Momento Mori at the top. Momento Mori means “remember death.” It essentially means I will die one day. I know… pretty morbid, but this doesn’t make it less true.

The poster has 80 rows of 52 checkboxes on it, one row for 80 years of life, and one checkbox for every week of each year. Every week I check off another box. The Lord hasn’t guaranteed me 80 years of life, but it’s a visual reminder that life is short and I want to make the most of my time here. The primary way I want to do that is by finishing well and faithfully following Jesus. As I check off a box every week, I remind myself that I want to finish with my eyes undimmed and my strength strong.

Hebrews 11:24-26 says, “By faith Moses, when he was grown up, refused to be called the son of Pharaoh’s daughter, choosing rather to be mistreated with the people of God than to enjoy the fleeting pleasures of sin. He considered the reproach of Christ greater wealth than the treasures of Egypt, for he was looking to the reward.” (ESV)

Moses got it. He knew what treasure mattered and what would truly last. May we, like Moses, finish with eyes undimmed and our strength strong.

Your Turn:

How do you remind yourself to finish strong and stay faithful?

Side note: Two things I believe to be true about Moses and the Promised Land:

1. When he died, he would awaken to something infinitely greater than the Promises Land. He would be in the actual presence of the Lord, something much better than anything any of us experience in the broken world.

2. One day (before eternity) Moses would get to be in the Promised Land. In Matthew 17, Moses and Elijah appear on a mountain with Jesus in the presence of Peter, James, and John.