“Praise the Lord, O my soul. . . who satisfies your desires with good things so that your youth is renewed like the eagle’s (Psalm 103:1,5).
Does pain seem to age you?
I feel it does. I once took a
test in a magazine to determine whether I seemed older than my chronological
age, and I scored ten years ahead of my current age. That was somewhat depressing!
In Charles Stanley’s January devotional booklet, he gave
three suggestions for maintaining a youthful attitude – laughing, longing, and
leaning.
My husband is very good at laughing about his essential
tremor. He jokes about some of the
problems it causes and doesn’t let it rob him of his sense of humor. Scripture even says that a cheerful heart is
a good medicine (Proverbs 17:22).
We should keep longing – having goals and dreams that we
continue to work toward as much as possible, rather than just watching the
world go by. Right now I am pursuing
starting a pain support group in our new town. Part of me is afraid to try because of my
health issues, but if this is God’s will, He will give me the strength and
ability to do it.
Finally, we are to keep leaning on God. We can do nothing on our own, even if we are
healthy. All that we are and do is a gift
from God. When we continually maintain
our trust in Him, we can live our lives as fully as we were meant to live them,
despite our weaknesses and limitations.
I know my body is ageing, and in one sense I don’t mind
that, because it means I’m getting closer to my heavenly home. But as long as I’m here, laughing, longing,
and leaning are great suggestions for feeling younger and brighter and cost
nothing but a willing attitude.
Prayer: Dear Lord, You know how my pain can rob me of
a bright and youthful outlook on life.
It is so easy for me to feel old in heart and spirit as well as
body. Teach me to laugh more, to long
and look for ways to serve You in my current condition, and to lean on You at
all times. And as I do, please use me to
brighten the lives of others. Amen.
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