When do we move from middle age into old age? Is it when our hair begins to turn grey - or we lose it? Could it be when we hit the age of being eligible to receive our pensions? Maybe it is at that time of life when we cease to carry out any kind of paid employment? Is it when our health begins to fail, or when we come to a point of realising that we can no longer do what we used to? Many people say that 'old age' is all about attitude of mind.
God doesn't want us to stop living fulfilling lives - filled with joy and hope - just because we have reached a certain age. We still have spiritual needs to be met; callings to fulfil; and, through our relationship with Jesus, an eternal spiritual connection with God that no one and nothing can take away. And this is why I came to write Still Valued and Blessed. Not to try and define when old age does or does not begin, but to encourage the kind of understanding of Scripture, relationship with Jesus and mind-set that enables us to approach, enter and journey through old age with a positive attitude that will enable it to be a spiritually fruitful and fulfilling time of our lives.
Just because we are older, doesn't mean we have to stop! Indeed, surely it is better to see this stage in all our lives as nothing more - and nothing less - than another chapter! New experiences lie ahead, new wonders, new challenges.
With God beside us, these senior years have as much promise as the ones which we have already lived. It is not about dwelling on the things we can no longer do - though don't for a minute think just because you're a certain age you can't run a half marathon or learn a new skill - it is about seeking God's continued calling, no matter what our age. And in that, realising and relishing the fact that we are, each and every one of us, Still Valued and Blessed.
Patrick Coghlan