Day 158, or June 7. Retirement? You can't be serious. Our thoughts today are rooted
in Psalm 37, verse 3. Trust in the Lord and do good. Dwell in the land and enjoy safe
pasture.
First the big picture surrounding this verse. Psalm 37 is a psalm for individuals rather
than temple worship. It stimulates our thinking about knowing intimacy with God for the whole
of our lifetime. The Bible tells us that David reigned for forty years and lived to be seventy.
By the time of David, the longevity of the patriarchs had passed away, and average lifespans
were usually shorter than ours today. However, David didn't retire. He was active right
up to his death, and that's a great example for us to follow.
And now our action step for today. Inactive Christianity is a contradiction in terms.
Whether our involvement is front line or back seat, we must be active if our faith is to
continue to grow. David knew that resting in the Lord didn't mean doing nothing, but
on the contrary, it meant doing lots whilst being safe and secure with God. For most of
us a change in pace or even a change in ministry is often essential, but sliding into total
inactivity is not an option.
When the concept of retirement was introduced into Western society, and that wasn't long
ago, the revolutionary idea of stopping work and then doing nothing was born. My grandparents
generation worked so hard that their retirement was all too brief, and for many in history
it has been the same. In the twenty-first century, however, we are now seeing people
living so long that they spend as much time retired as they did in employment. Hobbies
have their place, and extra holidays are great, but continuing our work with the God who created
us is the way to make the most of today and prepare us for all that is to come. Stay as
active as you can and enjoy life to the full, because that is surely what Jesus had in mind
when He said that He came to bring us life in all its fullness.