But the godly will flourish like palm trees and grow strong like the cedars of Lebanon, for they are transplanted into Yahweh’s own house. They flourish in the courts of our God.
Even in old age they will still produce fruit; they will remain vital and green, declaring, “Yahweh is my Rock; he is straight, there is no malice in him at all.”
Psalm 92:12-15 (author’s translation)
Surely one of the great dangers of growing old is to become a dry stick. We can so easily become cynical. We have seen it all; “there is nothing new under the sun.” We can even become bitter: life has not turned out as we dreamed it would when we were eighteen. Our circumstances may be restricted; our health has declined. Nobody wants whatever wisdom we might have to offer. So we withdraw into ourselves and all the things I have just mentioned become magnified in us as we spiral down to death.
What an awful picture, and this scripture says it doesn’t have to be that way. Good news! The first thing we see is location, as the realtors say. Where are we? We are transplanted into Yahweh’s own house. Can you see an orange tree in its container, sitting in the court of the Temple, with its branches swaying, as the songs of Zion float around it? That is our privilege. We can rejoice in the Lord’s presence with us, and we can rejoice in his presence in us. So I need to ask myself, “Where am I living? Am I marinating in my own stew, or am I living in God’s house, glorying in all that is mine?”
Then, as old as I am, I can still produce fruit. Really? Yes, really! The fruit of the Spirit is not just for young trees. It is for all of us. In fact, if you have been cultivating that fruit for the years of your life, it can be more luscious in the last years than it was in the first. And if you haven’t been cultivating it, start now! It’s not too late.
And what is the song that our waving branches sing? Shall we sing about all the changes that have occurred, that nothing is the same as it used to be? No, we sing of the Rock, who is the same yesterday, today and forever. The Rock who is straight and true, without a drop of malice in his character. Sing on!
Called To Be Transformed 