1 Timothy 5:1 5\16\2017*22*

"Do not rebuke an older man harshly, but exhort him as if he were your father..."

Our society as has wandered away from this verse.  Admonishing someone to treat an older man as their father, doesn't carry the weight it did when this was written.

There was a time in our culture when parents and grandparents were honored.  Patriarchs and matriarchs were the foundation upon which families were built.  They were held in high esteem and their contributions was recognized and appreciated.

Somehow today, our "throw away" mentality has now been applied to the generation before us. Our elders have become a burden and are stored away as conveniently as possible.  This may be our biggest failing as a society, and it certainly has contributed to the deterioration of the family unit.

Ironically we are making our own bed.  It would behoove us to model respect for the elderly.  Most of us will face old age one day, and we will be as bewildered by it as those that have gone before us.  

The old man you are so impatient with today, was once the star athlete of his team. He was the soldier that risked his life for your freedom.  He was the go-to guy at home, and the office. His body has changed, but he has not ... and it must be baffling to him to have people assume he no longer has anything to offer.  

God has a better plan.  Honor your elders.  Never be harsh with an older man or woman. Understand that they have wisdom you will not have until you have walked the roads they have walked.

How foolish we are to ignore the wealth of experience and discernment that is only found in age.

If you are blessed enough to still have your parents, intentionally honor them.  If not, go by a retirement center. Speak to the staff and see if there is a resident who seldom gets visitors and "adopt" that person.   Ask them to share their wisdom with you, and make it your habit to visit them. Demonstrate that they are important to you, and speak value into their lives.  

You will see them blossom ... but you will be the one who is blessed. 

"Youth is the gift of nature, but age is a work of art."
 Stanislaw Jerzy Lec