Another Milestone Birthday

They say age is just a number and my number this year is 60. I’ve been dreading this birthday for months and now that it’s here. I’ve come to realize that each day brings me a day closer to retirement and a day closer to the end . . . the end of this life and on to eternity. 

Any birthday number that ends in zero, feels like a life changer. When I turned 50, I felt vibrant, healthy, and energetic. We were hiking and checking off some crazy and somewhat dangerous bucket list hikes. But 60 feels different. I still feel healthy, I still have several hikes on my bucket list, but like many people, I am fighting to keep the energy going.

Although Ecclesiastes may not be the best book in the Bible to go to on a milestone birthday, it is a book with a few things to say about life, aging, and the end of it all. The verse I want to share is Ecclesiastes 12:1, “Remember your Creator in the days of your youth.” 

What does it mean to “Remember your Creator?” It means to know Him, to love Him, and to serve Him. As many of us have dealt with aging parents, we know that one day we won’t be able to see as we once saw, we won’t be able to hear as we once heard, and we won’t be able walk as we once walked. There are so many things we want to do in life and our normal response is “I’ll get around to it one day.” When is that “one day.” Is it when we get married? Is it when our kids are grown? Is it when we retire? I don’t know when one day is, but I know that I don’t want life to pass me by and everything I’ve done to be considered worthless. I want to “Remember my Creator.” I want to know Him more, to love Him more, and to serve Him more. 

Everyone tells me that as healthy as I am that I will live to be 100.  I had an aunt who lived to be 100 and I may make it that far, but I also know God has given me life and He will end it when He sees fit. As I reluctantly move on into my 60s, I find myself looking forward to what the future holds and dreading what the future holds. As we know, there is nothing pretty about aging. My mom was very lonely after my dad died and she spent years waiting to leave this world. They missed out on retirement together because my dad didn’t live long after he stopped working. They saved money and worked hard to build a life together and it ended way too soon. I didn’t see my dad work his way into old age but I saw my mom do it and it was sad to watch. 

I recently heard a doctor say on a podcast that the biggest regret people have as they age is that they didn’t take better care of themselves. All the aches and pains that come with old age are normally accompanied by poor lifestyle choices. I know the choices I made in my 50s have affected how I live in my 60s, and how I live in my 60s will affect how I live in my 70s. I am ready to face the next several years (Lord willing) with determination, and with whatever it takes to be a better me. I’m ready to take on this next decade remembering my creator.