Make your final lap your finest lap!

27 Jan Make your final lap your finest lap!

27 January 2026

“Gray hair is a crown of glory; it is attained in the way of righteousness.” – Proverbs 16:31

When I used to give Bibles to 4^th grade students that was always a verse I made them highlight. I did that for two reasons: 1^st I wanted them to learn to see older people with some degree of respect & honour; that age was not a failing but a feature of being graced by God with longevity. But 2^nd I hoped they would start to see getting older the way God sees the aging process…

I don’t know if you’ve ever considered it before…but God intends our final lap to be our finest lap. I believe the Bible clearly teaches that as we age God’s wisdom & work in us is refined not retired.

I’ve started reading a book I borrowed from Leonie & I know a few of you have read; Aging with Grace: Flourishing in an Anti-Aging Culture. It’s co-written by Sharon W. Betters & Susan Hunt who are both senior saints & write as women for women…but I’m really enjoying the book. I’ve only just started, but the thrust so far is that as we age we need to remember & live from the truth that older believers have had a lifetime of being moulded & shaped by God. The Holy Spirit has used every experience of our lives to conform us into Christ’s image & wants to use us, in the light of that lifetime of moulding & shaping, to bless & encourage those coming behind us. I recommend you order a copy & maybe read it with a few friends…or ask Leonie & Philippa to use it in the Living Water bookclub…?

After almost 40 years as a pastor now, and nearing that 65 threshold myself, I think many of the senior saints I’ve known get trapped in an identity not of Christ’s making. The most common conversation I have often includes the words, “My mom/dad wouldn’t have let me…” “My confirmation pastor told me…” “In our house growing up…” “When I was younger…” and what follows is a description of a tourniquet tied around some part of their life that has not ever been taken off in 30-50-70 years. Something from a long time ago still constricts & confines their living out of the new life they have in Christ & their new identity with the risen Jesus Christ dwelling in them. Paul would say it like this: “My old self has been crucified with Christ, & it is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. So I live in this earthly body by trusting in the Son of God, who loved me & gave himself for me.” – Galatians 2:20

I was struck the other morning reading from Matthew 26…in the lead up to his arrest, trial, crucifixion, & resurrection Jesus says to the disciples, “Tonight all of you will desert me. For the Scriptures say, ‘God will strike the Shepherd, & the sheep of the flock will be scattered.’ But after I have been raised from the dead, I will go ahead of you to Galilee & meet you there.” – Matthew 26:31-32 It’s unmistakable: even failure is not the final word on us. Jesus raised from death rewrites the script on our lives, bestows a completely new identity & way of living in the world, & prepares us for & commissions us into his mission for the rest of our lives.

So…about that grey hair…let me say it again & with complete confidence: God intends our final lap to be our finest lap. I believe the Bible clearly teaches that as we age God’s wisdom & work in us is refined not retired. And don’t let anyone tell you otherwise…especially someone who’s been dead for a long time.

In the meantime…some important things to further that refining work of Christ in each of us…

1. Saturday 31^st January – Living Water Fellowship Prayer Morning @ our house, 7 Gidgee Place – 10:00 – 11:00 a.m. We’re offering special prayers for Iran & our February Giving Beyond Ourselves, Riding for the Disabled. I’ll have the coffee pot going & the kettle boiling.Sunday
2. Sunday 1^st February – We kick-off a three-week worship & teaching series on Jesus’ Vision for Living Water Fellowship…Living with Him, Growing in Him, & Sharing Him with Others. AND it’s our GBO for RDA & Morning Tea.
3. School starts next week…Pray for the teachers & staff (who are already on campus for their own learning & growing opportunities) and the students & families. Ask God to provide a smooth transition from holidays to the teaching & learning routines, and for deep wisdom to be passed on to the growing generations.
4. Super Bowl watching morning Tea @ Graeme’s house – 10:30 a.m., Monday February 9^th. Bring something tasty to share so Graeme doesn’t have to do all the cooking.
5. We’re getting mighty close…so let me put this out there again so you can invite someone who might not otherwise be in worship…
   1. Ash Wednesday Worship – 18th February @ 7:00 p.m.
   1. Maundy Thursday – 2nd April @ 7:00 p.m.
   1. Good Friday – 3rd April @ 9:00 a.m.
   1. Easter Sunday – 5th April @ 10:00 a.m.

God bless you in the week ahead!

See you Sunday if not sooner

John