What Glenn Writes

I was standing with a group of friends at a holiday gathering a few weeks ago.  Everything seemed to be normal until Mary Ann uttered a startled cry. 

To my amazement, she was staring at me, eyes wide and hand covering her open mouth.  I couldn’t tell if her expression was one of fear or surprise, or a mixture of the two.  I, of course, jumped to the most obvious conclusion that anyone else would have jumped to – that small bump on my ear bothering me for years was now growing and I was about to have some hideous growth take over the side of my head.

I was frozen with fear. 

What to do?  Should I run and hide?  Dedicate my ear to science?  Grab a piece of salami from the deli tray nearby and cover my ear so no one else would notice? 

As I struggled with this life threatening dilemma, Mary Ann stepped forward and grabbed my head.  This alone was shocking, then she said two words, “Oh my!”

Now my fear was escalating.  I was positive she was looking at my ear as it grew to a Vulcan point and turned to a nasty green color.  (I mean no offense to any of you with green Vulcan ears; it’s just not my color.) 

She finally released my head from her vise grip and shared the subject of her surprise.  “You have gray hair.” 

A wave of relief washed over me – you know that feeling when you finally realize you’re not mutating?  My breathing returned to normal and my heart stopped pounding like a piston in my chest.  This gave me a chance to come up with a witty reply to her comment. 

“Oh… yeah… my gray hair.  You know it is actually white, not gray?”  What else do you say in a situation like that?  What would be the manly reply?

Am I getting old? 

This question begs an answer that corrects the views of society where aging is a bad thing or a sign of weakness.  Aging is a natural occurrence, something we should embrace for wisdom and strength.

The Bible tells us in Job 12:12-13 that “Wisdom is with aged men, and with length of days, understanding.  With him are wisdom and strength, he has counsel and understanding.”

Here we recognize what is obvious: elderly people have a wealth of knowledge.  An older person is more experienced at life than younger generations.  Why is getting old a bad thing if you are getting wiser, learning from life’s trials and tests?  Isn’t this information valuable? 

God’s Word continues to give us good reference about this wisdom, defined character, and how the elderly should use it to instruct the younger.  Titus 2:2-8 provides, “That the older men be sober, reverent, temperate, sound in faith, in love, in patience; the older women likewise, that they be reverent in behavior, not slanderers, not given to much wine, teachers of good things – that they admonish the young women to love their husbands, to love their children, to be discreet, chaste, homemakers, good, [loyal] to their own husbands, that the word of God may not be blasphemed.  Likewise exhort the young men to be sober-minded, in all things showing yourself to be a pattern of good works; in doctrine showing integrity, reverence, incorruptibility, sound speech that cannot be condemned, that one who is an opponent may be ashamed, having nothing evil to say of you.”

This passage provides a goal in character for the “older men and women”, and instructs them to “admonish the young women” and “exhort the young men” is such ways to build integrity and righteous behavior.  The older men and women are the senior citizens of our modern times, in the later stages of life with an abundance of wisdom gained from their experiences.  We need to look to this counsel, appreciate them, and respect their position in life. 

God’s Word further identifies this position in Proverbs 16:31, “The silver-haired head is a crown of glory, if it is found in the way of righteousness.”

To return to my question – am I getting old?  While I have a few strands of white hair, I am far from wearing a crown of glory and farther from claiming to be wise.  Yet, to follow God’s will, I should embrace my aging and share what I do know with those that are younger. 

So drop me a line if you want to know something about green Vulcan ears and how to hide them with deli meat.   

Glenn Sasscer
www.glennsasscer.com

Having three children is a blessing beyond description. I love them dearly. I cannot imagine life without them, especially their creativity and laughter. Through them, I find myself being fairly creative in my interaction. In fact, I thought I would share some of the statements I have made (and never thought I would) over the course of the last thirteen years in my creative interaction with my children.

To lay it out Letterman Style, the Top Ten Things I Never Thought I Would Say:

Number Ten: Do not climb your sibling.

Number Nine: Do not stand on your brother’s head.

Number Eight: No, we are not stopping to look at the roadkill.

Number Seven: I’m sorry, but the bottom of your foot is one of the places Daddy does not kiss the boo-boos.

Number Six: Yes, your rear-end would be another.

Number Five: (After a three year-old told me her toy wouldn’t work because it was the “damnbatteries”) Yes, I know what we call them, but “damnbatteries” is not one word and you should just call them batteries.

Number Four: No, I’m not doing mouth-to-mouth resuscitation on a fish.

Number Three: There is no such thing as a meatatarian, and if there were, you would still have to eat your vegetables.

Number Two: If you make me laugh when I am disciplining you, I will give you twice the discipline.

Number One: No, you cannot redecorate the living room in American Cheese.

There are numerous more, but some are too embarrassing to my kids. Do you have any you want to share? Let me know with a comment below.

Glenn Sasscer
www.glennsasscer.com