The Golden Age

On January 1, 2011, the first of all the Baby Boomers will turn sixty-five. Before long, people who are sixty-five will be caring for parents who are eighty-five and grandparents who are 105.

 

Our parents’ golden years were meant to be just that: golden. This period of later life is not simply a "waiting station" between this world and the next. As children and caregivers, we can encourage our parents and grandparents to live with purpose, passion, and prayer. We can listen to their teaching and their wise advice. We can help them get outdoors more often, eat healthfully, interact with friends and family, tell their stories, record their memories, and create a powerful legacy to pass on to others. Most of all, we can communicate God's love through our own love and care for them.

 

If you're a hardworking caregiver who needs a dose of spiritual refreshment today, please take a few moments to meditate on this uplifting passage of Scripture:

 

      My son , do not forget my teaching,

      But let your heart keep my commandments;

      For length of days and years of life

      And peace they will add to you...

      Trust in the Lord with all your heart

      And do not lean on your own understanding.

      In all your ways acknowledge Him,

      And He will make your paths straight.

      Do not be wise in your own eyes;

      Fear the Lord and turn away from evil.

      It will be healing to your body

      And refreshment to your bones. (Proverbs 3:1-2, 5-8)

 

For a list of excellent resources on caregiving, please click on the "Parenting Your Parents" link at the top of my front page. I'll include many more tips and resources for caregivers in the forthcoming book Parenting Your Parents with Grace: The Christian Caregiver's Compehensive Guidebook, coauthored with Darlene Ankerberg. More information will follow soon!