Our sins have a way of catching up to us in our old age. As we read in the Word of God, “The sins of some men are quite evident, going before them to judgment; for others, their sins follow after” (1 Timothy 5:24).
If you and I do not deal with our sins now, they will surely be evident when we get older. Sins such as stubbornness, unkindness, and selfishness seem to really hit us as older people.
On one occasion, I was visiting a Senior Care Home about a friend in need of a place to stay. As I was leaving, the manager asked me if my friend was like another Christian acquaintance of ours who they had cared for previously. I answered, “What do you mean?”
They responded, “Well, we had so much trouble with Mr. ______. Not only did we have real problems with him but especially with his wife when she came to visit!” They went on to say that this Christian couple said very bad things to the directors and staff, were extremely difficult to care for, and were rude and never satisfied.
I felt ashamed that this was the testimony of some of my Christian friends. Even though I had noticed this in the gentleman’s life over the years, I was never in a situation to discuss it with him. Perhaps I should have.
It is important to not only hear the Word of God Sunday after Sunday in messages from our pastors but also to obey the Word of God.
As we read Scripture day by day describing the characteristics of a godly person, we need to immediately confess our sins before God and ask His help in obeying for His glory.
Any offense that we give or criticism that we receive should never be because of our crudeness in speech or un-Christlike actions. Our only offense should be because of our godly character and in speaking of the cross, the Gospel.
So what type of person are you going to be at age 70, 80 and 90? Grumpy? Unkind? Selfish? Stubborn? Or will you be a man or woman of God with character qualities which bring glory to God?
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