Bible reading for 40.Day 2025 | Psalm 92:14

We live in an unprecedented season and time in Singapore. As a nation, we will reach superaged status in 2026. This means that more than 1 in 5 of the total resident population will be aged 65 and above.

We are now among the fastest ageing countries in Asia, along with Japan, Hong Kong and South Korea.

As our country prepares itself for a silver tsunami, what is the response of the Church and Christians?

Will we approach this in a posture of apprehension and helplessness, or shall we see this as God’s open window of opportunity and impact on our nation and our seniors?

A silver tsunami… or a divine opportunity?

What is the Lord impressing upon our hearts to be All In for our seniors in Singapore?

Allow me to propose 3 responses.

1. Model

The Church must model a Christian attitude towards ageing to the world.

Leviticus 19:32 (ESV) tells us –

“You shall stand up before the gray head and honour the face of an old man, and you shall fear your God: I am the LORD.”

Notice that honouring a senior is mentioned in the same breath as fearing (and honouring) God. Let this be the starting point for a godly posture that we hold in our interactions with our seniors – to accord to them respect and dignity – in our families, in society and within our communities of faith.

Let us teach our children to honour our seniors in both speech and deed.

Let us never be quick to dismiss or devalue our seniors’ contributions because they appear slower or struggling to catch up with technology or new things.

Let us remember their patience with us when we were younger and learning to find our own way in the world.

Let us extend this same patience to them as they learn and relearn to navigate in this fast-changing and complex world.

2. Minister

The autumn years may be a time and season of change and loss for the older adult. This could mean:

• a change in a life role, from an active working person to retirement;
• a gradual loss of energy and ability due to the natural process of ageing or disease and disability;
• or loss of friends and family.

Even as the Psalmist prayed in Psalm 71:9 (ESV):

“Do not cast me off in the time of old age; forsake me not when my strength is spent.”

Let us be the answered prayer for seniors among us who are lonely, helpless and feeling hopeless.

To the lonely, let us minister God’s presence through community.

To the helpless, let us minister God’s power through prayer.

To the hopeless, let us minister God’s peace through comfort.

3. Mobilise

The Psalmist continues in Psalm 71:17-18:

“O God, from my youth you have taught me, and I still proclaim your wondrous deeds. So even to old age and gray hairs, O God, do not forsake me, until I proclaim your might to another generation, your power to all those to come.”

Like Caleb of old who asked to be given another mountain to conquer in his 80s, let us mobilise and activate our seniors to discover and renew their purpose during this season of grey hairs.

That they will find great joy as they leave a godly legacy of God’s provision and faithfulness for the next generation to follow.

That their stories will inspire the hearts and minds of those who listen to live as followers of Jesus.

Let us believe as the psalmist said in Psalm 92:14 (ESV):

“They still bear fruit in old age, They are ever full of sap and green.”

Let us mobilise our seniors to remain active in serving the Lord.

Let us create opportunities for invitation, for interaction and for inspiration – for seniors to impact seniors, for seniors to impact the young in cross-generational activities.

Let us be All In to model, to minister and to mobilise in this Kairos season that God has opened for us in Singapore!

Let’s pray:

LORD, help us be Your salt and light
to model love to bring delight
to sketch the years with dignity
to show the world Your Son to see

LORD, help us hold the ones who fear
Your hope and grace to minister
Your peace and presence, power to free
each soul from pain’s captivity

LORD help us now to mobilise,
our older saints in faith to rise
enlarge their tents their territory
to live as You would have them be!

In Jesus’ name, Amen.

Reflect:

1. What is our heart attitude towards the elderly? Do we patronise them, or do we ignore them? What is God’s heart for the elderly?

2. Look around us: Who are the elderly persons who are lonely, helpless, hopeless? What will we do to bring the love of Jesus to them?

3. How can we encourage our elderly parents, grandparents, church friends to keep living the best life they can with what God has given them?

Pray:

1. That the Lord will help us to model Jesus to the elderly, to be salt and light to bring the love of Christ to them.

2. That the Lord will help us to minister to the elderly, to introduce them to the joy, hope and peace that they can have in Jesus.

3. That the Lord will help us to mobilise elderly Christians to be like Caleb in his 80s, that they will continue to go All In for God.

Follow Salt&Light on Telegram, Facebook or Instagram for more of LoveSingapore’s daily devotions until August 9, 2025.