together

taking the plunge
NOT to TOO go and LATE serve
overseas at 50+!
“One of the great things about getting to 60 was discovering a
whole new chapter in life,” says a Kiwi mission partner who headed
overseas aged 61. “In fact as an older person I’m much freer to go
now. I have more skills, wisdom and experience to share and probably
have more of a heart to serve.
“Any concern that I might not remain healthy and strong enough
simply dissipated as I’ve learned to take it one year at a time... that
is God’s department. If the next year turns out to be the last, well, it
will have been ten years well spent.”
There’s a big range of options, from retired doctors sharing their speciality,
to former admin people helping out with office work, to going to teach
English as a second language; from being an encourager and discipler to
being a ‘real Kiwi bloke’. It’s pretty much a case of whatever your skills are,
that’s what you can do. Not all mission locations need you to become fluent
in another language (definitely this gets harder as you age!)
Yes, some fit, mature people have family commitments with grand kids
or elderly relatives; others might have a spouse who can’t travel. But if not,
how sad to sit at home saying, “It’s too late”, just because you didn’t dare
to think it possible — if God is calling you to a new venture in your life.
Here are some comments that might be helpful, from some who have taken
the plunge and gone.
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