"God Calls the Young Because they are Strong, and the Old Because they know the Way".

This blog post all started because of a picture sent to me from a dear friend, a brother in Christ, a fellow-laborer in the ministry. This brother, friend and co-laborer I had the blessed pleasure of meeting over 20 years ago while he was incarcerated at a state prison in Pennsylvania, and I was there as a chaplain. He was there, serving a life sentence, with no possibility of parole. I was there, I found out later, as a result of prayer by this man and other brothers also locked up who was believing God for an “African-American pastor” who will fill the shoes of a former chaplain who had been promoted to glory. Of all the men who applied for that position, I was the only African American pastor.

When I got the picture from him, which he had taken now as a free man from the city of Philadelphia, he said that today, March 25^th was “when he caught his case” some 46 years ago, and ended up doing 44 years in prison. He’s been out of prison now for a year and doing what he did for nearly all of the years that I knew him on the inside…ministering to men and boys…sharing his testimony, preaching and teaching the Word…”talking the walk, and walking the talk”! Because of that, he has influence countless men and boys, whose eternal destiny has changed forever!

But my mind reeled when I saw the picture and read those words! I immediately remembered something my former pastors and spiritual father would always say…” that God called the young because they are strong, and the old because they know the way”. While those exact words are not Scripture, there is a Scripture that sends us that way, namely, 1 John 2:12-14. When I met my friend, we were both young men…we were strong…sometimes head-strong, ambitious, excited, confident. Over the years, my brother and I grew older and wiser; thankfully, he remained the same as he was when he was young. Prison has a way of doing that…you are caught in a “time loop” on the inside. Outside things changed almost as quickly as the minute hands on a clock. I changed…true I grew older and wiser, but lost the strength, ambition and excitement of my younger days.

Strange that I remembered the words of my former pastor? Stranger yet, that I thought of them when I saw that picture. But then I understood something, understood it as David did and recorded in Psalm 71:17, 18. In order to prepare the Body of Christ for the return of Christ, and win millions of souls in the balance, God is going to call, anoint and use the young (men like my son Benjamin, and his youth group he now leads)…because they are strong, and He has us “old guys” around because He needs us to impart knowledge to this generation (really generations when you think about it) and to all those generations (if the Lord tarries) which are to come.

Looking at that picture reminded me of the passage of time, so many memories from those days at the prison where revival broke out and lasted 3 years, the Lord confirming the Word with miracles, sighs and wonders! It also brought to my remembrance, that because my brother and I are still here, and because of young strong men like Benjamin, the Lord still has something for us to do…and He is well able to perform even greater miracles, signs and wonders!