A Lovely Old Age

“There was a prophetess called Anna….far advanced in years. She had lived with her husband ever since seven years after she came to womanhood, and now was a widow of eighty-four years of age. She never left the Temple and day and night, she worshipped with fasting and prayers. At that time she came up and began to give thanks to God and she kept speaking about him to all those who were waiting expectantly for the deliverance of Jerusalem …” (Luke 2:36-40)

We know nothing about Anna except what these verses tell but even in this brief compass, Luke has drawn us a complete character sketch.

(1) Anna was a widow. She had known sorrow and she had not grown bitter. Sorrow can do one of two things to us. It can make us hard, bitter, resentful, and rebellious against God. Or it can make us kinder, softer, more sympathetic. It can despoil us of our faith; or it can root faith ever deeper. It all depends how we think of God. If we think of Him as a tyrant, we will resent Him. If we think of Him as Father, we, too, will be sure that “A Father’s hand will never cause his child a needless tear.”

(2) She was 84 years of age. She was old and she had never ceased to hope. Age can take away the bloom and the strength of our bodies; but age can do worse – the years can take away the life of our hearts until the hopes that once we cherished die and we become dully content and grimly resigned to things as they are. Again, it all depends on how we think of God. If we think of Him as distant and detached we may well despair; but if we think of Him as intimately connected with life, as having His hand on the helm, we, too, will be sure that the best is yet to be and the years will never kill our hope. How then was Anna such as she was?

(1) She never ceased to worship. She spent her life in God’s house with God’s people. God gave us His church to be our mother in the faith. We rob ourselves of a priceless treasure when we neglect to be one with His worshipping people.

(2) She never ceased to pray. Public worship is great; but private worship is also great. As someone has truly said, “They pray best together who first pray alone.” The years had left Anna without bitterness and in unshakable hope, because day by day she kept her contact with Him who is the source of strength and in whose strength our weakness is made perfect.

William Barclay