On this day in 2003 a 70-year-old man from Japan became the oldest man to climb to the top of Mount Everest.

At this time in your life, you probably know many things you can’t do yet because you are not old enough—like drive a car or vote for president. Life often is restricted by our age—we’re either too young or too old to do certain things. And it’s true that as people age certain more vigorous activities become more and more difficult.

But just when you start to think about age as a limitation, you read about someone like Yuichiro Miura. This 70-year-old school headmaster and former professional skier from Japan became the oldest person to reach the summit of the Mount Everest—the world’s highest peak! Mr. Miura said climbing the mountain was a dream come true for him. And in accomplishing that feat, the Japanese climber shattered the record previously held by another Japanese man, Tomiyasu Ishikawa, who was 65 when he reached the top of Mt. Everest.

Old age is never a restriction in God’s eyes. Think about Noah. He was 600 years old when he first stepped foot on the ark and the flood began! Abraham became a father at age 100. And Moses was over 80 when he returned to Egypt to confront Pharaoh and rescue God’s people from slavery. The Bible describes Joshua as “old and well advanced in years” when God commanded him to finish conquering the Promised Land (Joshua 13:1). No matter how old a person is God still can use that person to carry out his work. The psalm-writer put it this way: “Even in old age they will still produce fruit.”

Think about the older people you know at your church or in your neighborhood. You can learn much from their experiences and their walk with God. Just ask them!

Even in old age they will still produce fruit; they will remain vital and green (Psalm 92:14).

To Do

Record an oral history of an older person from your church. Ask how that person has served God at different stages of his or her life. Share what you discover with others.

Also on this day . . .

1933—This was the first reported sighting of the Loch Ness Monster.

1967—”Mister Roger’s Neighborhood” made its debut on TV.

From Betsy Schmitt and Dave Veerman, 365 Trivia Twist Devotions: An Almanac of Fun Facts and Spiritual Truth for Every Day of the Year (Cincinnati: Standard, 2005). Scripture quotations are from the New Living Translation unless otherwise noted.