Where do you think a person needs the most and intense
spiritual care in the course of a life?
Would it be as a child, a teenager, a young or median aged adult, or in the
senior years? That’s a hard question to
answer for me and maybe hard for you to answer as well. As a hospital chaplain there is no doubt that
much of my time is willingly and humbly spent caring for senior adult patients
and those nearing the end of life. But I
want to make the case for the idea, somewhat self-evident, that all aged people
need spiritual care and the individual has the task of finding ways to meet
those needs.
I remember our oldest
daughter’s “baby dedication” at Emmanuel Baptist Church in West Chester, PA in
late 1989. I was so proud of her and she
was a delight. I still remember the pink
bow/ribbon and beautiful pink dress she adorned. I felt very proud and greatly humbled to be
part of the service where she was dedicated to God and I was dedicating myself
to raise her up in the ways of the LORD.
Children are the beneficiaries of the spiritual work and dedication that
parents exercise and those actions can include bringing them to religious
training classes, regular worship and special events like Vacation Bible
School.
Eventually kids grow up and they have to decide for
themselves how they will chart their spiritual journeys. Which books will they read? Will they attend services? Will they go with their parents? Those questions become more open ended and
answerable by the growing and maturing teen and young adult. Eventually, a person in young adulthood tests
their faith and follows the similar road of parents or maybe even goes in the
total opposite direction. Then, at some
point, middle aged adults have the task of finding ways to remain faithful to
their religious ideals or to chart new spiritual goals. Here’s my point: Spiritual needs and growth can happen at all
ages, not just end of life or in the senior adult years.
Self-awareness and self-reflection are two very important
focal points for spiritual growth.
Looking inward to one’s emotions, spiritual beliefs, and values helps
one to gain a more sure understanding of one’s present condition. Looking outward to God, nature, a higher
power, or even more spiritually minded people can be healthy and helpful
too. There are many spiritual caregivers
in the world who are more than willing to help us on our journey. That may be a chaplain, a pastor, a rabbi, an
imam, or a pastoral counselor.
Challenges throughout the life cycle will surely come. When those tests appear, don’t forget to
find a spiritual caregiver who can guide you and help you regardless of one’s
age or one’s problems and needs. The
time for spiritual growth is always today and always now. May you be blessed as you spiritually grow
and develop in the coming days and months.
