With Age, Comes
Wisdom (an essay)
by Jerry Guarino
I’m sure you’ve
noticed that congregants in church tend to be
senior citizens. Sometimes they are lifelong
believers, but it may be their evolution,
observing the world for a lifetime. Cynics will
say that they are just hedging their bet that
eternity is coming and they better get right with
their maker.
But I believe that most older people have
experienced life in retrospect, and finally see
the benefit of commitment to a higher power. They
have tried and failed to worship money, power,
and appearances, and have seen how these goals
just don’t last.
Those who haven’t
experienced this continue to believe that wealth,
power or status will sustain them. This is the
result of a fog, like the matrix, obscuring
reality for them. Too many people worship false
gods, money or power. Our current state of
America should be ample evidence that evil does
not build, it only destroys.
Let me suggest another way
to live. Examine everything you say and do as if
your life depended on it. It does, but you may
not realize it until you reach that age of
enlightenment.
Do good every day. Treat
others with respect. It doesn’t cost
anything to be nice to others. If you can help
someone, great, but you can always practice
kindness. Then, when you need help, someone might
be there. We can create a barter system of
charity, not with money, but with a willingness
to support others.
Now, I realize that many
people haven’t attained the basics needed in
life. They may be suffering with medical issues,
poverty or live in crime areas. These are the
people we can reach out to, lend a hand, donate
resources and pray for. Religious organizations
know this and have missions dedicated to making a
positive difference in the world.
What about the others?
Those who prey on innocents. We can only hope the
justice system will prevent them from harming
others. We have already seen how the justice
system can be perverted, how government leaders
can turn a democracy into a dictatorship. How
absolute power corrupts absolutely. Our current
government is alienating the world, grifting the
wealth of the poor and arresting anyone who
opposes them. Their power will come to an end.
I know the frustration of
the good people in our country, how they can’t
believe that some Christians can support a
dictator, how they can be racist when their
values are upside down to true Christianity. But
when people feel oppressed, they look for someone
who tells them they are worthy and who uses their
support to steal their money, power and values.
That’s how bullies (and presidents) maintain
their power, not by serving the people but by
using them. The Dunning-Kruger effect in
application. People with limited intelligence
think they are smart, while smart people realize
the limits to their knowledge. So, the dictator
tells them they are smart and they cling to him.
They couldn’t possibly be less intelligent
than those with higher education.
We, the educated, must
never put down people with less education, money
or power. We must never belittle their
occupations or lifestyle. The only way to change
their distrust is to accept them and demonstrate
kindness. It doesn’t cost anything.
My purpose today is to shed
light on the chaos, to explain how good is better
than evil, no matter what your circumstances are.
May God bless you in your daily ventures, provide
insight and examples to my testimony and reveal
the true nature of life and eternity.
With
Age, Comes Wisdom by Jerry Guarino
Copyright January, 2026 – All Rights
Reserved
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