Every one of us is growing older and every one of us will one day be old. Yet it is a subject most Christians think about only once it is already upon them, when the wiser course is to face it proactively rather than reactively. Here are books I recommend on aging and the second half of life. (See also my recommendations on death.)
Top Recommendation
Aileen and I read this one together. These are just numbers, but already we have a deep awareness that we have entered into the afternoon of life. Already we are seeing how different our lives have become, and already we are grappling with new challenges and embracing new opportunities. This book offered us exactly the guidance we needed to face them well. I didn’t know how badly we needed Not Old, Not Young, Not Done, nor how much we would benefit from reading it together. I highly recommend it to anyone who is already in the afternoon of life or who will soon be.
Other Recommendations
Our culture has an unhealthy relationship with aging and tells a false story about it. Wilkin counters that story with a distinctly Christian one, insisting there is dignity in aging and a crucial place in the world for the aged. It will bless anyone who reads it.
On caring for aging parents. Not long ago I told a couple of publishers we badly needed a book that would offer a distinctly Christian perspective on this; Making Good Return is exactly the book I was hoping to see.
On euthanasia, which is widespread and becoming more common, accepted and becoming more acceptable—and nowhere more so than here in Canada. It prepares and equips us for what is sure to prove one of the defining issues of our time.
Meant to acquaint Christians with death so they might think about it rightly and face it courageously.
Modest in its aims and better for it. It lays a theological foundation for the kind of ordinary movement that keeps a body useful for many years, and frames it as a means of doing good to others and glorifying God.
