Something began to change in my thinking on my 40^th birthday. I realized I was about halfway through my life. When I approached 50, the advertisements from AARP began to arrive confirming my understanding. I was being awakened to the prospect of aging and death. Growing older offers us a new perspective on our remaining days and how we want to finish this life.

Country singer, Toby Keith, just passed away. Before his death, he told a story of playing golf with the actor/director, Clint Eastwood. As they rounded the 17th hole, Toby asked Clint, “What are you doing next?” Clint responded that he was leaving soon to direct the movie, The Mule, and would be gone for three or four months. Clint was 88 years old at the time. Toby asked Clint, “How do you keep going at this age?” Clint responded, “I don’t let the old man In.”  What Clint was saying to Toby is that he did not let the prospect of his death or the process of aging rule his life. 

The words of Clint caused Toby to write his song, Don’t Let the Old Man In. He sent a copy of the completed song to Clint. Less than an hour after sending the song to Clint, Clint called Toby and asked if he could use the song in the movie, The Mule. 

As I listened to Toby share the origin of his song, I thought of Caleb as he approached his 85^th year. He did not let the old man in. “Now, as you can see, the Lord has kept me alive and well as he promised for all these forty-five years since Moses made this promise—even while Israel wandered in the wilderness. Today I am eighty-five years old. I am as strong now as I was when Moses sent me on that journey, and I can still travel and fight as well as I could then” (Joshua 14:10-11). I also remembered the testimony of the life of Moses. “Although Moses was 120 years old when he died, his eyesight was not dim, nor had his vigor left him” (Deuteronomy 34:7).

The common denominator in both Caleb and Moses’ lives was a single attribute – they had absolute confidence in the promises of God. Their faithfulness to God’s promises kept them spiritually alive and responsive to God’s voice. When we stop believing, our faith begins to die and we let the old man in.

Perhaps it’s my age that’s causing me to reevaluate my remaining years with greater scrutiny. When I listened to Toby sing his song, I thought of the testimony of Caleb and Moses, and many others today, who finished strong at the end of their lives because their faith never weakened by letting the old man in.