The demographic of Christian senior citizens plays a critical role in building the body of Christ. Elder Christians possess a wealth of life experience and perspective that younger adults and kids do not have. Many seniors have spiritual wisdom and leadership strength to share. The whole body benefits when seniors use their gifts in the church. Most seniors want their church life to involve more than bus trips and lunches for people in their age bracket.
Seniors want to matter. Growing seniors want to impact their world and the future generations.
Often, seniors struggle to adapt to their season of life. Maybe they no longer go to work. They are done raising children and enjoying regular interaction with friends and family. During their last chapter of life, seniors may grapple with grief over the loss of a spouse, the loss of friends, chronic illness and physical limitations, and the end of a career. They often lack the energy and mobility that they’re used to. In addition, seniors are often lonely.
Instead of wishing church leaders would invite them into deeper involvement, seniors can be proactive about their own spiritual growth and influence. Psalm 92:14 says, "They still bear fruit in old age; they are ever full of sap and green." If you’re a senior, that’s God’s plan for you!
Here are ten ways to grow spiritually as a senior:
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1. Stay eager to change.
1. Stay eager to change.
This isn’t easy because you’ve been changing and adapting for a lifetime, and you probably just want to do things the way you want to do them. But resisting change is dangerous to your mental and physical health. Chemically, your brain is wired for neuroplasticity—an active brain is always forming new neuropathways, which helps keep the brain young and all body systems working properly. If you refuse to adapt and grow (whatever your age), your brain becomes chemically imbalanced. The same is true spiritually. If you resist change over anything except God’s absolute truth (His person, the gospel), you will start fixating on the things at church that don’t actually matter: like style, programs, and traditions. Change is your gateway away from stagnation and stubbornness. “Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God's mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God—this is your true and proper worship. Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will” (Romans 12:1-2).
2. Learn for real growth, not for the accumulation of knowledge.
Whether you’re a new believer or you’ve spent decades in the church, it’s easy to equate spirituality with a deep knowledge of the Bible. But spiritual growth depends on the quest for intimacy with God, not the quest for information about God. If we’re learning but not growing and changing into Christ’s image, then we’re ignoring the work of the Holy Spirit. If you can, visit Israel or travel on discipleship trips available through your church or a Christian organization. “You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart” (Jeremiah 29:13).
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3. Be generous.
3. Be generous.
One of the biggest benefits of later life is the accumulation of resources. As a senior, you probably have money or possessions to share. If you’ve got a sizable income, invest in the body of Christ. If you’re strapped for cash but you have possessions, give some of your things to a person in need. Take advantage of tax benefits and give to your church, missionaries, and church family. “Command them to do good, to be rich in good deeds, and to be generous and willing to share. In this way they will lay up treasure for themselves as a firm foundation for the coming age, so that they may take hold of the life that is truly life” (1 Timothy 6:16-19). If you can’t physically go to a mission trip, you can still fund a trip that’s going by providing supplies, setting up a scholarship fund, or giving regularly to a mission fund. You don’t have to give a lot, but anything you do give involves you personally in spreading the gospel and meeting people’s needs. “You will do well to send them on their way in a way worthy of God. For they went out for the name's sake, receiving nothing from the Gentiles. Therefore, we ought to support people like these, so that we may be fellow workers for the truth" (3 John 1:5-7).
4. Invest in the next generation.
Many young and middle-aged adults do not have strong spiritual role models. Find ways in your family and your church to reach across generational divides and provide support and encouragement to younger generations, without demanding anything in return. After you’ve built trust, you’ll find that younger adults are eager to seek your wisdom and advice. In our church, we’ve intentionally redesigned ministries to mix generations. For example, we’ve seen enormous value for everyone when seniors and children intentionally learn, serve, and socialize together. Nothing is more exciting than knowing you’ve affected growth in someone younger than you. “One generation shall commend your works to another and shall declare your mighty acts” (Psalm 149:4).
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5. Read and listen to new voices.
5. Read and listen to new voices.
After years of reading your favorite writers or listening to your favorite preachers and newscasters, it’s easy to drown out new voices. But being open to reading new authors, listening to new preachers, and watching new programs keep you relevant about your culture and how it’s changing. New perspectives can resolve questions you’ve never had answered or misinformation you never deciphered. Truth can come from anywhere, and wisdom is not reserved for the old. You will learn new things when you listen to new voices. “This God has revealed to us…so that we may understand” (1 Corinthians 2:7-12).
6. Volunteer at your church and local mission organizations.
The best thing about retirement is the freedom to spend your time where you want. While you can certainly travel and play more, I encourage you to spend as much time as you can volunteering in ministry opportunities. You will find community with other volunteers and see firsthand where God is working. If possible, go on a mission trip to another country and get involved personally. “In the same way, the gospel is bearing fruit and growing throughout the whole world—just as it has been doing among you since the day you heard it and truly understood God’s grace” (Colossians 1:6).
7. Share your testimony.
If you’ve never worked on giving your personal salvation testimony, it’s not too late to start. Share what God has done for you briefly in three parts: how desperate you were, how God saved you, and how Jesus has changed your life. Nobody can argue with your personal testimony. Write it out and practice it. You can give a one-minute version or a much longer one by controlling the details. “Declare his marvelous deeds among all peoples” (1 Chronicles 16:24).
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8. Read and listen to Scripture.
8. Read and listen to Scripture.
Although sermons and Christian books are important, nothing should replace reading and listening to God’s actual Word. The Bible is your scale for measuring everything you hear on the news or read on the internet. Measure the world’s comments through Scripture; don’t look for verses to back up what you want to believe. Only God’s truth can save you and protect you from foolish “spiritual” debates. “Your word is a lamp for my feet and a light for my path” (Psalm 119:105).
"But avoid foolish controversies, genealogies, dissensions, and quarrels about the law, for they are unprofitable and worthless” (Titus 3:9).
9. Take leadership.
You don’t need a title at church to be a spiritual leader. Just be like Jesus: serve people and love people. When you do that, people who want your leadership and wisdom will gravitate to you. Share Jesus with them. When you see someone floundering, instead of criticizing or reproving them, step into the space and walk with them. Listen to them. Pray with them. “Instead, the greatest among you should be like the youngest, and the one who rules like the one who serves” (Luke 22:26). Paul also outlines spiritual leadership in the church for men and women in several books, including 1 Timothy 3 where he describes leaders as faithful spouses, self-controlled, generous, spiritually wise, and worthy of respect. While age isn’t a requirement, spiritual age is.
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10. Pray.
10. Pray.
As your need for simpler schedules increases and you find yourself at home more often, you can use the time to pray for others. Keep a journal or calendar and assign your family, friends, neighbors, leaders, and spiritual family members to specific days. Send text messages or notes to the people God lays on your heart and give them prayers, Scriptures, or Biblical encouragement. Pray for generational change and healing. Pray for spiritual revival. Pray for souls. There’s no limit to the power of a praying senior! “And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the Lord’s people” (Ephesians 6:18).
If you want to grow spiritually during your senior years, begin practicing these ten things. They will challenge you and stretch you. That’s how growth happens. Do you remember your teenage years? Growing was painful. It was uncomfortable to submit yourself to others. You thought you knew more than everyone else. And physically, your joints hurt.
The generations are not so different from one another, are they?
As your body ages, your spirit ages, too, and that’s a good thing. Feed your spirit so it remains dynamic and influential. This last season of life could be and should be your most important. This is where you cement a spiritual legacy so that future generations will know and follow Christ.
“Therefore, we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day. For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all. So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen, since what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal” (2 Corinthians 4:16).
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Originally published June 20, 2025.
