SEVEN ESSENTIALS FOR FINISHING WELL
Fulfilling God's Plan for Our Aging Years
Introduction to The SEVEN Essentials for Finishing Well
by Hal Habecker
What does the Bible say about growing older? Are there steps to consider as we work to finish the race and finish it well? Dr. Hal Habecker has pinpointed critical essentials to living and finishing life well. This page offers a brief summary of each. However, if you are looking for more, we offer a SEVEN part study that includes videos and a workbook as resources. All of which are FREE. We hope you will join the Finishing Well Community of Believers who are learning and working toward the understanding of what it means to finish well. What is God's plan for your life?
Watch the INTRODUCTION Video below!
To encourage this biblical mindset in retirement is the purpose of this discipleship project. FWM has developed this video series/workbook to focus on seven (7) areas of life that will help us live well and finish well. It is particularly designed with retired and aging people in mind. We believe God has an incredible mission for us as we age. The workbook follows the video series. The two are designed for personal use as a self-study or a small group use. Use it in a Sunday School group, a home group, or a Bible study group.​
The SEVEN Essentials Study Guide
The seven-part video series iis also accompanied by a study guide. The SEVEN Essentials Study Guide is available for purchase with the link below.
1. We Will GROW – we will not stay the same.
Life is about change. Every day brings change – physically, spiritually, emotionally, and mentally. Generally speaking, we resist change as we age. Growing may seem harder as we age. The aging process, however, does not mean that our growth slows. God calls us to grow at every age.
2. We will CONNECT – we will not live alone - we will continue to build strong friendships
The human body is connected. No one part or cell (except cancer cells) lives by and for itself. Ever! The spiritual Body (the church) is connected. Why is this verse important with respect to being connected to each other? Are we more connected or less connected as we age? Why does the world of aging people tend to grow smaller?
3. We will CARE FOR/LOVE OTHERS – we will be there for others in their needs – we will love each other as Christ commanded us to love.
Our model for LOVING OTHERS and CARING for them is our Lord Jesus Christ. Let’s look at His life first and reflect on the depth of His love and care for us. Following each Scripture, summarize in your own words the depths of His love and care. How did He love? How did He care?
4. We will INVEST in the generations following us
As we consider this 4th essential, “Investing,” consider these questions and discuss them as a group.
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Why does God allow us to age? Why did He ordain the aging years as a part of life?
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What are His purposes in our aging years?
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What are the advantages for each of us in having older and younger people in our lives?
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What are the advantages of older people in the life of a congregation?
5. We will be AVAILABLE - as God calls us to serve
“Being Available” simply means being open to new ways and new people through which God leads us. He often leads us in ways we might never have dreamt.
6. We will PLAN AHEAD - for when we will not be here.
William Hazlitt wrote that no young man believes that he will ever die, and the truth of the matter, I think, is that in some measure that is true of all men. Intellectually we all know that we will die, but we do not really know it in the sense that the knowledge becomes part of us. We do not really know it in the sense of living as though it were true. On the contrary, we tend to live as though our lives would go on forever. We spend our lives like drunken sailors (Frederick Buechner, The Hungering Dark).
7. We WILL ANTICIPATE HEAVEN- Eternity with Christ
An essential part of one’s “Plan for the End” is the anticipation of heaven and eternal life with Christ. As one nears the end of life, thinking ahead is critically important. It’s just like taking a trip to a foreign country, which my wife and I have often done. In anticipation of that trip, we will spend lots of time discovering where we will be and making specific plans to see and experience as much as we can during the time of the trip we are about to take.