READ: 1 Samuel 25:1-33
And David sent out ten young men, and David said unto the young men, get you up to Carmel, and go to Nabal, and greet him in my name:
1 Samuel 25:5
King David sent young men on a very difficult mission to meet Nabal. It ended up in disaster. The young missionaries were rebuked and sent scuttling back home with nothing in their hands. You always need a young person when you are sending people on a difficult mission.
One day, I sent an older brother on a mission to a very difficult town. After some time, I was no longer receiving any communication from this missionary. One day, I received a series of letters from the missionary. Sections of the letter were typed out in capital letters. Some sections were in red. Other sections were in black. This missionary was clearly upset with the conditions under which he had been sent. He began to find fault with these conditions and I soon realised that I had made a mistake of sending someone who was far too old for such an adventure. Remember that older people have many more responsibilities.
Another reason why it is important to be sent out as a young person is because it takes a lifetime to accomplish anything. You need to give yourself a good thirty years to be able to accomplish anything substantial in the ministry. If you start your mission at the age of forty-five, you will soon be in your fifties and start approaching the twilight of your life.
The twilight of your life is when the light is going out but has not really gone out yet. There is no need to strain yourself during the twilight of your life. In the twilight of your life, you need to be reaping what you have been sowing in the last thirty years. Do not delude yourself that you can accomplish very much in five years. Ministry takes your whole life!