Never Too Late

As the COVID-19 pandemic gripped the United Kingdom, an unlikely hero inspired a nation reeling from its deadly effects.

Captain Tom Moore was a ninety-nine-year-old veteran of World War II, having served his country in both India and Burma.

Motivated by what he described as the wonderful service he had received from Britain’s National Health Service after breaking his hip, Captain Moore launched a fund-raising effort to raise money for the NHS.

With his birthday approaching, he planned to walk the length of his backyard one hundred times, a total of one and a half miles before he turned one hundred, ten lengths of his yard a day for ten days. Captain Moore hoped to raise £1,000 (almost $1,400).

Within a month, Captain Moore had raised in excess of £30 million and went on to raise the remarkable total of around £40 million ($55.5 million)! Captain Sir Thomas Moore died at the age of one hundred, six months after being knighted by Queen Elizabeth II.* He also became the oldest Briton to top the UK’s pop music charts when a song featuring his spoken words reached number one on his hundredth birthday.† Captain Tom demonstrated that age need not be a barrier to achievement.

The same is true in terms of sharing one’s faith.

Personal ministry is not only the domain of the young.

When I saw Larry for the first time in a couple of years, I remarked at the beautiful walking stick he was using. He told me he had been praying God would give him a soul-winning ministry and was impressed that the walking stick was the entering wedge he needed. Printing a picture of the walking stick on the front of a flyer he designed, Larry wrote a Bible story, his personal testimony, and a list of ministries to contact for further information. Whenever someone commented on his unique walking stick, Larry gave that person a copy of the flyer and encouraged them to read it and to contact him if they had further questions. Larry was ninety-four years old at the time.

It is never too late to share your faith in Jesus.