Back to School Resource Guide
Back to School Resource Guide
A True Story of Aging That We’re Missing
A Compelling and Hopeful Perspective on Aging
The world tells us at every turn that aging is a steep descent into irrelevance, one to be avoided at all costs. This false story diminishes not only us but our elders and the time God gives us. But Scripture reveals a markedly different pattern of life, one of increasing value, that calls us to embrace our age and number our days rightly.
In this video, Jen Wilkin, author of Dust to Dust, shares two circumstances in her life that led her to examine more closely the anti-aging message of the world and the life-giving message of Scripture.
Dust to Dust
Jen Wilkin
In this biblical meditation on aging, Jen Wilkin draws poetic parallels between the first half of life and the second, inviting us to live fully at every stage.
In Dust to Dust, Jen Wilkin draws poetic parallels between the first half of life and the second. Exploring the changing realities of caregiving, abilities, and potentiality, she helps us to trace God’s give-and-take design at every stage. Wilkin offers practical insights on body image, honoring the elderly, the essential value of family, and more. She urges us to trade an anti-aging mindset for the pursuit of biblical wisdom, encouraging believers to lean into—not fight—their place in the true story of the arc of life.
“Jen Wilkin’s ministry is a gift to the entire church. In this book, she unmasks the anti-aging messaging we are flooded with in the modern world, inviting us instead to embrace a biblical vision for each different season of life. What this book reveals is surprisingly hopeful and desperately needed in our culture: that, in Christ, aging is not a loss to be feared but God’s appointed path toward fullness and life.”
—Gavin Ortlund, President, Truth Unites; Theologian in Residence, Immanuel Nashville, Tennessee; Visiting Professor of Historical Theology, Phoenix Seminary
“In a culture that idolizes youth, Jen Wilkin’s Dust to Dust: Aging Wisely in an Anti-Aging World is a timely reminder that growing older is a gift to receive, not a problem to solve. With biblical clarity and theological wisdom, Wilkin reframes aging through the lens of Scripture, exposing the false narratives the world offers. This book will transform how you view the aging process and deepen your understanding of the sacred responsibility to care for the elderly.”
—Melissa B. Kruger, author; Vice President of Discipleship Programming, The Gospel Coalition
“Jen’s exploration of what God’s word says about life, aging, and wisdom is a gift in the midst of all the pressures that surround us today. It’s a call to reframe our perspective, according to God’s word and his ways. I’m confident you will find Dust to Dust both encouraging and convicting, as I did.”
—Ruth Chou Simons, Wall Street Journal bestselling author; artist; Founder, GraceLaced.com