STILL CHOSEN

Equipped for New Purpose

By Greg Gerber

Today I bring you a story of hope. Hope for the present, and hope for the future – especially if you are a “seasoned citizen!” I had the privilege of being on Greg’s podcast last year, and he is so passionate about this topic. You’ll see why as you read his story, with God’s hand all over it. Enjoy.

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I have been a storyteller most of my life. I started writing in 11^th grade thanks to my English teacher, Mr. Larson, who saw something in me that I didn’t know existed. He mentored me several times a week to help me master the English language and use writing to express my thoughts and convey information.

As a young man, I dabbled in restaurant management and law enforcement before enlisting in the U.S. Air Force. There I received my first training as a professional writer, and I would later become the editor of my base newspaper. That’s where I fell in love with writing stories.

After a few years, my newspaper was recognized as being the second best in the Tactical Air Command, which was confirmation to me that I was heading in the right direction.

But then I got distracted. First I opted to be a professional photographer, then I went back to school to become a public relations professional. This still involved telling stories, but often to persuade people to buy products or services.

In January 2000, I returned to journalism by becoming the editor-in-chief of a trade magazine covering the recreation vehicle industry. I interviewed and wrote about RV dealers, manufacturers, suppliers, campground owners and people who used RVs – and they all had stories to tell.

When the internet decimated magazine publishing it caught my employer off guard. In 2009, at the height of the Great Recession, I felt God calling me to start my own online publication. I operated RV Daily Report for the next eight years, and even traveled full-time in a motorhome for three of those years.

I got to visit all 48 lower states at least once during that period, and had the opportunity to write about some fascinating people. However, the experience opened my eyes to some glaring problems in the RV industry, especially as they related to product quality and customer service.

After writing a series of editorials putting the practices in the spotlight, I irritated powerful people who bullied my advertisers into withdrawing their support. I sold the business when I heard God telling me he wanted me to go in a different direction.

Forward From 50

With no income, and nothing to do, I fell into a deep depression. Add isolation from the COVID lockdowns and I was in a very dark place with no hope for the future.

Fortunately, a mentor of mine could sense a serious problem and he reached out to me. I bared my soul to him, and he said I was not alone in my feelings. He suggested there were many people over 50 who felt the same way I did, having been forced out of jobs they loved or opting to retire. After engaging in recreation for a while, they began to wonder if there was more to life than just staying busy.

My mentor said I needed a purpose for my life, and that perhaps it would be helping others to discover their purpose too.

That opened my eyes wide to a reality faced by millions of “seasoned citizens.” I live in Sun City, Arizona, which was America’s first planned retirement community. There are eight golf courses and eight recreation centers in a city of 60,000 people.

And still, many residents are bored out of their minds. It’s not enough to golf every day, come home to take a nap, then doomscroll news stories or waste time on social media. My mentor was right. So many people over 50 lack purpose for their lives.

Ironically, I had registered the domain www.forwardfrom50.com many years ago, but didn’t know what to do with it. So, I developed a platform to help men and women over 50 to enjoy more purposeful lives by pursuing things they are truly passionate about.

I started interviewing older people whose lives had gone in completely different directions after turning 50. Their enthusiasm for life was contagious as they put their natural talents, learned skills and unique experiences to work by serving others in some capacity.

The interviews were recorded and shared with the world on my Forward From 50 podcast. I also wrote feature stories about these young-at-heart go-getters.

Life Story School

Through my experience of interviewing people from all walks of life, I came to realize that EVERYONE has a story to tell.

We have all experienced deep disappointments and resounding successes in life. We have learned valuable lessons, often through painful experiences. We have been helped along the way by people who altered the trajectories of our lives.

Many people want to retain their life story, but they often:

• Don’t know where to start.
• Don’t know what to say.
• Don’t think anyone will consider their life to be interesting.
• Don’t think have time to do it.

I felt God was giving me an assignment to teach others how to preserve their stories, or the stories of people they know, and in October 2024 I launched Life Story School.

I went from believing there was no purpose for my life to more than just finding it for myself. I have the privilege of helping others to discover purpose for their lives, and that has energized me in ways that is hard to describe.

In Luke 12:13-21, Jesus told a parable about a rich man who opted to take life easy and simply kick back, eat, drink and be merry. Jesus called that man a fool. He admonished anyone who stores up things for themselves but is not rich toward God. That includes being effective stewards of the talents God gave us.

Over the past five years, I can see God’s hand clearly involved in bringing new purpose to my life. First, he orchestrated circumstances which ended my business. That allowed me to experience the despair seasoned citizens face after losing what once gave their lives purpose.

Remarkably, God put people in my life at just the right time, with just the right message. They nudged me toward showing people that, regardless of their age, there is still meaningful purpose to their lives.

Through that process, I met people who showed me how important our stories are in connecting us to others, not only today, but with future generations as well.

Ephesians 2:10 reminds us, “For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.”

My prayer is that you understand God gave you an assignment, equipped you to do the task, and still wants you to carry it out.

If you don’t sense a specific purpose at the moment, then keep praying and capture your valuable life story while you wait for his answer.

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