Churches Encouraged to Celebrate Seniors During Month of May

They are the backbone of the church — the prayer warriors, the spiritual pillars, the long-time volunteers, the ones who have literally helped build the church if not by labor, certainly by finances — they are the church seniors and May is the month designated in the Assemblies of God to set aside time to publicly express appreciation for them.

“It’s giving honor to whom honor is due — a scriptural principle,” says Bob Cook, national director for AG Senior Adult Ministries (SAM). “I believe seniors make up a significant portion of many of our churches, but I’ve also become convinced that too many of them have the perception — whether it’s true or not — that they no longer matter as much to the church. This is an opportunity to change that perception.”

Cook urges churches to consider doing something special for their seniors sometime during the month of May.

“I’ve created a list of suggestions that churches could consider to show their appreciation for their senior adults,” Cooks says. “The list is far from comprehensive, but even if the ideas don’t quite match with a church’s vision, the suggestions listed could be a catalyst to inspire even better ideas.”

Del Weyer, pastor of Trenton First Assembly of God in Trenton, Missouri, has been a part of the Assemblies of God for more than 40 years, including 15 years as lead pastor at First Assembly. He believes that investing in seniors and keeping them connected to the church is as important as any other ministry the church offers to other age groups.

“We very intentionally honor our seniors, and we make sure they know we care very deeply about them,” Weyer says. “However, we don’t limit our expression of appreciation to just once a year, we plan regular events with our seniors, and I hear back on a regular basis how much they appreciate the church valuing them.”

And as Weyer observes, some seniors may not be physically capable of volunteering or actively participating in events, but what they are capable of — and depended on for — is prayer.

“We established a prayer ministry for seniors so that they feel even more a part of the church,” Weyer says.

Weyer, however, warns churches to be careful not to underestimate the value of seniors’ prayers and how they impact a church’s effectiveness — or the value seniors are in their faithful giving, which ultimately supports many of the church’s ministries efforts.

“There’s something different about this [the senior] generation,” Weyer says. “They understand the eternal investment in the Kingdom over our day-to-day struggle with finances . . . there’s just a faithfulness in that generation that I don’t see in many Christians today.”

Cook agrees, noting that as pastor and district official, he came to recognize how seniors often made up a significant portion of church congregations.

“It only makes sense to me that you would want to give them honor and recognition in the same way we want to recognize our teenagers and children,” he says. “For even as our churches rightfully work to reach and involve the younger generations, if they aren’t intentional at least in saying thank you to senior adults for being faithful, they risk some of their senior adults thinking the church doesn't really care about them.”

For more information about Senior Adult Ministries, including the collection of videos and audio recordings from the 2024 national SAM Conference, or to review suggestions for appreciating seniors at a selected time during the month of May, see the SAM website.