It has come to my attention that more than a few folks think I color my hair. Let me state for the record: I don’t! My hair is naturally brown and for now is staying that way (except for a trace of gray on my sideburns). I’m not sure why that’s the case. I told my wife, “It must be my stress-free life.” Ruthie retorted, “You mean your stress-free wife.” I’ll leave that one right there!
Considering that I’m 52 years old, I figure that I’ll go gray soon enough. Whenever that happens, I’m not going to hide it.
I would encourage my friends to do the same. To be clear, I’m speaking to men, not to women. (I wouldn’t dare tread on such dangerous ground!)
I think guys should let their go gray in light of what we read in Proverbs 16:31:
Gray hair is a crown of glory;
it is gained in a righteous life.
This doesn’t mean that every gray-haired man is a godly man. But gray hair is a crown of glory [splendor] for one who walks in the ways of the Lord. The beloved Puritan commentator Matthew Henry wrote,
Let old people be old disciples; let them persevere to the end in the way of righteousness, which they long since set out in, that they may be found in it. If old people be found in the way of righteousness, their age will be their honor.
Such honor engenders respect. Thus the Lord commanded his people, “You shall stand up before the gray head and honor the face of an old man, and you shall fear your God: I am the Lord.” (Lev. 19:32)
With age comes wisdom, or at least that should be the case, especially for those who walk in the ways of God. And with wisdom comes honor and respect. Gray hair is supposed to be a sign of maturity.
A Surprising Trend
While older folks are trying to look younger, “more young people are starting to dye their hair gray.” The Considerable.com website (self-described as “a new media brand for people who are redefining what it means to grow older”), celebrities like Kim Kardashian, Ryan Lochte, Hillary Duff, Lady Gaga, and Lourdes have “taken the silver look for a spin.” Why? Because our culture knows that “gray has long signified experience and wisdom.” So now “youngsters have taken a shortcut to gray power.”
The only problem is, there is no such shortcut — and no amount of dye will change that.
“For everything there is a season, and a time for every matter under heaven” (Ecclesiastes 3:1). Each stage of life has its own innate beauty and benefits. “The glory of young men is their strength, but the splendor of old men is their gray hair” (Prov. 20:29).
Me with my four sons this past Thanksgiving
(from L to R: Timothy, Ethan, myself, Elijah, Matthew)
So enjoy the season you’re in. I’m in no rush to turn gray, but once I do, I’ll be happy to “take the silver look for a spin.”