Honor and respect: two words that have fallen out of fashion in our modern world. And yet, this is a concept that is commanded by God in order for our families to function as God intended.
Exodus 20:12 “Honor your father and your mother, that your days may be prolonged in the land which the Lord your God gives you.”
Ephesians 6:2, 3 “Honor your Father and mother (which is the first commandment with a promise), that it may be well with you, and that you may live long on the earth.”
Ephesians 5:33 “Nevertheless let each individual among you also love his own wife even as himself; and let the wife see to it that she respect her husband.”
Honor and respect to our parents and as wives toward our husbands. I rarely hear this happening. Most of the time I hear kids being sassy and rude and disobedient to their kids and wives complaining about what a jerk their husband is.
One thing I’ve noticed is that, as the mom and the wife, I set the tone in our house. If I start to get less than respectful in my attitude and tone of voice with Nathan, the kids pick up on that instantly start to get a little disrespectful toward him too. I strive to be respectful and honoring toward the wonderful man God has given me and to encourage my children to honor this fantastic dad God placed in their lives.
Yesterday was Nathan’s birthday and on his birthday he flew early in the morning to Indianapolis to pick up our new mini-van and spent the entire day driving it home. This may seem like a strange thing to do, but he desires to manage our finances wisely and one of the things we don’t do is go in debt for a car. We were able to find a van within our means and it just happened to be in Indiana. So, Nathan sacrificed his time and his birthday to go get it and bring it home.
When I left for dance last night the kids were all working mysteriously in the basement. When I came home, this is what I found:
Wow, I was blown away! I asked them what this was all for!? Well, they answered, Dad would be getting home after they were in bed and they wanted him to know they loved him and wanted to wish him a Happy Birthday. I especially love the birthday sign that says at the bottom “Dad Rocks.” Talk about honoring your father. OK, maybe that’s in more 21st Century lingo, but I can tell you when Nathan walked in at 9:30 after having been awake since 3 a.m., he felt loved and honored.
Honoring your father and mother is the first commandment with a promise, the Bible says. A promise! What’s that promise? That it will be well with you and that you may live long on this earth. Try honor, try respect. Sure beats bitterness, wrath and anger! What a concept!
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