Honor Your Parents
Jake, my up and coming cook.
When my family studies or discusses the Ten Commandments, it never fails that one of the kids will ask for the meaning of “Honor your parents.” I look at it as respect. Respect your parents. Do right by them. It is not the same as obedience in my book. One can obey without honoring the parent. One can begrudgingly obey.
Occasionally one of my children will go out of his/her way to do something nice for me or my husband. When I see his/her beaming face as he/she reveal his/her surprise, I thank him/her for honoring me. I believe it is a practical application of the commandment.
Early this morning, my eight year old son, Jake, found me in the bathroom washing my face. He asked me to go back to bed. I knew something was up, so I dried off my face and returned to the warmth under my covers. Sure enough, he returned holding a tray like a waiter except Jake was holding the tray with two hands. He was also walking very slowly trying not to spill the contents on the tray.
For whatever reason, Jake awoke earlier than usual. He brewed a pot of coffee. He also made scrambled eggs. Both a hot cup of coffee and a plate of eggs were sitting on the tray. It was so sweet, and it was also very good. Jake is on his way to becoming a great cook. Of course, I thanked him for the breakfast and for honoring me.
Later when everyone was up. Jake decided that he did not want me to have to cook breakfast for everyone else. He defrosted a pound of pork sausage. He made sausage patties and fried them up. He scrambled 18 eggs. Jake forgot to deduct the eggs he had already made for me. This of course was no big deal; our cats love scrambled eggs. Jake was probably in the kitchen for an hour this morning trying to do something nice for me.
My other children also occasionally surprise me. Sometimes they clean the house. Sometimes they take out the trash without being asked. Sometimes they make cookies. Sometimes they wash my car. And, sometimes they make me breakfast in bed.
They have fun doing it as it is evident in their facial expressions. You have never seen such big smiles. It certainly brings a full-body smile to me. It completely brightens my day.
My children cannot be the only ones that do things like this. I know for a fact that my brother and I would surprise our parents with little things. I would love to hear how your children have honored you. Contact me with an email or leave a comment.
My kids honor me every Sunday when we all sit together as a family for worship.
My pastor always says “you don’t have to LIKE everybody in the world but you MUST love them/show them love according to God’s will”, that kind of fits with my husband and I’s parents and how we choose to treat them versus how they treat us. and that is how we choose to honor them, by showing love even if they don’t deserve it.