Respecting Your Parents, By Christina V.

Respecting Your Parents

By Christina V.

Now that I am an adult, I look back on my teenage years and cringe. I wasn’t a horrible teenager by any means. I didn’t sneak out late at night, do drugs, or date guys who were way older than me -nothing like that. But I definitely didn’t respect and honor my parents in a godly way. My mom would ask me to do things for her and instead of instantly doing them I’d complain and come up with ways to get out of it. (Philippians 2:14 (NLT) says “Do everything without complaining and arguing.”)  This would make her angry and then my attitude would get worse and it would become a huge ordeal. I wasn’t honoring her like Exodus 20:12 (ESV) says : “Honor your father and your mother that your days may be long in the land that the Lord your God is giving you.” The word “honor” means “high respect, as for worth, merit, or rank: to be held in honor” (basically, to respect). Synonyms for the word “respect” include consideration, dignity, and reverence. These words usually describe someone very great such as a king or someone else in very high authority. But that’s what the Bible says, your simple, everyday parents are to be revered and treated with dignity. This might seem like a big challenge, especially for those of you who don’t get along with your parents well. When you’re constantly arguing with your parents it causes friction in your family. Romans 12:18 (ESV) says “Do all that you can to live in peace with everyone.” If there’s constant friction, how can there be peace? I came up with a list of some reminders to help you to honor your parents.
1.       When a parent asks you to do something you’d really rather not do, instead of complaining about it, smile and do it. Colossians 3:17a (NCV) “Everything you do or say should be done to obey Jesus your Lord.” If you do something with a negative attitude, you aren’t obeying Jesus. Imagine if Jesus came to you in a human form and asked you to do something. I bet you wouldn’t be complaining then!
2.       If you’re told you’re not allowed to do something even though ALL your friends are doing it, remember that your parents have some sort of good reason why you can’t. Don’t pitch a fit about it. First of all, that’s disrespectful and it also shows them that you’re immature. The mature, Christian way to handle it is to just say okay and deal with it. One piece of advice I have for you is that you won’t be a teenager forever! You won’t have to worry about this much longer.  In just a few short years, you’ll be an adult and your parents won’t be the ones telling you what to do anymore. You’ll be your own decision maker.
3.       If your parents have certain rules, obey them! Ephesians 6:1 (HCSB) “Children, obey your parents as you would the Lord (obey them like you would obey the Lord) because this is right.” This might seem rather simple but sometimes obeying is hard to do. For instance, if you have a curfew, be back by the curfew time. Don’t stay out late with your friends thinking your parents won’t care. It’s not that they want you to be miserable and not have a good time but because they care about you! If you come home an hour past curfew they’re probably worried sick. For all they know, you could have been in an accident or something else bad. Their reasons for their rules are for your own benefit! The Bible is very clear about how disobedience is sin. In Romans 1, there are a few verses talking about sinful and wicked people. Included in the list is “they disobey their parents” right along with murder, hating God, and being heartless. God takes disobeying your parents very seriously.
I understand that not all of you reading this come from a good home. Some of you have divorced parents, no parents, or parents with serious problems. But I believe that when the Bible refers to you obeying your parents, that also means anyone who is in authority over you. For instance, your grandma you live with, your teachers, your friends’ parents, etc. Those people have been placed in your life to help guide you. Like I mentioned earlier, you’ll be making your own decisions as an adult, but for right now you’ll still be relying on them. You can choose not to obey them but there will be serious consequences later in life if you do. The decisions you make right now can affect your future. Just remember, you’re obeying the Lord when you obey your parents. 1 John 5:3a (NLT) “Loving God means keeping His commandments…”