Respect
Respect
The wife is to respect her husband. (Eph. 5:33)
My husband, Brad, sat at the desk in our den paying bills. I was in the kitchen trying to scrape up some crusty remnants that had spilled on the bottom of the oven so I could start dinner. When I heard Brad call me, I heaved a sigh and rolled my eyes. “Now what does he want?” I muttered, not realizing my daughter had just walked into the room. When I saw Emily, my memory verse from the previous week’s Bible study flashed in my mind: “May these words of my mouth and this meditation of my heart be pleasing in your sight, Lord, my Rock and my Redeemer” (Ps. 19:14 niv).
I was convicted. I knew my rolling eyes and heavy sighs were evidence of a bad attitude and didn’t teach my daughter a thing about respect. No wonder Emily had the same reaction when I asked her to do something.
I’ve asked the Lord to take control not only of my words but also of all other signs of disrespect, both verbal and nonverbal. We are commanded in Scripture to teach our children about God’s laws and show them how that will look as we walk it out in our lives. How can we expect our children to respect us if we don’t give others the same courtesy? Respect should extend to others outside the family circle as well—teachers, police officers, pastors, and yes, even those who hold elected office, whether we voted for them or not.
Romans 13:7 says, “Pay your obligations to everyone: taxes to those you owe taxes, tolls to those you owe tolls, respect to those you owe respect.” Ask the Lord to show you if there is someone to whom you need to show more respect.