honor all

don's been teaching our youth group the ten commandments. today's was the fifth commandment - honor your father and mother. as you can imagine, this was a tough one for some of the kids. a lot of kids don't want to have to honor their parents. some don't get a long with them. some have parents that don't really deserve the honor and respect. but, God doesn't qualify it for us and no one is exempt.

someone asked don why he thought God gave us this command. part of don's reply was that he thought God wanted us to honor all people, and we learn to do that by honoring first those we know, our mom and dad. of course, there is more to why God gave us this command, but this was the part that i've been reflecting on today.

this poem was a part of a devotional i read this past week and after this morning's lesson, i went back to reread it and wanted to share it.

The Little Boy and the Old Man
by Shel Silverstein

Said the little boy, “Sometimes I drop my spoon.”
Said the little old man, “I do that too.”
The little boy whispered, “I wet my pants.”
“I do that too,” laughed the little old man.
Said the little boy, “I often cry.”
The old man nodded, “So do I.”
“But worst of all,” said the boy, “it seems
Grown-ups don’t pay attention to me.”
And he felt the warmth of a wrinkled old hand.
“I know what you mean,” said the little old man.

i will be honest here and share that i am not always comfortable around elderly people. i've never wanted to spend too much time with them - it puts me out of my comfort zone. but to give a little perspective, how many people would describe being in their comfort zone spending time in a room of teenagers. my point is that God wires us all differently. i'd rather spend time with teens, others would rather be with infants while others with the elderly.

but that doesn't excuse us from not honoring those that we don't always feel comfortable with. God wants to stretch us and shake up that comfort zone. sometimes, He wants to kick us completely out of that comfort zone.

He wants us to honor everyone; our parents and our grandparents, the young and the old, those we agree with and those we don't, that homeless person on the street and all those in authority positions - EVERYONE! i challenge you, this week, to think about who you are honoring, and who you are not.

and mom and dad.... i'm sorry i haven't always honored you. i love you both.

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link of the day:
http://www.hallmark.com/journeys