Friday, April 18, 2008

Honoring your Parents: Whew! That is hard sometimes huh!?

Hey all you fellow bloggers out there!
So, the older I get the more I realize how blessed I am to have parents that love the Lord Jesus Christ and strive to serve Him with their whole life.
The Lord has really been working with me on how I treat them and when to honor them both outwardly and inwardly...I found this really cool list of stuff by John Piper on honoring parents and I thought I would share it with ya'll.

Teenage Resolutions in Honor of Mom and Dad

1. Resolved: I will obey your instructions and do what I know you expect of me, even when it is not mentioned. I will not force you into repeated reminders, which I sometimes call nagging.

2. Resolved: I will not grumble or complain when I do my chores but remember what a great thing it is to have a family, a home, clothes, food, running water, electric lights, and central heating in a world where millions of teenagers have none of these.

3. Resolved: When I think your demands are unfair, I will move to do them first, and after showing an obedient attitude, I will ask if we can talk. Then I will explain my side and try to understand yours.

4. Resolved: I will not stonewall you and give the silent treatment, which I dislike when my friends do it to me. If I am depressed and want to be left alone, I will say, “I’m sorry, I don’t feel like talking now. Can we talk later? I’m not mad. I just need to be alone.”

5. Resolved: When I do something wrong and let you down, I will apologize sincerely with words that you can hear. Something like, “Mom, I’m sorry I didn’t pick up the pile of clothes.”

6. Resolved: I will call you by affectionate family titles like “Mommy,” “Daddy,” “Mom,” or “Dad.” I won’t let other kids pressure me into calling you nothing or calling you something disrespectful as though true affection were embarrassing or childish.

7. Resolved: I will say thank you again and again for the ordinary things you do for me. I will not take them for granted as though you were my slave.

8. Resolved: I will talk about my feelings. Both the positive ones (like happiness, pity, excitement, and sympathy) and the negative ones (like anger, fear, grief, loneliness, and discouragement). I will remember that unshared feeling lead to estrangement, coldness, and even more loneliness and discouragement.

9. Resolved: I will laugh with the family and not at the family. I will especially laugh when my little brother or sister tells a simple joke with expectant excitement.

10. Resolved: I will give two compliments for every criticism. And every criticism will aim to help someone improve, not just belittle or cut down.

11. Resolved: I will enter into family devotions and treat Bible reading and prayer with respect and do my part to help others in the family enjoy them. When I don’t feel spiritually strong, I will pray about this as a personal need rather than pouring it on others as a glass of cold water. I will remember that confessed weakness knits hearts together.

12. Resolved: I will not return evil for evil or try to justify my meanness because somebody treated me meanly first.

13. Resolved: I will read my Bible and pray every day, even if it is only a verse and a brief cal for help. I know that teens cannot live by bread alone but by every word that comes out of the mouth of God.

14. Resolved: I will come home at the time we agreed on. If something happens to stop me, I will call and explain and ask for your guidance.

15. Resolved: I will greet our guests with courtesy and respect and try to make them glad they came.

16. Resolved: I will always tell the truth so that you can trust me and give me more and more freedom as I get older.

17. Resolved: I will pray for you as along as I live, that we will be united in faith and love, not only now in this world, but for all of eternity in the kingdom of God.

Aren't those really cool and really convicting? What do you think? Pls. comment or write me!
Blessings to you all!

3 comments:

Anonymous said...

Yes, honoring parents is hard sometimes. I will agree there. But God is good, and I think I am learning, even if it is slowly.
Love you!
Gloria

Kelly & Sarah Bryant said...

Wow, those are convicting! Piper's pretty awesome isn't he?

-Kelly

Anonymous said...

You are such a wonderful daughter. I love you dearly,
you'll never guess who!