Could a peaceful and long life really be this simple?
“Children, obey your parents in the Lord, for this is right. Honor your father and mother (which is the first commandment with a promise), so that it may be well with you, and that you may live long on the earth. Fathers, do not provoke (misguide them into anger), but bring them up in the discipline and instruction of the Lord.” – Ephesians 6:1-4
What a goofy world we live in. We turn everything upside down. We allow absolute fools to guide us into our principles for living. What does honor look like? What does an honorable man or woman evidence in his or her life? What is the role of family in God’s world – and how does it compare with our lost world’s expertise?
Consider this quote from philosopher and thinker Jordan Peterson: “The hunger among many younger people for rules, or at least guidelines, is greater today for good reason. In the West at least, millennials are living through a unique historical situation. They are, I believe, the first generation to have been so thoroughly taught two seemingly contradictory ideas about morality, simultaneously – at their schools, colleges and universities…This contradiction has left them at times disoriented and uncertain, without guidance, and, more tragically, deprived of riches they don’t even know exist.”
I find overlap here. The purpose of family honor is to unlock hidden riches. This is the opportunity (and job) of parents. It is selfish to abdicate this, and it is selfish to reject mom an dads role as defined by our Creator.
A God-functional family is constantly wrestling with this tension. What kinds of things are we modeling to our kids with regard to true value? And how are we (and our communities) helping to identify and find true riches? This is a huge standard, for sure, but it provides our lofty God-goal as a family.
Don’t forget there is an entire resource course on Strong Homes under courses at Fourthstream. Many in our world are hungry for family truth.
Conversations on family honor for your home or class experience
A good family honor song