GIVE YOUR PARENTS JOY!

The Bible says this in Proverbs 23:25 “Give your parents joy! [Do you do that?] May she who gave you birth be happy.”
Sadly, Western culture, the culture we live in, is the only culture on planet earth that doesn’t respect its elders. In every other culture, whether it’s Asian culture, Middle Eastern culture, African culture, the older you get the more respected you are. The older you get the more people value and treasure your wisdom.
Only in Western culture do we put the greatest emphasis on the youngest people. Where is that taking our culture? Not exactly in wise directions.
The Bible says very clearly that you are to value, you are to treasure, and you are to esteem the elderly. In particular, your own mom and dad. The problem today in America is that for many adults the older they get, the less respect they get. The reason why is their supportive friends have died, the marketplace no longer has any use for them, and their grown kids are spending all their time focusing on their kids while aged mom and dad feel like a fifth wheel – a bit left out, a little sidelined.
If your parents are still living today they have an intense need, to know that they made an impact on your life. And you need to express appreciation to them on a regular basis. You need to affirm them on a regular basis.
How do I affirm my parents? My aged parents? The simplest way: Stay in touch. It says, You matter to me. To honor means to recognize the significance of mom and dad.
Any time you make a call you’re honoring your father and mother. Anytime you send a text, anytime you send a card, a gift… Any time you just show up you’re honoring your father and mother. When you talk to them, talk to them about the details of your life. Because their lives aren’t complicated anymore. And to just hear about all that’s going on in your life may be boring to you but it’s not boring to them. It feels like they’re still important, they still matter, they’re still connected, they’re still significant in your life.
Sadly, perhaps some of you reading this may have been abandoned by your mom or abandoned by your dad or both. In your case you get special privileges in God’s kingdom. The Bible says this in Psalm 27:10, “My father and my mother may abandon me, but the Lord will take care of me.” You have a heavenly Father who will never use you, who will never abuse you, never lose you, never leave you, never depart from you, never abandon you. Dear friend, you can turn to him in that moment and find healing and rest for your soul.