Love, Honor and Obey Your Parents by Lisa Mick

Children, obey your parents in everything, for this pleases the Lord. (Col. 3:20)

I wanted to share with you about this scripture and what it means to me.  Pleasing the Lord is something I want to do most of the time.  Actually, I desire to do it all the time, but I am flesh so I fail at times.

God’s word says “parents,” but what if you only have one parent? In my situation, my father divorced my mother when I turned nineteen.  As it turns out, he really divorced the whole family because none of us see him anymore.  My grandmother called him last year and asked if he would reunite with me because I was willing to try to be his daughter again.  He told his mother, my grandmother, “I closed that door a long time ago and I don’t intend to open it.”  I was hurt, but I remembered the scripture, Children, obey your parents in everything, for this pleases the Lord. (Col. 3:20)  When my earthly father didn’t love me unconditionally, I embraced my Heavenly Father’s unconditional love and let Him become one of my “parents.”

I am truly blessed because I have a Heavenly Father whom I love with all my heart, soul and mind.  I want to obey Him and in turn I know that I please Him when I do.

But guess what?  I am doubly blessed.  I still have one earthly parent, my mother, who I want to obey and please the Lord.  My mother is a shining example of God’s unconditional love.  She has always been there for me and I know she loves me.  I have tried to be there for her and love and obey her through the years.  I pray the Lord is pleased with me where she is concerned.

My mother just turned 75 on March 9th. I celebrated her birthday by giving her a big party because she means so much to me.  To honor her and see others love her was such a gift!   She was so happy that day and I know she felt special.  Obeying and honoring my mother gave me the biggest gift of all.  First, I treated her the way the Lord wanted me to and second, I saw the joy on her face. I know the good Lord was looking down and saying this pleased Him.  I pray she felt honored.  She is a very special parent, a mom who has loved unconditionally and given all she has to her children. That’s how I know of God’s love for me because she has demonstrated this kind of love her entire life.

So, even though I don’t have one of my earthly parents, I have God, my Heavenly Father and a precious Mother who love me unconditionally.  I try to obey and honor both God and my Mother, hoping they are pleased.  When you do these things, it creates a special relationship between you and your parent.  Remember, if your earthly parent is not there for you anymore, choose the Heavenly Father.  I’ve learned He alone can fill the space where there is an earthly void. Reach for Him and obey His truths.  Then you will find joy.