I've been learning about Respect. Respect is showing honor or deference to another person because of their position, character, title, or behavior. As a Christian, I am called to show respect to other people. They are each created in the image of God, making human life sacred. They are each in need of grace, making real love possible. And, they are each capable of showing respect or refusing to show respect to me, making the respect I show a choice.

Jesus showed respect to those the world thought unworthy. Paul showed respect to the High Priest when he was being questioned. Mary showed respect to the angel as a representative of God. Daniel showed respect to the Babylonian King, even though he had sinned against God. Sarah showed respect to Abraham, even though he messed up sometimes. And, Noah showed respect to his generation by continuing to call them to repentance even though they were beyond hope.

God may be "no respecter of men" but He calls us to respect each other. In this way, we "love our neighbor as ourself." I need to be respected even when I don't deserve it. And, so do you. It is my responsibility to choose to be respectful to all people, even those who have hurt me, hurt my family, promoted sin, or even denied God. Because they are created in the image of God, they deserve my respect. And, because they are created in the image of God they can choose to disrespect me. Hopefully, by respecting them, they will choose to respect me, but that is not to be my concern.

It is not my responsibility to concern myself with the choice that others make. It is my responsibility to show respect to others. Some are going to be easy to respect: the saints of old, solid Christians, givers, friends, Olivia... Some are going to be difficult to respect: Hugh Heffner, Barak Obama, an angry customer at the store... But, if I'm going to be like Jesus, I'm going to show them respect, even as he did. (I believe he showed respect even to the Pharisees whom he called hypocrites, though I don't know exactly how it sounded. They were hypocrites, and he called them to truth under the direction of our loving God.)

I believe that respect evidences the fruit of the Spirit (love, peace, patience, self-control...), and I want this in my life. Lord, help me be a man who Respects.

Comments

WHITEShadow said…
I absolutely agree with you. I like your blog.
November 12, 2008 at 4:14 PM
Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Caption Contest!

Image
Today Micah reached 2 lbs, 0.5 ounces. In order to celebrate, Olivia (and Micah) suggested a competition. So, here's the deal: Think of a caption for this picture and contribute it in the Comments below by clicking on the underlined word "comments". The winner will get a guest appearance on a popular sitcom, a cash prize of $2000.00, and a special gift from Micah. (Well, maybe just a special gift from Micah!) Micah also asked me to tell you that she is progressing on her ventilator and her lungs have cleared very well because her lungs are growing. Praise God! She did have to have a transfusion to get her red blood cells up where they need to be, because she is making less blood than she uses. (But, hey! She's only 5 weeks and 1 day old [gestationally 28 weeks, 5 days] and is amazingly making making her own blood, how much more do you expect?) So, think of your caption, enter it in Comments below, and keep praying! Add Your Caption Here {click below}
Read more

Gone

We saw her born. I cut her cord. We waited. We loved and thanked her birth-parents. We visited with them, ate with them, rejoiced with them. We took her from the hospital. We watched her all night. We hardly slept. We set up stations for changing and sleeping. We fed her. We changed her. We worried about germs. We held her. We prayed over her. We sang to her. We talked to her. We cleaned the stub of her umbilical cord. We memorized her changing little face: her nose, her ears, her blue eyes, her soft dark hair. She was perfect and we fell in love right away. She squeaked. She sighed. She looked at us. She snuggled. She held our fingers. She ate passionately, liked noise better than quiet, and learned to anticipate a camera's flash by the "1 - 2 - 3" that preceded it. Never had either of us been so happy. Yesterday, we packed her things in the car. We started driving back home. I drove. Olivia sat in the back with her. We sang praises to Jesus. Every mile was joy. We stopp
Read more

100 Days of Micah!

Image
Here are my girls! Today is Micah Ahava Elise's 100th day!     So, what are some of our favorite things about Micah?   1. She is alive! 2. All her labs are normal 3. She is 5 1/2 pounds 4. She is awake a lot 5. She is breastfeeding 3 times a day 6. She is 14 weeks, 1 day (37 weeks, 5 days gestation) 7. Her steroids have stopped (really this time) with no signs of stress 8. She smiles 9. She makes sounds while she is eating 10. She burps! 11. Her eyes look good and healthy 12. She has a strong heart 13. She had a good echo-cardiogram 14. She squeaks 15. She follows you with her eyes 16. She likes to "nuggle" 17. She is progressing on her O2 support 18. She is strong 19. She is really cute! 20. She has done everything they have asked her to do 21. She already has lots of friends (including you!) 22. God has amazing plans for her life 23. She has 10 toes 24. She has daddy's hairline (temporarily) 25. She is an answer to prayer 26. She
Read more