Honour our Parents

Children, obey your parents in the Lord, for this is right. "Honor your father and mother"—which is the first commandment with a promise— "that it may go well with you and that you may enjoy long life on the earth."

Ephesians 6:1-3

(New International Version)

As I was resting after reading 2 chapters of Selection and Assessment... I went to check my email then I received this forwarded email from my friend. It was a very thought-provoking article.

To many who know me, I am very very emotional especially when it comes to family issues. To me, family is one of the best gifts God has given us in this lifetime. I am an advocate of famly time.

Brothers and Sisters, I am guilty for not spending enough time with my family. As I read the article, I was so devastated and I was so upset and I cried so badly... Why so? Because I am guilty of spending so much of my time away from home since I studied in University. I was also away in Shanghai for 6 months. Nothing could make up the loss of family time during that 6 months.

I remembered that very evening when my sister sent me a family photo taken during Chinese New Year last year, it was not only an incomplete family photo, it was also a photo that provoked my guilt-stricken heart to see how my parents have aged... I teared so badly and told mum I really miss them and I wish I could be home to be with them.. We cried together.. Of course, sometimes our parents could "annoy" us.. and don't forget we could be annoying them too.. It's always a mirror image hor.. =p

My prayer

Abba Father, I am very heart-broken. You know how badly I teared as it's Your Holy Spirit who prompted me and led me to write this blog entry.

Abba Father, I purposed in my heart that I shall honour my parents and never forsake them... never.. As You enable and strenghthen me, Your unworthy child and grant me the ability to honour my parents for life! In no circumstance, shall I forsake them or my wife's parents, no way as long as You enable me to honour them.

No matter how inconvenience it could be, no matter how tiring or how "cumbersome" we might feel our old-aged parents could be, how enticing it is to have them sent to the old folks' home, we must never see them as liability!

Help us Father God. Help us God to have the peaceful, joyful, cheerful and obedient hearts to honour our parents and parents-in-law by taking good care of them and never never forsake them, for Father, You have never forsaken us even when we rebelled against You! Thank You Jesus.

Lord Father, I shall never depart from Your commandments. Having long age is Your promise and blessings to us when we honour parents but it shall not be the compeling factor that we honour our parents but truly our love for God and also our repaying love for our parents who have "slogged" so much for us all these years..

Abba Father, I pray that my wife would be this godly lady who shares the same biblical and family values and she would love You, me, her parents and my parents. So would You also enable me to do so, Lord Father. In Jesus' precious Name, Amen.

Help us Abba Father, for in Jesus' Name I pray and I give thanks blessing me with my parents. Amen.

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This article talked about a married son with his aged mother.. God bless your reading and may you also purpose in your hearts with your future spouses to honour your parents and parents-in-law even when the gettings get tough... We are not able to do it on our own, we need God to strengthen us. Only Jesus could do this. Pray to Jesus and ask Him for the wisdom and strength to see us through.

Enjoy reading this article!

Honour Our Parents

Daughter-In-Law: "When I cooked food which are blend, you will grumble That they are tasteless. Now that I have cooked saltier, you complained that you can't swallow this at all! What exactly do you want?"

When the son came back, the mother immediately ate the food without a word. She stared at him. The son took a taste on his mother's food and spitted out immediately. He ranted at his wife," Didn't I told you that my mother cannot take too salty food?!"

The wife shouted, "OK! She's your mum! You cook for her in future!" After saying that, she stormed into their room angrily.

Feeling helpless, the son told the mother, "Mum, don't eat this anymore. I will cook you a bowl of noodles."

The mother said, "Son, you have something to tell me? Don't keep everything to yourself."

Son: "Mum, I am going to get promoted soon and my upcoming working Schedule will be very, very tight... and as for my wife... ummm... she said she will be going out to work...."

The mother understood what he meant and said in a begging manner, "Son, please don't send me to the Old Folks' Home.."

The son remained silent and tried to think of a good reason to persuade her mother.

Then he said," There is nothing wrong with the Old Folks' Home. Once my wife had gone out to work, no one will serve you as well as the Home which provides you meals and care. It would definitely much better than being at home."

The son went for a bath after that and went into the Study Room. He Looked out from the windows and thought back and hesitated a while....

His mother has been remaining as a widow since she was young with him, and brought him up painstakingly, solely.

She tried all means to earn as much as she could, in order to support him in studying overseas. Yet she expected nothing nor used her past painful experience to threaten his son to be filial.

While now, his wife is threatening him with the stake of their marriage. "Should I send my Mum to the Home?" He asked himself.

"The only person who will accompany you till the end of your life would be your wife.." said a friend before.

"Your mother is in old age now, and if she's lucky, she might be able to live for a few more years longer. Why not be filial to her for this period of time? reminded by some relatives.

He was stuck in a dilemma. He did not want to think anymore, in order not to affect his decision.

The son found a Home with high standards, built on a beautiful and Transquil mountain top. He told himself that he would feel much better when the more he spent.

When the son helped his mother into the lobby of the Home, the 42" TV was turned on. The programme shown on screen was a comedy. But no one was laughing.

A few old folks, dressed similarly in clothing, were sitting there, in A daze. There was one who was sitting improperly on a sofa, there was one who was bending down to pick up a piece of biscuit from the floor, there was one who was talking to himself...

The son knew that his mother likes sunlight, so he chose a room with ample sun rays shining into the room. By viewing out from the room, was a big piece of greenery scene. Few nurses were wheeling some old folks out for some fresh air.

It was so pathetic of silence in the background. The sun would still need to set down.

Soon it was dusk.

The son told the mother, "Mum, I am leaving."

The mother waved to him to say goodbye, opening her toothless mouth..

He turned back to look at his mother. She was full of grey hair and Wrinkled skin with deep set eyes...

He found that she was really old. He remembered when he was six, due to some circumstances, his mother cannot bring him along with her thus temporarily placed him at a relative's home for few days. He recalled hugging his mother's thigh and begged her not to leave him alone. In the end, his mother never leave him alone and decide to stay with him.

He stopped thinking and left.

When he returned home, his wife and his mother-in-law were busy Discarding things from his mother's room, happily.

One of the discarded item was his tall trophy which he won as First Prize when he was young. He wrote an essay on "MY MOTHER". The second item discarded was a dictionary. That was the first gift From his mother, who scrimped and saved for a month in order to buy for him.

He shouted, "Enough! Stop discarding anymore!"

His mother-in-law cried," There were so much rubbish. If don't discard,there would not be any place for my stuff.."

His wife continued, "Yeah! Need to dump away that old, stinky bed of your mum too. We will buy a new bed for my mum later,"

He saw some pictures from the stack..they were taken at a zoo and Amusement park when his mother brought him there.

These are precious belongings of my Mum! You can't discard them!"

"What sort of attitude is this? I demand you to apologise to my Mum NOW!" ranted the wife.

The husband said," When I got married with you, that showed that I will love your Mum too. But why can't you do the same too?"

He went back to the Home and saw his mother weeping in between her frail legs. She was missing the moments when her son would apply ointment for her every night...

The son kneeled before her and said, "Mum, here I come. I brought the ointment too."

The mother said," I will apply it myself, Son! You still need to work tomorrow. Go home, Son!"

Son said, "Mum, please forgive me! Let's go home!"

>Hope this is inspirational and touching to you.

>Without our parents, we won't be here. No parents will resort to harm their own children. They only want the benefits for them.

>For Daughters & Sons: Please remember to return gratitude to your dads and mums.

>For Daughter-In-Laws & Sons-In-Laws: Please love your in laws as you did to your parents, coz without them, you will not find your partners...they are parents too..

To God be all Glory, Praise and Honour! =)