R-E-S-P-E-C-T

Watcing the news this morning while getting the kids ready for school, one report caught my attention. It was about an 8-foot alligator that tore through an elderly woman’s screened-in porch and was found in her kitchen. If you live in Florida, you know there are gators everywhere. However, when I was a teenager, alligators where on the endangered species list…spotting a gator was uncommon…not at all like today. They’ve made a huge comeback.

I began thinking about another endangered species…the character of respect. It seems few people show respect for one another, and in my opinion that’s sad. Think about it…you turn on the tv and men are always portrayed as a bumbling idiot. I personally know several men who deserve my respect and because of knowing them my life has been greatly enriched. Also, the good old-fashioned family with its values and love and respect for one another is portrayed as boring or there’s some dirty secret hidden away, basically saying its unrealistic. And let’s talk about society’s portrayal of women…unless you’ve had a boob job and a botox injection, you’re practically worthless. I could go on about the elderly, government officials, teachers, etc. Respect is truly an endangered species!

Respecting God

Proverbs 9:10 says, “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom.” That word fear is translated from the Hebrew word yir’ah which means reverence. So, revering or respecting God is the root of wisdom.

How do you respect God? You respect God through worship, prayer…seeking His opinion in everything, and obedience to His Word…the Bible. He’s going to ask you to do things that sometimes you really don’t want to do. Some examples: attend church regularly, give, forgive others, turn away from sin.

Respect for God isn’t based on how you feel at the time, it’s a lifestyle! If He can’t count on you, He won’t call on you to do something great.

Respecting Others

There are people in your life who are worthy of your respect. You’re only hurting yourself when you don’t realize this. Disrespect for others will alienate you from the blessings they can and will provide. God uses people to enrich our lives in many ways. The problem is, some of us are so selfish and self-centered, we live our lives without this realization.

If we can’t respect the people God’s placed in our lives, then we’re in essence disrespecting God’s will. God places people…imperfect people…in our lives to mold and shape us into the person He’s destined for us to be. We need to look at others through these eyes and see how God is using them to develop us. Remember David (in the Bible) and his respect for Saul? Saul was rejected by God as king, and his jealousy toward David was intense. However, David respected Saul in an incredible way; he respected the anointing that had once been there.

I hope you’ll make respect a foundation in your life…not an endangered species.