Love and Respect

Love and Respect

daddy and childThe TV ad from Nebraska Furniture Mart blasted, “It’s Father’s Day. All your dad wants is love and respect.”

I’m glad we take a day to honor fathers. Dads are supposed to be God’s representatives of His fatherhood to us. Our Creator desires love and respect from us just as our earthly fathers do.

As I look at the world around me, I don’t think we do that at all. This week, our state legislature passed laws to ensure that our students would be taught evolution and climate change.

I can hear someone asking, “So what’s wrong with evolution and climate change theories?”

Neither theory honors God. Evolution says we just happened from pond scum. No loving Father, who created each individual for His purpose and will. No accountability to Him for how we live our lives. Evolution treats God’s Word, the Bible, as a fairy tale. In essence it says, “We have evolved to such high knowledge that we know better than God, how it all began.”

Creation is the foundation, the beginning step to believe God for the rest of His book. His word is true. We can either build our lives on that firm foundation, or on shifting sand. It’s up to us. Teaching children to build on shifting sand sets them up for a life without God and His powerful promises. A life without lasting guiding principles or a personal relationship with the living God.

Climate change advocates believe that we are in control; that we are the masters of our fate. That we can control the weather if we charge certain companies and individuals enough taxes to bring about that change.

Theories come and go. God’s word remains true forever (Isaiah 40:8; I Peter 1:25).

God says in the Bible that “those who honor Me I will honor, and those who despise me will be lightly esteemed” (1 Samuel 2:30). Note: In order to read these scriptures, click on the blue letters.)

Any time a word jumps out at me when I read a Bible passage, I go to www.blueletterbible.com and look it up. When I click on the blue number after a word, the program takes me to the Greek or Hebrew dictionary.

As I read this I Samuel 2:30 scripture, I was drawn the word “esteemed.” Listen to what the Biblical definition of esteemed is:

Esteemed=qalal (in Hebrew; the original language of the Old Testament)

to be insignificant
to be cursed
to treat with contempt
to bring contempt or distain
to shake

Do we want God to esteem us and our children lightly? We want to be blessed, right?

For me, I want to honor Him as my Creator; the One who has planned all my days before I yet lived one of them (Psalm 139:16). I want to walk in the deeds He has prepared for me to do (Ephesians 2:10). I choose to give Him the love and respect my Heavenly Father so richly deserves.

What are your thoughts?

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