Honor

A few weeks ago Jeff Nolt, the awesome pastor at my church (come visit!), gave an incredible message on honor. He focused on King David as an example of what it really looks like to honor someone. David wept and mourned when Saul died (2 Samuel 1). Yet how often am I quick to criticize people who have my best interests at heart? As far as I know no one is trying to kill me (like Saul was after David) or do anything remotely horrible to me, and yet I have difficulty honoring people?!

Once Bill Johnson mentioned how interesting it will be in heaven to look at our lives and see the repercussions that our words had. To trace the effects of the criticism we made, and how that played out into holding people back from reaching their fullest. That thought gripped my heart with conviction! I'm quick to complain, thinking that venting is necessary and healthy. I tell myself the negativity really only hurts me, and I fail to realize how it plays out into "the big picture." Bill Johnson talks a lot about creating a culture of honor, celebrating each person for who they are. Vital.

"The tongue has the power of life and death, and those who love it will eat its fruit." [Proverbs 18:21]

"...clothe yourselves with humility toward one another, because, "God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble." Humble yourselves, therefore, under God's mighty hand, that he may lift you up in due time. Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you." [1 Peter 5:5-7]

I love my family. They are the easiest people for me to honor. I feel challenged to look at the way that I honor my family and put that into practice in every other relationship. I'm thinking most specifically of honoring God. I ask God how to honor Him, I pray that my life will honor Him, but sometimes I'm unsure how to do that. I feel like today a new key came to me: honor the Lord like you honor your family, Chelsea - and then some.

It's a joy to tell people about my family. I want to be more like that with the Lord - bursting with so much pride that I can't wait to talk to people about how great God is and how much I love Him. Telling people the details of how He has been there for me, all He has carried me through and saved me from.

The Lord has been with me for life, He lives inside of me - now is the time for me to proclaim that. The Lord defended me and I did nothing to deserve that. If there has ever been a picture of loyalty, a picture of love - it is Jesus Christ at the cross. That is truth I struggle to grasp, but it sinks in more and more every time I realize the depth of my sin and the depth of His love and forgiveness, along with my desperate need for Him to fill every part of my life.

"It is good to praise the Lord and make music to your name, O Most High, to proclaim your love in the morning and your faithfulness at night ... for you make me glad by your deeds, O Lord; I sing for joy at the works of your hands. How great are your works, O Lord, how profound your thoughts!" [Psalm 92:1-5]

I love my dad and my mom and how they balance each other out. I love the way that God designed family and created everything so perfectly. Moms and dads to balance each other out and provide for their children.

My mom sacrifices so much to be the best mom possible for my brother and me. She is a patient listener and wise adviser. She is brilliant and beautiful. My dad has a calming effect on me, and when he hugs me it still makes me believe that everything will be okay. Just like when I rode on his shoulders when I was little and didn't have a care in the world. He can be so perfectly sensitive and it is much appreciated. I value their input so much. They make me feel absolutely loved and always make me laugh - always. (And I mean really, can you ask for anything more in life than love and laughter?)

They are open with their lives, never hesitant to be honest about their struggles and tell me the truth. Their honesty has been a blessing and our transparent relationship is a gift I can't imagine living without. I love to honor my earthly family and I want to do the same for God. I want to go above and beyond honoring the Lord.

There is something about hearing a person honor their family, or honor any person for who they are, that creates a great respect. And for someone who doesn't have what the person is talking about, it creates a thirst and a hunger. I know, for example, that just hearing about families whose parents are not divorced stirs a desire inside of me. Whenever something is not the way that the Lord intended it, people long for it to be set back into place as He originally intended for it to be. (Whether they recognize that as the reason for their discontent or not.)

As we begin to honor God in our speech and actions, being extra intentional about truly honoring Him - then people will be drawn to the Father. People will sense that love relationship, the depth of the intimacy we have with God, the authority that we carry because we are walking in right relationship with Him ... people will sense all of that and if they are not at that point they will begin to hunger and thirst for a real relationship with Him.

The part of their life that is not in alignment will be commanded to attention and when they choose to surrender it all to God, it will come into alignment and be a source of joy instead of a source of pain as it may have been in the past. God wants this for you, now. Receive it. Live in it.

So much starts with honor. Honoring God. Honoring other people. So I'm asking the Lord to expand my view of honor and increase my understanding of what that means ...