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Honour Your Father

June 4, 2015

Father’s Day is, for most, a day of celebration, but for some, it can be a day of struggle. You see not everyone had a father like Beaver Cleaver (come to think of it, nobody had a father like Beaver Cleaver). Some people had a father that was less than memorable, and still others had a father they wish they could forget. For this reason, Father’s Day can be a day of mixed emotions.

The truth is there are people who have had a strained, troubled, broken or abusive relationship with Dad. If you had a good relationship with your Father, as I did, that is great; this Father’s Day take time to celebrate that relationship with him. Love him and celebrate him, but remember those who struggle with Father’s Day, because they had something far less than “Father Knows Best” for a dad.

Regardless of the relationship you had with your father, I would like to submit a challenge this month that I believe will bring healing to the wounded, and strengthen the relationships of the healthy.

The Bible doesn’t say, “Obey your father.”
It doesn’t say, “Respect your father.”
It doesn’t say, “Like your father.”
It doesn’t even say, “Love your father.”
It says, “Honour your father.”

We cannot always control how we feel. Feelings of affection can come and go, and if we had a difficult relationship with our father, feelings of affection and respect may be difficult to come by. But there is something we can choose to give our father, whether he was a great dad, or a wounded dad who fell short in his relationship with us… Honour.

To “honour” our father is a choice; it is something we can all engage in.

Respect must be earned. Affection must be inspired. Honour, however, is a set of actions that we have control over. As sons and daughters, we must do everything we can to bestow honour, in at least the simplest way, upon our dad.

So honour your Father, even if he doesn’t deserve it — do it for yourself, do it for your kids, do it for God. Honour your father in a way that honours God and brings life to you and your children, and every generation that follows. The chances are if you feel your father failed you, his father likely failed him too; in Christ, we can break the cycle of failure and create a culture of honour for generations to come.

Happy Father’s Day