Ephesians 6:1 Children, obey your parents in the Lord, for this is right.
Sometimes my kids found it hard to follow rules I gave them. My rules conflicted with the fun they felt they were missing. In their heart, they knew I had their best interests in mind. However, the lure of their friends was greater. Fortunately, their disobedience wasn’t on huge issues and things worked out okay.
Do you sometimes choose to follow your friends and go your own way? It isn’t always easy to say “no” to your friends. Eventually, there will be consequences for your disobedient actions. It may not be until you have your own children, and they copy the bad behaviors you have let grow in your life. God asks you to obey your parents because they have lived a lot longer. They know the dangers in the world. If you remember to obey your parents, you will please God and your parents. You will have fewer penalties and be a better son or daughter and perhaps a better parent, when you become an adult.
My children have their own children now and have the same worries. When they chose to disobey and do their own thing, they paid the consequences and their children might, too. They worry their children will learn the hard way that “mom and dad” have rules for a reason.
Lord, help me to listen to your command and obey my parents because it is the right thing to do. Help me to have the courage to say “no”, when my friends want a “yes”.
Marge Gower 