The other day, probably a month ago, I was sitting in my living room watching the bustle of the household. Mom was working in the kitchen, and she was getting stressed about something—or lots of things. Probably lots of things. She was pouring out her woes to dad, and he was listening. Now, Dad had several options open to him at this point. He could have:

a) Answered by telling her all of his stresses, and letting her know that she wasn't the only one with problems.

b) Argued that it wasn't his fault.

c) Told her that she was stressing out, and that she needed to go cool down before she took care of these issues.

 

He could have. But he didn't.

What he said was not an unusual thing. I've heard him say it many times before. But I realized that it is not the way in which today's average husband would react. He said,

“Tell me how I can help you.”

He didnt' try to deflect the blame, whether it was his fault or not. He didn't try to hurl the blame right back at her, or at someone else. He very gently and calmly asked how he could help. And as I watched this scene unfold, I realized that is how I want my future husband to be.

What is the moral of this story? Well, being calm and humble in a stressful situation is a priceless character trait that nobody would regret cultivating. But what I really want to stress is the fact that your parents have beatitul character traits too. And some of them they have worked very hard on. I know for a fact that my dad did.

In this day and age, children are taught to see the worst in their parents. They are taught to see their silly habits and their crazy quirks and their faults, and magnify them to themselves, to their friends, and to everyone else in their lives by the way they snub and put them down. Friends, this is NOT God's plan. Proverbs 15:20 says,

“A wise son makes a glad father, but a foolish son despises his mother.”

I want to challenge any teen who reads this to look at your parents objectively. Search them, and bring their wonderful qualities to light. Everybody is sinful, therefore everybody has faults. But most people have merits too, And I am willing to bet that your parents do as well, if you will look for them. Praise your parents—to themselves and to other people. Instead of laughing and making fun, discuss what you love about them. It is one of the ten commandments, and one that I think is not brought to it's full height often. Exodus 20:12:

“Honor your father and your mother, that your days may be long in the land that the Lord your God is giving you.”

Blessings,

Rose in the Wilderness