"Wilt thou have this woman to be thy wedded wife ... wilt thou love her, comfort her, honor and keep her in sickness and in health, and, forsaking all others, keep thee only unto her, so long as ye both shall live?" And all of us who are married said, "I will." Tucked away inside this vow is a promise to honor our spouses, to respect them, stand up for them, and hold them in high esteem. High esteem does not permit fooling around. Because of the high divorce rate and other statistics we read on marital fidelity, we are moved to ask, "What has ever happened to honor?"
Where is honor in the relationships of young people dating today? God has declared that our bodies are the temples of the Holy Spirit. We are told that by the age of twenty-three, the majority of unmarried young adults have violated each other’s virginity and thereby dishonored the dwelling place of God’s Spirit. What has ever happened to honor?
In much of the business world today, doing the smart thing has replaced doing the right, honorable thing. Morality seems to be becoming a thing of the past like bobbysocks and bloomers. Foolish is the person who does the honorable thing and winds up with less profit because of it. Practical considerations have replaced principle-decisions. What has ever happened to honor?
When we love and honor the Lord completely without reservation, we are also motivated by the Spirit to live lives that outdo one another in showing honor. The Christian should be an outstanding citizen. Today, God is saying to us, love and honor me. Be honorable in all that you do. Remember your marriage vows. Honor your spouses by caring for them. Don’t attack them by your words or your actions, but build them up. Do you love them? Tell them. Better, show them. Children, your parents are a gift from God to you. They make many mistakes, but they love you and want the best for you. Honor them, tell them you love them. Better yet, show them. The person with whom you work, those people you’ll meet later today, tomorrow’s companions through life, all need to be touched by your love and esteem, for through your love God wants to add wholeness to their lives. By your actions, your way of doing business, the way you move through life, may "honorable" become a description of your personality.
We can never overdo honor. Excessive honor is not possible. We can never show God superfluous respect and esteem. Once I asked a young child how much ice cream she wanted. Her answer was, "Give me too much." She obviously wanted a lot. How much honor are we to show the Lord and each other? A lot, or to put it in the child’s words, "Too much."