Honoring our parents looks different as we progress through stages of life. From ages 25 to 45, we experience our parents differently than when we were teens or college students. As we establish families, careers, and places in our communities, we need to wrestle with how we follow God’s command to honor our parents. As establishing adults, we should begin to focus on building meaningful relationships.
Developing real relationships with our parents means more than just using mom for babysitting or using dad’s wood chipper. Though parents might not mind lending those services, what really makes them feel valued is when you want to be with them hearing about their struggles and inviting their wisdom and experience into your life.
This can be challenging because not all parents have positioned themselves to be a relational resource to us in their later years—and some parents go completely off the rails. So how do you respect these parents? The key is relationships. Even in a guarded context, you can communicate real honor by making yourself available to the company of an aging parent.
If you find yourself in this stage of life, identify one way you can honor your parents this week and do it! Invite your parent(s) to coffee or lunch, ask their advice on a situation or send flowers and a nice card. What they need to hear in these days is they mean more to you than the services they provide.
