Honour your father and your mother, so that you may live long in the land which the LORD your God is giving you.
Exodus, Exodus 20:12

This commandment, the fourth of the ten commandments, is often not taken seriously. And yet it is so important to God! He knows why it is so good for us.
Sunday was Father’s Day here in Lithuania and my two little ones congratulated me and gave me a little present. This made me very happy! Just a little thank you for all the effort! And: We haven’t forgotten what you mean to us. Yes, that makes me happy! Imagine if people forgot your birthday because it’s not important to anyone. That makes you feel very superfluous ….
God wants us to honour and respect our parents. HE does not set any conditions. He knows that parents have faults. And we should forgive them. HE knows that parents have sometimes done bad things to us, and we should forgive that too. We are to think of the good, even if it is only a little. Because the way we treat our father and mother is the way we treat God, the Father. Do we lack gratitude? Are we grumpy at God? Can we not build up trust in Him? Do we find it difficult to love Him? Do we perhaps see a judge in Him? Then we should take care of our relationship with our parents. It is not in order. Let us consciously forgive and ask for love for our parents, even if they have already died. Let us ask God for healing for our wrong reactions so that we don’t continue them all our lives.
Above all, let us not treat our own children badly, but learn from the mistakes of our parents and bring them up in love, kindness and seriousness to be responsible human beings. Often I see that children treat their parents the way parents treat their parents. And that would not be desirable at all for some. Unfortunately, history repeats itself.
Please treat the Heavenly Father in the same way you would like your children to treat you. Do you want them to trust you? Sure, and God wants you to trust Him too! He also wants you to be grateful to Him for what He does for you. HE wants a warm, good, intimate, friendly relationship.

Thank You, my Father in Heaven! How good that I was able to forgive my parents, with Your help. And now I love them! I would never have believed it possible, but now it is so. Thank You for helping everywhere when we want to walk in Your ways!

A thank you to all the fathers who provide for their family and make a home for them. A thank you to all the fathers who go to sea or are long-distance drivers and can rarely be at home, although they would like to be. A thank you for all the sacrifices fathers make for their children and families! Thank you for all the compassion and support when the children grow, are ill or go the wrong way. Fathers, you are important! May the Lord bless you!