The lost art of honor

Honor-a lost art

Honoring my husband

Kathleen Maxwell-Rambie

copyright May 2018

Years ago, I helped host an art reception with several other ladies to honor a local artist. This artist had graciously donated some of her work to the business I worked for. We decided to honor her contribution to our nonprofit and to our our community for her artistic talent. 

 After the reception, I was visiting with one of the other hostesses and she made the comment, that honor is a lost art in our society and culture. Somehow, our society has slowly drifted away from this character trait. I had to agree.

Honor is defined as giving high respect or esteem to someone or something; a person or thing that brings credit to something. Romans 12:10 instructs us by saying, “Be devoted to one another in brotherly love. Honor one another above yourselves.”(NIV) 

The word honor in this passage actually means “precious.” Do you look at those around you as something precious?

What are some ways we can honor those around us? 

First off, by speaking to them. I witnessed something the other day that was dishonoring. Two people were talking in a business conversation and a third person walked in and interrupted the conversation. He spoke to one lady and gave her a directive but totally ignored the other woman. One of the most disrespectful things you can do to someone, is to ignore them or give them the silent treatment. People who do this, only show their own insecurity and their own immaturity. 

 Another way to honor others is by how we speak to them. My dryer broke and I was dealing with the repair for 6 weeks. The wrong parts were ordered twice, the company had to cancel the appointment several times for internal issues, and then the second service man forgot to order the correct part he needed! 

Needless to say, I was not real happy with the situation. As I talked to Customer Solutions, I was challenged to speak kindly to the woman on the phone as I pleaded my case. I can’t say it was easy, as I really wanted to give her a piece of my mind. Honoring her as a person, who is trying to do a good job, got me further than giving her a piece of my mind and I know, honored God.

Showing honoring to others raises their value. It picks them up and elevates them. It is a deposit in their bank instead of a withdrawal. Honoring someone blesses them. 

Philippians 2:3 says, “Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit, but in humility consider others better than yourselves.” (NIV) 

Imagine if we were constantly affirming one another for their contribution to our families, churches, organizations, etc. Honoring others above ourselves is a directive from scripture. The Bible is so good at showing us how to live well.

National Day of Prayer

One of my all time favorite scriptures is Psalms 8:4 and 5. It says, “What is man that your are mindful of him and the son of man that you care for him? You made him a little lower than the heavenly beings and crowned him with glory and honor.” (NIV)

In this scripture, God esteems you and me. He honors us for simply being who we are. His honor is bestowed upon us. God almighty honors you! He has given you a crown of glory and validates you, as being important. He even gives you and me a crown. It is his way of saying, “Hey world- this is someone of value!” 

This passage transformed how I personally thought about myself years ago. My personal self esteem was pretty low at the time, and one morning in my quite time I read Psalms 8. I suddenly saw that God almighty saw me as a woman of value. I had the choice to throw away the way I felt about myself and trade my thoughts for God’s. What about you? Do you need to toss some of your thoughts about yourself and see yourself as a person of value.

To take that passage to another level, if God honors the person next to us, we should  honor them too? How do you treat those in your home? Let me challenge your thinking. How can you give something to someone if you don’t have it yourself? If you have trouble honoring others, perhaps it is because you don’t have a high regard for yourself. To lift them up, would only make you feel worse about yourself. Perhaps that is why some people struggle with honoring others.

 Honor is a character trait that people in royalty practice. I have no doubt that honor is everywhere in heaven. Why?  In scripture, God honored Jesus. Jesus honored his Father God and Jesus and God highly honored the work of the Holy Spirit. Each one valued the others function higher than their own. Do you honor others in your church, in your work place for the work they do? Do you tell them how much you appreciate them?

Lt. Commander Austin Maxwell

Honor looks for what a person does right, not wrong. I think often times, Christians are too judgmental of others. The truth is, if we were walking in their shoes, we might do the very same thing.

With this being Memorial Day Weekend, I would like to honor not only those that have given their lives for our country. Many thanks to those that sacrificed years of their life, so we can live in a country with many freedoms.

I also want to honor the spouses, sons and daughters, fathers and mothers of those that  went to war. They sacrificed for us too and I want to say thank you to them and honor them. And to all those that were left with their lives in pieces from a loss, I ask God to bless you in many ways and heal your hearts. 

Collins and her daddy

 I have discovered that I need to do better at honoring those around me. Honor may be a lost art but you and I can begin to change our society and community by honoring those around us. It has to start somewhere, why not with me and you? 

Kathleen Maxwell-Rambie is a native of the Hill Country. She is passionate about helping others to discover their value and worth. You can contact her at kathleenmaxwell1@gmail.com or visit her blog at www.themaxwellminutes.blogspot.com