Earning respect for an opinion is a reward for thinking while earning respect for a choice is a reward for living.
I think most people want respect.
Why?
Because it validates what we’re doing is good and worth the effort that we put into it, whatever it is. And validation feels good.
Today’s Tiny Words. Big Life. quote makes a distinction between respect that’s earned from “thinking” vs. “doing”.
Neither one is bad but there’s a point to make about that. To the “doers”, you could probably do some more “thinkin'” before your “doin'”. And for the “thinkers”, you could probably use a little more “doin'”… See how that works?
But back to the topic…
The main emphasis of today’s post is about respect.
If you think about it, respect is a worldly concept. We want respect for the work we do, the things we do for others, and the miscellaneous other “great things” we do in general. (In our minds, we have a bunch of those…)
In a spiritual sense, respect will get you nowhere. We leave that at the door when our time on earth is over. It’s one of the many things that you’re not going to “take with you”.
Here’s one that you might not have thought about recently…
How about respect for the love you give?
In today’s Tiny Words. Big Life. Bible verse, the Apostle Paul is telling believers to love one another and give honor to one another “above yourselves”.
Did you catch that?
“Above yourselves”… That means honor others over honoring yourself. In other words, respect others more than you respect yourself. Of course, there’s nothing wrong with respecting yourself. Unless you’re doing something wicked and respecting yourself for it, it’s all good. But to honor others (respect others) above yourself is following the teachings of Jesus, as Paul so eloquently describes.
Before moving on, it bears mentioning that Chapter 12 of The Book of Romans is the book where Paul advises fellow Christians to present themselves to God as a “living sacrifice”. Tiny Words. Big Life. gives this chapter a 5-star recommendation for additional reading and contemplation about the epitome of living a Christian life. (I know… all books in the Bible are worthy of 5-stars. I just happen to really love Romans 12.)
The Tiny Words. Big Life. takeaway is this: Pray to God that you lift the needs of others above your own.
By the way, I’ve prayed this personally because of my own tendency for selfishness. It’s not an easy thing to release because wanting to fulfill my own needs over the needs of anyone else, often without regard to the cost, seems to be so deeply engrained into my thinking. But by the grace of God, He is constantly doing a work in me – mainly because I need constant work! (I don’t think I’m the only one to have that tendency, but I’ll let you mull that one over for yourself.)
So how do we do it?
Jesus taught us to love others above all else. By doing so, we’ll develop, as a by-product, love for ourselves – because love grows from love. There’s no other way to get it.
And from love, we’ll get the respect we want and deserve – on earth and in Heaven. Amen.
Romans 12:10
Be devoted to one another in love. Honor one another above yourselves.