Give Your Parents Your Heart

I have been reading through a book titled "Joyfully at Home", written by a young woman named Jasmine Baucham. She has written this book in hope of giving young single women a hope and vision for their life as God has called them to live. I want to quote an excerpt from one her chapters titled "Contributing to a Joyful Atmosphere" at home. Here is what she said:

Give Your Parents Your Heart
Proverbs 23:26 is a beautiful verse: "My son, give me your heart, and let your eyes observe my ways." We are commanded in God's Word to honour and obey our parents (Ephesians 6:1), not because they're perfect, or because they know everything, but because our God is a God of order, and if the family unit is going to work smoothly and effectively for the kingdom, all of the little nuts and bolts need to be moving in the same direction. Our parents need to have our hearts, to know that we're fully invested in our God-given role, and that we're all working towards the same goal. Otherwise, we can forget living effectively at home - in fact, we may as well forget even trying to live peaceably with them! The first step to living in harmony at home is to trust your parents as the God-given authorities that they are - despite their faults - and to determine that you will live alongside them and learn everything that you can during this season in your life. Once that determination is made, I promise, you will see your home life in a different light.

If you Want to be Treated Like an Adult, Act Like One
How does one act like an adult? Not by false displays of bravado nad independence, but by responsibility, accountability, trustworthiness, and discernment. If you find your mother telling you to do something five times, don't automatically rattle off, "I'm not a kid anymore, Mom!" Think, 'Does she tell me to do that 12 times because I have a tendency to hesitate or forget when she tells me? Is that something I should work on'? When you're given a new responsibility, don't complain; an adult takes on responsibility with competence and worthiness, not by whining. Rise to the occasion. When you do something wrong, take responsibility; don't blame it on anyone else. Fall on the sword, apologize, and make a note to do better next time. Show true repentance and growth; adults make mistakes, but they shouldn't respond in the same way children do - they should grow from them.taken from Jasmine Baucham's book "Joyfully at Home" - A Book for Young Ladies on Vision and Hope