8 Great Ways to Honor Your Husband: The Training Wheels of Honor

by Marilynn Chadwick Honor is not a subject you hear much about these days. If anything, we've become much more accustomed to disrespect and dishonor. The urban slang for disrespect, or “dis,” has made its way into everyday language. Most any child can tell you what it means to “dis” someone. Or worse, to be “dissed.” Honor. Simply put, the word means to treat someone with respect or admiration. It has to do with qualities like honesty, integrity and dignity. The biblical version of honor is much weightier. Lofty. It speaks to the precious worth of the person being honored and is related to words like glory, worship or prize. Most of us yearn to be treated with respect. We benefit not only from receiving honor but also from giving it to others. God set the bar low so that even a child can show honor. “Honor your father and mother” - which is the first commandment with a promise - “so that it may go well with you and that you may enjoy long life on the earth” (Ephesians 6:2-3). You might call this the “the training wheels of honor” (Exodus 20:12). When children honor their earthly parents, they begin to grasp what it means to honor their heavenly Father. Perhaps it’s time to recapture this age-old virtue. We can start by honoring God. But let's do so with a sense of expectancy. For God Himself makes this bold promise: “Those who honor me, I will honor” (1 Samuel 2:30). In Genesis 2:18, God created us to be our husband’s helper, or ezer, a source of rock-like strength and support. But we can also choose to use that ezer strength to work against our husband, robbing him of strength and confidence. I’ve wondered whether we’ve lost sight of the importance of respect. Perhaps a lack of honor could be at the core of many divorces. Honor doesn’t just happen. It goes against the grain of our culture. Disrespect, on the other hand, takes very little energy. It’s the path of least resistance. Honor is a narrow road. It requires strength and intentionality. I’ve never forgotten this tidbit of common-sense wisdom from a dear friend who had been married for over sixty years. It went something like this: “Don’t be afraid to be the one who loves the most.” The same could be said of honor. Don’t be afraid to be the one who honors the most. As we have been learning to honor our husbands and restore honor in the home, I want to leave you with this challenge. Dare to take the first step by honoring your husband even before he honors you.