04.02.06 The 2nd Key for Adding Value to Your Parents' Lives

2. Guard your Mouth

Reading Ruth’s story, I notice several pockets where she could have easily said something that would have offended her mother-in-law, Naomi, but nothing of that nature appears in that narrative.

A value-adding daughter guards her mouth when interacting with her father or mother. In fact, the words that you say to your parents can indicate whether you value them or not. By the way, that moral is so deeply ingrained in our culture. In fact, many Ugandan tribes do not permit saying any offensive or offhand words to elders, let alone ‘answering them back'. We are brought up to watch what we say when communicating with ‘parents’ or their representatives.

Therefore, guard your mouth against careless speech when communicating with parents (and other people, for that matter) and speaking impulsively on the spur of the moment. Remember that your parent is a human being like any other, and therefore she or he could make a mistake here and there. Should that happen, be very careful before you reprimand that parent. Remember that she or he is not your child and therefore should never be treated or ‘talked to’ like so. Comments like ‘why did you give birth to me’ should never come out of your mouth, however disappointed, frustrated or annoyed you may be. Isaiah 45:10 issues a harsh warning to that effect. That verse reads (AMPC): Woe to him [who complains against his parents that they have begotten him] who says to a father, what are you begetting? or to a woman, with what are you in travail?

Some children make fun of their parents in an unkind and cruel manner by mimicking the way they talk or act. Did you know that God resents such behaviour? See what Proverbs 30:17 says (AMP): The eye that mocks a father and scorns a mother, the ravens of the valley will pick it out, and the young vultures will devour it.