DAILY DEVO...is respect earned?

"Respect should be earned"

I've heard that all my life and I completely understand that some circumstances where trust and respect has been stripped away, it is difficult to trust and respect again. Believe me, I've experienced that more times than I care to.

However, expecting it to be earned is clearly a worlds view, not God's view. When we learn to show everyone respect, we will then learn that every single person has meaning and significance.

It is election year, and everywhere I turn I hear the comments of how each candidate can't be trusted nor respected. Respect is not something we do according to our like or dislike of a person; God said that we are to honor those in authority. But not only those in authority, but God wants us to respect every person we meet as if they hold a very prestigious title, because they really do!

Each life was created by God and God has a very precise plan for their life. We may not understand them, we may not agree with them and we may not even like them, but God expects us to respect them as they are a child of His. And all of His children are royalty.

The world may have lost the value of showing respect and honoring authority but that doesn’t mean we should. Jesus said...

" If you love only those who love you, what good is that? Even corrupt tax collectors do that much. If you are kind only to your friends, how are you different from anyone else? Even pagans do that. But you are to mature in your godly character, even as your Father in heaven is perfect." (Matthew 5:46-48) 

Show respect to others...even if you don't think they deserve it!