When I was a kid, a former Major League Baseball player by the name of Pete Runnels gave me a baseball I have treasured for years. Pete was a two-time American League batting champion for the Boston Red Sox. During one of his All-Star appearances, he had some of the game’s greatest players of all time sign the ball. To name a few, legends such as Joe DiMaggio, Mickey Mantle, Bob Feller, Bobby Brown, Roy Sievers, Luke Appling and Pete Runnels himself signed their autographs to the ball. This baseball is something that has great value to me not only because of the names on the ball but because of the person who gave it to me. Over the years, that baseball has become one of my most treasured possessions.
I would never take that special ball and play pitch with it like an ordinary ball or use it for batting practice or to field grounders. Why? Because of the value and importance of that particular baseball. Therefore, I treat it differently.
What would it look like if we treated people in our lives like that baseball? What if we placed a high value on our spouse, children, co-workers, employees, boss and people in general? It would not only change the way we see them, it would change the way we treat them with our words and our actions.
Honor is defined as value, respect, or highly esteemed: to treat as precious, weighty or valuable.
Dishonor means to treat something or someone as common or ordinary.
One of the greatest temptations in all of our relationships is to treat each other as “common or ordinary.” Familiarity is the enemy of honor. The more we are around people, the easier it is to take people for granted. Let me encourage you to rethink and restore the value of honor in your home and workplace. Here are three things I have learned about showing honor.
1. The level of honor we give is determined by the amount of value we perceive. Imagine if the “perceived” value of every person in our life along with every person we meet was someone of great importance. Our attitude and actions toward them would reflect respect and honor. Let me encourage you to view your spouse, children, co-workers, employee or employer with a renewed sense of value. Treat them as someone who should be highly esteemed, someone who carries tremendous weight and value in your eyes. You will be amazed at how your relationship with them will change along with the atmosphere of your home and workplace. Showing honor to others unlocks the potential in their lives.
Here is another lesson I’ve learned about honor:
2. The level of value you receive is determined by the amount of honor you give. If you find yourself wishing others treated you with more respect and honor, ask yourself this question: “How much honor and respect am I showing others on a consistent basis?” When you make the commitment to become a person of honor and go the extra mile to show honor toward others, you will be amazed at how people will respond to you with honor. Honor is such a lost virtue in our society that when you begin to show it toward others, they can’t help but notice.
The final principle I have learned about honor is this…
3. Honor is what you decide, not what they deserve.
It’s easy to hold back from showing honor toward others, especially when they have hurt us, offended us or have shown disrespect toward us in some way. Most people would say, “How in the world can you show respect or honor toward someone who has brought so much hurt or disappointment to your life?” Here is my response: We don’t give honor to people because they deserve it, we give honor to people because WE ARE HONORABLE. When we choose to become a person of honor and we begin to speak words of honor over people’s lives, we will be the person who reaps the rewards of life-giving relationships that will ultimately become our legacy. Let’s bring honor back!
Rodney Gage is an author, speaker and the founding pastor of ReThink Life Church. His passion is to help people live life on purpose. To learn more, check out rethinklife.com.
