“Yes, Mom!”

What does it mean to OBEY?

“Yes, Mom!”

How often do you use those two little words? I’m listening. Mom is telling you to come inside. Is it “OK, I’m coming” after she has called you three times? Or do you say “Goody!” and hurry home because she has promised you a treat in town? Yes, you went—in your own time and way. But inside you weren’t really saying “yes” to Mom, were you?

The Bible says, “Children, obey your parents in the Lord, for this is right. Honor thy father and thy mother.”* (Ephesians 6:1-2) To honor is to respect and please someone. Why do I have to please my mom? you think. She’s always telling me to do hard or boring things. Yes, it is her job to tell you what to do. Maybe you wish you could just be your own boss, but that would only end up with trouble. It is for your good that you have someone older and wiser—someone that cares about you—to be your mother. And it is your job to obey her.

I expect you know all about obeying, don’t you? You have to mind what she says. “Do this. Don’t do that.” It is doing chores and following rules. Maybe you have even learned to say “Yes, mom” quite often. But obedience is more than saying the right words. Obedience is shown by what you do.

It is very hard to do something that you don’t want to do. “I didn’t hear you,” you say, because you didn’t want to hear. When your heart is set on your own way, it seems like a terrible thing to have to stop doing it. But if you truly love someone and want to please them, the hard thing becomes easier. Your ears will hear when she calls you. Your heart will be eager to make her happy.

“If ye love me, keep my commandments [do what I say],”* (John 14:15) Jesus said. Obeying and pleasing someone is a test of your love to them. Do you love your mother? Then ask God for help to listen to her, and for willingness to obey. You will find that it is the happiest way to live, after all!