"Manners"

I was raised with country manners,

And I will tell you this,

If you didn’t show politeness,

There was pain you’d like to miss.

It was yessir and then yes ma’am,

And please, and thank you, too,

You held the door for ladies,

Stood when they left the room.

If you were being introduced,

To a female, doffed your hat,

You stood up and shook her hand,

And never just there sat.

And if it was a gentleman,

You looked him in the eye,

Shook his hand and firmly,

With confidence, not shy.

You stood up when the old folks,

Walked into the place,

Showed respect and gave your chair,

With a smile upon your face.

If walking down the sidewalk,

You walked on the outside,

She was closer to the building,

You were closer to the ride.

And if you’re walking down the stairs,

She went down behind,

That way if she stumbled,

You’d break her fall just fine.

Never got up from the table,

Without saying thanks to Mom,

We asked if we could be excused,

Knew where those meals came from.

Stood up when we pledged the flag,

When they played our country’s song,

Bowed our heads, took off our hats,

When prayers were said so strong.

On and on I can describe it,

But manners won’t allow,

So I’ll wrap up this little rhyme,

I hope it helps somehow.

Manners are important,

They’re something that we need,

To help us treat each other right,

And civility to feed.

So give respect to everyone,

Let others have your turn,

Do for them what you would like,

It’s something we should learn.

“Do to others whatever you would like them to do to you…” (Matthew 7:12, NLT)

According to Jesus it summed up everything that was taught in the Old Testament, the law and the prophets. Simple, yet profound, and personally challenging. It strikes at the heart of how we relate to others and boils down to thinking of them over and above ourselves. What would I want in this situation? That would be the question to ask, then do it for the other person. This requires us not to be selfish and self-centered, and that’s why we don’t do it. But if the Holy Spirit is empowering us, we can and will. In fact the Holy Spirit lives through us to do what Jesus would do. It’s the truth, and it’s solid gold.

Lord, help us treat others the way we would like to be treated, in Jesus’ name.

Photo by J.L.. Grief, jlgrief.com. Used by permission. Thanks, and God bless your day.