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Micah 6
8 He has shown you, O mortal, what is good.
And what does the Lord require of you?
To act justly and to love mercy
and to walk humbly with your God.

I just love this scripture.  It was written specifically for folk like me – folk who have to be told directly and in unequivocal terms.

I am one of those who read and study and read some more searching for just what it is that God requires of me.  What do I need to do? What do I need to believe?  Does He require me to pass out tracts of the Four Truths to people in my office?  Does He require me to sell all I have and give it to the poor?  Does He require me to believe in the Trinity?  Just what does He require of me?  (Not that I don’t care about you, but this is about me – what does He require of me?)

And one day I am stumbling around in Micah – probably for some Bible study group, because I typically don’t wake up and say, “Hey, I think I feel like a little Micah today” – and there was the answer in black and white in three simple pieces.  And if it wasn’t going to be quite clear enough for folk like me, the writer even preceded it with the question in black and white – WHAT DOES THE LORD REQUIRE OF YOU?

If the McBurnett Paraphrase should ever see the light of day (not happenin’), this passage will go something like this:

In word and act, the Lord has shown you what is good – repeatedly.
“HEY! Stupid!!  Pay Attention!!!
What does He want from you?
I’m gonna tell ya – so listen up!!!
Act Right.
Show compassion.
Stick close to Me,
And don’t make a big deal out of it. . .
I’ll know and that is enough.”

Act right – Keep God in the forefront of our minds and be led in His righteous paths modeling Christ’s love to each other and to the Pilgrims.

Show compassion – Focus on others.  Pay attention to their expressions, verbal and non-verbal, at all times.  What might they need (maybe they haven’t even realized it yet) and what might you offer?  Somebody you meet today will need something you have to offer.  Casting Crowns says it this way in Does Anybody Hear Her, “With all the lost and lonely people, searching for the hope that’s tucked away in you and me.”  That hope is tucked inside of you and me.  How awfully selfish of us to keep it from them.

Stick close to Me (God) – Walk in the midst of God from here on as we walk among His special children. Walk with Him and please, please, please talk with Him.

And don‘t make a big deal about it –   It isn’t about you.  Don’t be deceived.  It might well be for you, but is certainly not about you.  Yes, we are blessed by His grace, but the purpose He pours His grace into us is so we will share it with those who desperately need it, particularly those that have no idea that it exists or where to look for it.

Simple guidelines for our journey together – To act justly and to love mercy
and to walk humbly with your God.

Listening for God,

Robert