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.

Reflection:
How can I be pleasing in the sight of the Lord? For those hearing the words of the prophet, the question was more than rhetorical. “Shall I bring sacrifices before the Lord?” What level of sacrifice will be sufficient to satisfy a perfect and holy God? Shall I bring burnt offerings, or is more required? (v.6) Shall I offer “thousands of rams, with ten thousand rivers of olive oil?” (v.7) Is the life of my firstborn child required to reconcile my transgressions before the Lord? (v.7) These were serious questions for serious times from serious people. 

Micah answers these inquiries with the most compassion-filled response imaginable to give assurance to the people. “No,” he would say. The Lord does not demand a sacrifice of the sort you might fear. No. “He has shown you, O mortal, what is good. And what does the Lord require of you?” (v.8) Simply put, this is what the Lord requires: justice, mercy, and humility.  

In our actions, we are to seek and act with justice. From the depths of our souls we are to love with compassion, with empathy and tender mercies. And in our faith journey, we are to be humble before God. 

This is what God asks of us. The sacrifice God desires is a changed mind, heart, and soul. When we only seek to do what is pleasing to God, we fall short. It is when we seek to be pleasing to God, from the inside out, that we find our home in God’s tender embrace. 

In this season of distress, with coronavirus, and social unrest, and political discord all around us, God is not calling us to change the world by force. No, God is asking us to look within, to test our personal resolve, to see where we fall short, and to seek to be the change that God truly desires for us: to act justly, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with our God.

Closing Prayer:
Lord, help us to be transformed from within. Show us the depth of your desired sacrifice that leads to an affirmation of your love for all of creation. Walk with us through this valley experience, so that we might honor you above all. Let us be an example to others. Let us be the change you desire for us, the change you desire for the world. Amen.