These are my youth group girls from back home in Thomasville, NC. When this picture was taken, we were at Student Life camp in Daytona Beach, FL, and we all bought matching shirts. Besides the corniness of it all, these are really great shirts. It may be hard to tell in the picture, but the front says "Act Justly, Love Mercy, Walk Humbly" That comes from Micah 6:8, the focus verse for our week at camp. I'm wearing my blue Micah 6:8 shirt as I type this. Every time I wear this shirt, I'm reminded both of the great times we had on that trip, but I'm also reminded of the staggering conviction of this verse. The entirety of the verse is as follows: "
And you, o man, what does the Lord require of you? To act justly, to love mercy, and to walk humbly before your God." When I really think about it, how often in my life are these three things actually accomplished? The first one seems easy. Justice is a beautiful thing and most Christians would say we're for it. We support great causes like
The International Justice Mission,
Love 146, and
Abort 73. I'm not tearing down any of these organizations, they all do amazing things for adults, children, and the unborn worldwide who are treated unfairly and unjustly. Let's make this a little more personal, though. How much of a "fan" of justice are you when you get a speeding ticket? Sorry to be the bearer of bad news, but the speed limit's there for a reason and it's the law. Most of us would agree that lawbreakers should be punished. When it's us in the hot seat, however, we tend to make excuses for our bad behavior because, after all, we were "just" speeding! That's just it, though, Micah 6:8 tell us that the Lord requires us to act justly. It's not a suggestion. Acting justly does not only encompass the treatment of other people, it means submitting to justice ourselves as well. The requirements of faith apply to our own personal decisions as well as how we treat others. I'll tackle "love mercy" and "walk humbly" as best I can in future posts.
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