My husband and I feel blessed in that God helped us provide a classical Christian education for our four children. God always sent extra jobs our way to help defray the cost of this education, but we felt it was God’s will for our family. Now that our children have graduated, we look back and know we have been blessed.
There are many moments over the years that have confirmed this decision. One of these is the traditional 8th grade graduation, or accolade. The accolade is more of a marking of this stage of life, not a graduation per se. The students make a public statement of faith and have their parents join them in public prayer as they make their pledge to God.
Each student is asked a question based on Micah 6:8:
“…and what doth the Lord require of thee, but to do justly, and to love mercy, and to walk humbly with thy God?”
Each and every “I will” brought tears to my eyes. As a mother, it is my heart’s desire that my children will keep this close to their hearts always. But recently God has challenged me with this verse as well. What does this mean to me? I have made this verse a point of study for myself as well. God’s interest is not in our actions but in our character.
Here are three requirements:
- To do justly – we are to act justly to God’s standards.
- To love mercy – to treat one another with love; showing the same mercy to others that God has bestowed upon us.
- To walk humbly with my God – humbly means to bow down or do reverence. It is my desire to walk daily with God.
How can I walk daily with God unless I am willing to give Him my heart and my life? How am I striving to meet these requirements in my daily life? Am I trying to live according to God’s law, showing mercy to others and bowing down to God’s will?
At times, I have been willing to give God total control, but find myself always trying to regain that back. It seems to be a constant battle, relinquishing that control with a happy heart. Perhaps that’s why this verse is meaningful to so many.
Do you have a verse that reminds you to ask:
