Y'all, I have the crud. I can't breathe through my nose right now. My throat hurts from breathing through my mouth so much. And I keep sneezing when the Kleenex are in the other room and I have no more with me. I feel horrible. I despise being sick! And guess what? In the midst of this illness, God had a little message for me. It involved crud too. Oh joy!
Micah 6:8 has been following me around for the last couple of weeks, even in songs (see video below). Last night while I was drinking my tea, I decided to start at Micah 6:1 and read to 6:8. I just had to know the "whole story". I had to see what God was trying to show me in Micah 6:8. In chapter 6 The Lord begins to make his case against Israel. He asked the people what He had done to them. How had He burdened them? (v3) Then He asked them to remember all He had done for them. He wrapped up with asking how they thought they should worship and honor Him. it wasn't with burnt offerings, calves, rams, oil or a firstborn (v4-7). No, none of those thing would do. Why? Because they do not involve true engagement with God. They don't involve the heart.What really struck me in the New King James version was the way God kept saying "O my people". I could just feel His sorrow, His pleading with His people, with me.
So in verse 8, it says, "He has shown you, O man, what is good; And what does the Lord require of you but to do justly, to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God?." As I read and re-read those eight verses, it struck me that I'm as ungrateful and forgetful as the Israelites. No matter how much God does for me, I always want more or something different. No matter how faithful and consistent, I worry about everything. It really settled in that the same crud the Israelites had in their heart, sits in mine as well.
Just like I'm fighting the crud invading my body right now, making me feel like one big congested nose, I'm fighting the crud in my heart. God clearly wants my devotion to Him, not just to what He does. I don't always give that. But I should. He deserves that and more.
It boils down to this. Even in our trials, those we cause and those that seem to simply befall us, we learn something about God and about ourselves. Whether we choose to act on that information determines the course of our life. I learned something and I plan to act on it. I want the course of my life determined by devotion, honor and obedience to God. How about you?
Be blessed,
Mari
