Three Things God Actually Wants

Most of us assume we know what God wants from us, and we picture something complicated, like a long list of rules, perfect church attendance, or quiet time that never gets interrupted. The prophet Micah cuts right through all of that with a much simpler solution.

Micah wrote these words around 700 BC, when Israel had once again drifted far from God. The people were still going through the motions of religion, offering sacrifices and showing up to worship, but their hearts were cold. They cheated the poor, ignored the vulnerable, and lived as if God only cared about rituals.
Micah stepped in with a direct question from God: what do I actually want from you? The answer is three things, and they are worth sitting with one at a time.

First, act justly. This means doing what is right, especially toward people who have less power than you. It shows up in how you treat a coworker, a cashier, a neighbor who can't repay you.

Second, love mercy. Notice that God doesn't just say practice mercy, He says love it. He wants you to enjoy being kind, to lean into forgiveness rather than grudgingly offer it. Mercy should feel like home to you, because it has been your home with God.

Third, walk humbly with your God. This is the root that feeds everything else. Humility before God means you remember who you are and who He is. It keeps justice from becoming pride and mercy from becoming a performance.

These aren't three boxes to check before breakfast, they are the shape of a life lived close to God. As Oswald Chambers once wrote, "The great word of Jesus to His disciples is abandon". That kind of full surrender is exactly what walking humbly looks like, every ordinary day.

Ask God today to show you one small place where you can live out justice, mercy, or humility. Start there.