What Does God Require?

"...And what does the Lord require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God." Micah 6:8 How wonderful it is to serve a God who listens so intently to our requests and answers us! He continues to amaze me every day by giving me the best for my life. God's best is always greater than anything I could have asked for or even imagined. That is because I ask and believe God to be faithful to me. But I can't help but wonder...what does God require of me? I must tell you that over the past few days, God has led me to know exactly what He requires of His children in order to have this wonderful relationship that we so desire. Throughout the Bible, God tells us many characteristics He desires us to possess, certain behaviors to implement, and even ways to cope with our thoughts and emotions. But "require" is quite a strong word. By definition, it means to 'demand as necessary'. That means that God demands this of me. And for that, it was worth looking into. When reading Micah 6:8, "to walk humbly with your God", caught my eye. I began to research the word 'humbly' and found it to mean: offered in a spirit of submission. I then knew for me to be obedient, I had to really understand submission. Submission means to 'yield oneself to authority or to 'consent to abide by the opinion of another.' God began to reveal to me that walking humbly with Him meant that I had to be submissive to His Lordship. I had to yield myself to His opinions, His way, His will. This sounds easy enough. But I thought about all the times I had begged to be close to Him but wanted to do things my way. Today, I have learned that He requires me to trust Him...to have faith in Him. It's not an option. I am REQUIRED to believe Him. How often do we doubt Him then think that we should be patted on the back for having faith? I Corinthians 4:2 says, ..."now it is required of those who have been given a trust to prove faithful." God has entrusted me with a relationship with Him. Full access to the God of Abraham, the Almighty, Consuming Fire...God! He has also entrusted me and you, as His children, to tell others how they too can know Him. A long time ago, just catching glimpses of God was enough for me. But now, I want to walk with Him. I want to feel Him near me. So, I will remember what is required of me and that is to be submissive to His will for my life. I don't always understand it. But He has never, ever given me reason to doubt Him. Will you be submissive to His will for your life? Can you turn over controlling areas of your life that are consumed with fear? I hope you can. I plan to try. Why? Because there is nothing greater than walking side by side with God. Love, Corrie My prayer for today: Lord, I commit today to surrender to being submissive in all areas of my life to you. Forgive me for holding back parts of my life that I thought didn't matter and only I wanted to handle. I will be mindful to be humble. Help me to see others through your eyes. Help me to listen to you. Be clear and show me your will for my life...