by Nadia Ramoutar MMM Communications Coordinator                 Ireland                      20.11.2024

As we get closer to the end of the year, I look forward to Advent and to a winding down of a lot of busyness.  But, looking around in the world, there seems to be a lot of noise and I do predict that some of the peace we might want for the season won’t be coming.  At least not everywhere.  Somethings feel so far gone that peace is more a concept than a reality.

Looking at what it means to be a Christian has also come under fire lately.  Political battles have had some casualties and in some families and friend groups there has been a lot of hostility.  We could ask ‘what will it take to overcome this?’

Perhaps at times like this the best thing to do is to fall back to basics.  What does the Lord require of me?  The answer is literally given to us in Micah 6:8.

‘What does the Lord require of you
But to do justice and to love kindness
And to walk humbly with your God.’

It could not really be more straightforward.  We are given a very clear request that seems to cause humans a lot more trouble than would be expected.  So when there is angst and we are provoked or annoyed by other people, this is such an important reminder for us to simplify.  We can be easily manipulated or upset sometimes because we are not being as kind to ourselves as we could be.  Self-care is an important practice in being able to walk humbly.

Going for a walk and making it part of our daily spiritual practice can be a great choice as it allows us to reconnect with nature and to breathe fresh air.  We may find ourselves less aggravated when we ‘do justice’ and make choices based on this.  Justice as a something we do, not just think is very important.

As stress increases and we get caught up in what other people are saying, we might feel entitled to be unkind or to not take action at all.  There is no doubt that some people would literally annoy a Saint.  In knowing our own limits and our own triggers we can shift our focus and look for glimmers of love and hope instead.

To love kindness is a great goal on the worst of days.  It is a short cut to freedom from oppressive negativity.  We can win every time when we chose to be kind.  It is always a choice available to us.