Do Justly, Love Mercy, Walk Humbly

In the last general conference, Elder Dale G. Renlund encouraged us to follow this counsel from the prophet Micah in order to understand what more we can do to draw closer to God:

What doth the Lord require of thee, but to do justly, and to love mercy, and to walk humbly with thy God?

Micah 6:8

Alma gave a similar admonition to his son Corianton, coupled with a promise that his good deeds would be rewarded:

See that you are merciful unto your brethren; deal justly, judge righteously, and do good continually; and if ye do all these things then shall ye receive your reward; yea, ye shall have mercy restored unto you again; ye shall have justice restored unto you again; ye shall have a righteous judgment restored unto you again; and ye shall have good rewarded unto you again.

Alma 41:14

And the Lord provided a similar list to Hyrum Smith in 1829 as He explained how to recognize promptings from the Holy Ghost:

Put your trust in that Spirit which leadeth to do good—yea, to do justly, to walk humbly, to judge righteously; and this is my Spirit.

Doctrine & Covenants 11:12

Elder Renlund explained the relationship between Micah’s three admonitions:

To do justly means acting honorably with God and with other people. We act honorably with God by walking humbly with Him. We act honorably with others by loving mercy. To do justly is therefore a practical application of the first and second great commandments, to “love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind … [and to] love thy neighbour as thyself.”

“Do Justly, Love Mercy, and Walk Humbly with God,” General Conference, October 2020

Here is how I visualize this relationship, based on Elder Renlund’s explanation:

As I think about these two manifestations of doing justly, I recognize that they both require me to set aside my ego. To walk humbly is to recognize the limits of my abilities and to prioritize God’s will over my own. To love mercy is to set aside judgment or animosity and to treat others with kindness and compassion.

I was particularly struck by this statement from Elder Renlund: “God delights in mercy and does not begrudge its use.”

Today, I will strive to make better decisions (do justly) by submitting my will to the will of God (walking humbly) and by serving others non-judgmentally (loving mercy).