God instructs the prophet Micah to proclaim a message of judgement. Judgement. A word many of us are either unfamiliar or uncomfortable with. This message is a clear call that the way the Israelites are living is unsustainable and eventually, God will restore things right.

I don’t think it’s a secret that we live in the most connected society ever. At the snap of a finger, we can pull up—on our devices—a friend from Norway or China or India. In an instant, we can send a message of communication literally around the world. Our ability to connect and accessibility to the world has never been higher. Simply put, there’s never been more opportunities to be a witness to not just the world, but to those all around us. With one message, one tweet, one snap, we could potentially have communicated with every single person in our immediate sphere. The potential for relationship has never been greater and yet, many of us are lonelier than ever. How can that be?!

Jesus didn’t avoid those who looked different, lived different or acted different from him. He didn’t hole himself up in a church or synagogue and live his life safely in the confines of other Bible-believing Jews. Jesus went to the margins of society and sought to LOVE those who were deemed different, less than or inferior to him. Jesus believed in the power of presence. What about us?