Leadership Essentials - Part 2 - Justice

Today is Martin Luther King Day.  America stops  to remember and honour the life of a man who successfully shifted the social and moral conscience of a nation through the power of his leadership, courage and speaking ability.  King was motivated by the conviction that all men are created equal and should be treated with dignity, respect and honour.  He was committed to obtaining justice for his people in a culture that accepted discrimination and segregation as a fact of life.  While King didn't live to see the fulfillment of his dream, his dream came to pass because of his unswerving pursuit of justice.

The prophet Micah lived 750 years before Christ. In his day the leaders of his nation made a practice of exploiting and manipulating the people for their own purposes and profit.  In working towards finding justice for his people in his day, Micah defined a timeless leadership essential when he wrote these words:

"He has shown you, O man, what is good; And what does the LORD require of you but to do justly, To love mercy, And to walk humbly with your God?"  Micah 4:6 (NKJV)

We live in a different day than Micah or even Martin Luther King, but the need for leaders who are committed to 'doing justly' is just as desperate because injustice is as rampant as ever.  In Micah's day, it was the population in general, in MLK's day, it was the blacks.  In our nation,  injustice is experienced by First Nations people, the poor, the weak, the widow and the orphan.  For the most part, they are people without the ability to influence or shape public policy that can effectively address their needs and concerns.  Those who lead our province and nation, must be committed to ensuring justice for those who are so often on the outside looking in.  This is not an easy task nor is it work that is ever completely accomplished, but it must be done. 

God, give us leaders who are committed to ensuring that the least of those who live in our province, nation and cities are treated justly, fairly and with respect.