First of all. I want to know Jesus.
I want to know Him; know his voice, His leading, His love, His grace.
As a result, I have been reading through the Gospels. I have been a Christian nearly all my life, but I can honestly say I haven't read through the Gospels as many times as you might expect. I think that is because, growing up, the Jesus in the Bible didn't exactly match the Jesus that I wanted. The real Jesus said some tough things, things that I didn't want to hear. The Jesus in the Bible threw of my self-centered, self-righteous groove. I only read the stuff I liked and disregarded the tough and the confusing.. Thankfully, Jesus is much better and exceptionally more wonderful and deep than my cookie-cutter, anything-goes, hippie Jesus.
I was reading through the book of Mark. And I came across a story that made my soul stir:
" A man with leprosy came and knelt in front of Jesus, begging to be healed. “If you are willing, you can heal me and make me clean,” he said. Moved with compassion, Jesus reached out and touched him. “I am willing,” he said. “Be healed!”
Why had I never seen the beauty of this story? Why had I never been moved by the graciousness and unconditional love of our God? Jesus was willing. Jesus was willing to put aside all social norms and practices because of His love for His crippled, broken, lonely and diseased child that was passed by by all others. Jesus was willing to put his holy hand on one whom no one else dared pass to close too, because of His love.
How can I forget that He did the same for me?
We serve a God who is more than willing to reach into the darkness.We have a father that is more than willing to love his children when they are in their most filthy state. We are loved by a King who is willing to come down from the Heavens to shower this broken world with grace. We have refuge in a Savior who relentlessly pursues us even as we flee from Him. We have been saved by an all powerful God who showed us his power by becoming vulnerable and dying so that we can know Him and be healed.
God is willing.
God is waiting.
How long will we live like the man on the side of the road, sitting in darkness, waiting. Jesus is here. He has always been here. He is holding out his hand and telling us that He is willing to change us and our world. He is willing to let us be apart of His plan. He is offering us an abundant, love-filled life!
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