If You Want To

Reading: Matthew 8; Psalm 8 1 Large crowds followed Jesus as he came down the mountainside. 2 Suddenly, a man with leprosy approached Jesus. He knelt before him, worshiping. “Lord,” the man said, “if you want to, you can make me well again.” 3 Jesus touched him. “I want to,” he said. “Be healed!” And instantly the leprosy disappeared. (Matthew 8:1-3 NLT) The leper took quite a risk in approaching Jesus! Lepers were required to stay outside the towns, to stay at a distance from healthy people, and to call out “Unclean!” when circumstances put them near others. This leper had already worked through the first of two questions each of us must deal with in order to get prayers answered and to receive what we want or need most from God. Do you know what those two questions are? The first is “If you can…” and the second is “If you want to…”! It might have been because of stories he had heard of Jesus’ healings and miracles. It might have been that, from a distance, he had seen Jesus healing others. In any case, the leper believed with all his heart that Jesus could heal him. All he needed now was the answer to the other question, and he was willing to risk breaking the quarantine law to find the answer! The answer was, “I want to! Be healed!” We all face life situations that are beyond our own abilities to solve. What do you need God’s help with most?

Where are you with the two big questions: “If you can…” and “If you want to…?” God’s Word, past faith-experiences, and the stories of God’s intervention for others can all help us work through the questions and make the decision to take the risky faith step. Prayer:

Father, I believe you can and I believe you want to! I pray for each of my friends reading this for a release of “I want to!” faith! In Jesus’ Name!