2217 He Is Willing

Someone listening is questioning if they could ever be enough for God. They’re afraid if they really give God their heart, something bad will happen – so they hold back. You’re exhausted from the yo-yo living – the ups followed by the hard downs. Feelings of shame, regret, guilt, of being unworthy and unseen.

And Sis, there’s a reason you’re listening today. Please hear me – you are not alone in these feelings and these questions. Most of us have struggled with this surrender to something, someone unseen. OF COURSE WE HAVE. When you hear someone say, “God spoke to me about this” or “The Holy Spirit told me that”, you’re catching us YEARS into the journey of a relationship with an unseen loving Father who has patiently pursued us.

You are being patiently pursued. Every day of your life, your creator has seen you, known you, cared about you. You have never been not enough for him, and never too much. The voice that tells you God doesn’t want you comes from one source – THAT IS THE ENEMY OF YOUR SOUL.

Could you dare to believe that God is speaking through me directly to you in this moment and he’s saying, “My girl, I love you wildly, without boundary, without restriction, and without end. You are mine. I created you because I wanted you. I chose you and I’ve only been waiting for you to choose me back. Once you do, then our relationship begins.”

Yes, a relationship. Not always some huge, miraculous earth-shaking moment. Not a booming voice from Heaven. I’ve never heard the angels break out in a chorus.

Please, let’s be real for a moment. A growing relationship with God looks more like you giving him space, giving him time, diving into his word, pushing your worries and fears over to him – then do it again – and again – and again. Without the booming voice. Without the flashing signs. Without the immediate confirmation.

That’s the part no one talks about. This silence in between that feels so uncertain. And in this space of silence where God is working in the unseen, aligning his every good plan for your life to unfold, that’s when the enemy swoops in with pokes and prods of unworthiness. “Would Jesus really care about you? Why would he want you? What makes you think he would ever have something better for you?”

But, Sis, there’s another voice to hear. A voice that will not force its way in. A voice that keeps extending an invitation. A voice that is saying over and over and over again: “I AM WILLING.”

Jesus wants you to hear him today, “I am willing. I’m willing to love you. I’m willing to save you. I’m willing to heal you. I’m willing to restore you. I’m willing to make something beautiful out of what you thought was beyond repair. I’m willing to lead you into a life better than you could have ever imagined.”

But here’s the deal – you have to trust him! Trust him enough to ask. Trust him enough to surrender. Trust him enough to dare to believe he’s willing for you.

Matthew 8: 1-3 is the miracle of Jesus healing the man with leprosy. This isn’t just a story of Jesus healing one man a few thousand years ago – this is a story for you and I today revealing his heart toward us. His offer to catch us. His willingness to reach for the person everyone else has pushed away. His willingness to meet us right where we are, without requiring us to clean ourselves up first.

Listen to this short story, and find yourself in it.

“Large crowds followed Jesus as he came down the mountainside. Suddenly, a man with leprosy approached him and knelt before him, ‘Lord,’ the man said, ‘if you are willing, you can heal me and make me clean.’ Jesus reached out and touched him, ‘I am willing,’ he said. ‘Be healed!’ And instantly the leprosy disappeared.”

To understand this miracle, you must understand the disease.

In Jesus’ day, leprosy was devastating. It brought physical suffering, but it also brought isolation. People with leprosy would be separated from their communities, cut off from ordinary relationships, and treated as untouchable. Im