"If you will, you can."

"When he came down from the mountain, great crowds followed him. And behold, a
leper came to him and knelt before him, saying, "Lord, if you will, you can make me clean." And Jesus stretched out his hand and touched him, saying, "I will; be clean." And immediately his leprosy was cleansed." --Matt 8:1-3

The Lord stuck this passage under my nose late last year. This leper is an amazing person. He is suffering from an awful disease (I'll let you reserach the finer descriptions of leprosy yourself). I suffer from things MUCH less abominable, and I don't respond with the faith he did. God wanted me to learn this approach to approaching him.

First, the Leper came and expressed his humility by kneeling before Christ. Then he makes an amazing statement: "Lord, if you will, you can make me clean." He expresses both a submission to God's sovereignty when he says "Lord, if you will..." then faith in God's power by saying "...you can make me clean."

That is not often my heart when I come to the Lord with my requests. I can be squirming under his sovereign hand instead of submitting to it, or doubting his ability to help me.

This disease rules his life. But he still comes to Jesus and basicaly says "Lord, you rule over this disease, and all else, and if it be your sovereign will, you are able to heal me."

I'm trying to have this Leper's heart when I pray now - humbly saying "Lord, if you will, you can."