I Was the Leper

There’s a story in Luke 5 that never fails to move me. It’s about a man completely covered in leprosy who came to Jesus with nothing left—no pride, no pretense, just desperation and the tiniest spark of hope. Scripture says he fell on his face before the Lord and begged, “Lord, if You are willing, You can make me clean.”

And then Jesus did something unthinkable.

He didn’t step back.

He didn’t scold him.

He didn’t hesitate.

Instead, Jesus reached out His hand… and touched him.

That single touch would have shocked everyone watching. You didn’t touch lepers. They were untouchable, unclean, outcasts who lived outside the camp. To touch one meant you risked being considered unclean yourself. But Jesus wasn’t afraid of contamination—His holiness was greater than any disease. His purity stronger than any stain.

And with just a touch, everything changed.

“I am willing,” Jesus said. “Be clean.”

That moment always undoes me. Because truthfully? I was that leper.

My Leprosy Was Shame

No, I didn’t have sores on my skin, but I carried wounds so deep inside they bled into every part of my life. My “leprosy” was shame, fear, and the heavy belief that I was too broken to ever be made whole.

I wondered if Jesus could really want someone like me. Could He really look at all the ugly, all the sin, all the scars—and not turn away? I thought maybe His holiness would be too much for my mess. That I had gone too far, done too much, been too shattered.

But He didn’t turn away.

He didn’t back up or push me aside.

He leaned in.

He touched me.

He spoke to me.

He healed me.

The Whisper of Hope

Like that leper, I came to Jesus with trembling hands and a shaky voice: “Lord, if You are willing…” It wasn’t bold. It wasn’t confident. It was a whisper. A cry from a soul drowning in hopelessness.

And do you know what I found?

Love in His eyes.

Compassion in His voice.

Power in His presence.

He said to me what He said to the leper: “I am willing.” And in that moment, His willingness collided with my weakness, and everything changed.

For the One Who Feels Too Far Gone

Sis, maybe you’ve felt that way too. Maybe you’ve thought your story is too messy, your wounds too deep, your shame too heavy. Maybe you’ve believed the lie that God is standing off at a distance, arms crossed, waiting for you to “get it together.”

But let me tell you the truth I’ve lived: He is not afraid of your wounds. He’s not disgusted by your failures. He doesn’t shrink back from your past. He isn’t waiting for you to clean yourself up first.

He comes close.

He kneels low.

He reaches out His hand to the very place everyone else avoids.

And when He touches you, healing begins.

Jesus Still Heals

Friend, Jesus still heals.

He still restores.

He still reaches for the outcasts, the forgotten, the brokenhearted, the shamed.

He touched me and healed my broken spirit. He lifted the crushing weight of shame and replaced it with freedom, joy, and peace I never thought possible. And He can do the same for you.

If you’re kneeling before Him right now with nothing but a whisper—“Lord, if You are willing…”—hear His response straight from His Word: “I am willing. Be clean.”

Thank You, Lord, for being willing.

For touching what others deemed untouchable.

For restoring what was shattered.

For coming close when I thought You would stay far away.

I was the leper… but You made me clean.

“The Lord is close to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit.” — Psalm 34:18