As most all of you know by now, our friend and brother David Jenkins is spending his fourth day in the presence of Jesus in heaven today. As I thought about all of this and all that led up to it, I am reminded of how many times we prayed for David. His health has not been good for the last couple of years and yet David pressed on and was always happy when he was able to be in church. When he was able to come to church, if you were to ask him how he was doing, he almost always had a smile for you and would say that he was doing pretty good. A man on dialysis and struggling with an irregular heart beat and diabetes would not be how I would have defined “pretty good” if you would have asked me. I do not believe that David was putting on his “church face” like so many of us do each week when we walk through the doors and are greeted by someone. I believe that David was doing pretty good because he knew that the sovereign God who he loved and worshiped was giving him the strength to be there that given Sunday. David’s “pretty good” had more to do with his position in Christ than it had to do with how he was feeling that day.

David has been our prayer list for quite some time.  Helen too! They were a team who were there for each other when the need was real. We asked God to heal David. We asked God to help him get his medications under control. We prayed for Helen as we knew that she was weary at times, and we asked God to give her the grace that she needed to make it through that particular day and then the next day, and the next, and God was faithful to do exactly that. We all prayed for David. 

I came across a couple of verses in Luke 5 that many of us have probably read many times before. There was a man who had the dreaded disease of leprosy. Leprosy was a horrible disease that gradually ate away at the limbs of a persons body. Maybe even more painful was the requirement for that person to avoid all contact with people. On top of that, no one wanted to be around someone who was sick with that disease. They were to cry out the words “UNCLEAN, UNCLEAN!!” as they came close to anyone. Can you imagine that? We pick up the story in Luke 5:12-13 While Jesus was in one of the towns, a man came along who was covered with leprosy. When he saw Jesus, he fell with his face to the ground and begged Him, “LORD, if You are willing, You can make me clean.” Jesus reached out His hand and touched the man. “I am willing,” He said. “Be clean!” And immediately the leprosy left him.

Did you catch that prayer? It lasts almost 15 minutes and it was filled with some of the most eloquent words and phrases that you might ever hear in a prayer. NOT!!! It was a pretty simple statement.  It was a very simple prayer. “LORD, if You are willing, You can make me clean.” This man knew his condition and his need and he also knew who it was that he was talking to. Have you ever heard anyone pray like that? Simple and right to the point. Maybe they have not yet been educated on how to pray yet? Perhaps they are new believers who really believe that Jesus can do something? I love to hear people pray who are simply talking to God. You can tell that they have talked to Him on several occasions prior to this. They actually believe that they are talking to the sovereign God of the universe who gives life, who sustains life, and who sometimes take life away. What if Jesus said, no, you deserve that leprosy? What if Jesus said I can take it away, but I am not going to right now? What if Jesus said yes I can, but I am not going to do it the way that you are asking me to do it?

We have prayed over and over again for David.  We have asked God to heal his body and to restore him to health and strength. Of course, our desire was that God would do it the way that we wanted Him to do it, but God has always got the best plan. He took David home to heaven and David is healthier and more alive than he has ever been or could ever imagine to be. Have you ever thought about that? I hear people say things like “he is better off…”. Really??? Do you really think so???  HE IS IN THE PRESENCE OF JESUS AND IT DOES NOT GET ANY BETTER THAN THAT!!! He is living the ULTIMATE because God took him home. Will we miss him? Of course we will. Is it okay to grieve? Of course it is, BUT, because of David’s position in Christ, we do not grieve like unbelievers do. 1 Thessalonians 4:13-17 tell us what we should expect concerning those who have died, and then v.18 tells us to encourage each other with these words. Go check it out for yourself, and then rejoice. Rejoice!!! REJOICE!!! 

How do you pray? When you pray, do you try to educate God? Do you even give Him suggestions as to how He might want to take care of your situation? Do you fill your prayers with flowery big words and try to impress those who hear you pray? Do you ever try to impress God? Look at the prayer of the leper. Learn from him, and then pray. Just talk to God, and then trust Him. He will ALWAYS do what is right. Just pray!

By the way, David is doing much better than “pretty good.”