"I am not worthy..."

I've been reading through Matthew's gospel in the mornings, and yesterday I read about the faith of the Roman centurion (Matthew 8:1ff) who came to Jesus seeking the healing of his servant.

I was especially struck yesterday by the centurion's words when Jesus offered to come to his house and heal the servant. The centurion said,

"Lord, I am not worthy to have you come under my roof..."

I stopped when I read that phrase, and pondered what kind of impact it would have on me if I shared this man's self-understanding. How much of my frustration, anger and disappointment over circumstances and/or people that are trying would be alleviated if I really owned what this man seems to have owned.

I do not deserve anything from Jesus except eternal damnation because of my treasonous rebellion against Him. Yet in mercy He comes to me and cleanses me and redeems me and brings me into His family as an heir of the eternal Kingdom. Though I am not worthy to have Him come near me, He delights in me with an everlasting, unbreakable love. And I can be assured of this based on the rock solid assurance that Jesus died on the Cross 2,000 years ago and rose from the dead three days later.

I want to daily, hourly, own this reality. It would radically change the way we experience difficulty, wouldn't it?