THINK THANKS

Scripture:  Luke 17:12-16, 19 - And as he [Jesus] entered into a certain village, there met him ten men that were lepers, which stood afar off:  And they lifted up their voices, and said, Jesus, Master, have mercy on us.  And when he saw them, he said unto them, "Go show yourselves unto the priests." And it came to pass, that, as they went, they were cleansed.  And one of them, when he saw that he was healed, turned back, and with a loud voice, glorified God, And fell down on his face at his feet, GIVING HIM THANKS: and he was a Samaritan...  And he [Jesus} said unto him, "Arise, go thy way: thy faith hath made thee whole."'

My response to being given a thoughtful, nice gift is an immediate "Wow!"... to walking into a spider web, "Aargh!"... to finding a long lost photograph, "Yay!"... and on hearing fingernails scratching a blackboard, "Ugh".  Somethings draw out of us such a spontaneous response, a response so basic that we don't even have to think to have it, like it's in our hard-wiring.  Thankfulness is very native to the born-again believer, and is a very prominent thread within the fabric of our worship and our worshipfulness.  The admix of thankfulness with worship will be seen clearly as we stroll into the company of one particular leper experiencing Jesus.  

For background understanding, leprosy is a real, bad deal, clinically, socially, and ultimately holistically.  We know it to be, as was presumed then, transmissible, available to get by being in touch with someone having it, or being near.  The affected person would be thought to be as good as cursed, and was forbidden the company of others including family and friends, and outcast from all societal norms, employment, recreation, and even community worship. [social distancing to the utmost]  And as it was considerably disfiguring and disabling, one could not hide having it, "Unclean" being announced for the nearing leper.  Theirs was a homeless, hungering, soul-gnawing loneliness, typically resolved with a slow, miserable dying away.  In a way, these were the walking dead...but God.

See for yourself what happens when Jesus encounters these ten leprous souls, fixing them.  Imagine their relief, even their thrill to be able to be touched, to join family and friends, to leave the shadow-life and re-enter the bright of day, no longer unclean but accepted, no longer berated as bestial, disgusting and ugly, but rather, beautifully blessed.  Yet, for all the profundity of this moment of life-altering change, one, and only one of the ten stopped to be grateful, and it was he whose healing was inside and out.  It was he whom Jesus saved. [v.19 "...thy faith hath made thee whole."]  

How well shown is your gratitude?

Are you, as one of the nine, or are you, much as the grateful one?  Do others know you to be grateful as you take on life's hurdles and sharp turns, or does it take Sherlock Holmes to find the itty bitty clues?

It is possible to be in Jesus' company, call on him, experience his goodness, get the blessing asked for, and still miss his best gift- his heart of Mercy.

Let this be a small reminder, brothers, and sisters, for we all can slip:  Let the Son shine in, and "Think thanks.".  If that big gladness being in Christ escapes you, "Think thanks."  Our elders might've said it this way, "When I look back over my life, and I think things over, I can truly say that I've been blessed..." You know the rest.

Prayer:  Abba, Father, let my heart and soul speak grateful, grateful, grateful, gratefulness, now and hereafter, today and tomorrow, and in everything give thanks, prayerfully, joyfully, and hopefully, all in Jesus’ precious name.  Amen.

(by Dr. McNeal Brockington)