Many Are Blessed, Few Are Thankful

There’s an interesting story in the Gospel of Luke that vividly portrays what true thanksgiving is to be about. Here’s the story:

Now on his way to Jerusalem, Jesus traveled along the border between Samaria and Galilee. As he was going into a village, ten men who had leprosy met him. They stood at a distance and called out in a loud voice, "Jesus, Master, have pity on us!" When he saw them, he said, "Go, show yourselves to the priests." And as they went, they were cleansed. One of them, when he saw he was healed, came back, praising God in a loud voice. He threw himself at Jesus' feet and thanked him - and he was a Samaritan. Jesus asked, "Were not all ten cleansed? Where are the other nine? Was no one found to return and give praise to God except this foreigner?" Then he said to him, "Rise and go; your faith has made you well."

Simply by virtue of living in the United States of America there’s little doubt that we are a blessed people. However you define “blessed” we are indeed blessed. And yet so few are truly thankful. Those of us who are clergy and others in helping professions see it more frequently - people who receive what they are after only to demonstrate a lack of gratitude. I can’t even begin to recount how many people I’ve prayed with and for to receive that job they were after, or physical healing, or some type of special blessing, or whatever, only to be like the nine lepers who demonstrated ingratitude. Yet that’s the point of this story, that the majority of people simply don’t understand that the reward is not in receiving blessing but in praising and thanking God. It will completely revolutionize your life when you consistently live as the one leper who returned and “threw himself as Jesus’ feet and thanked him.”

This type of gratitude and thanksgiving comes from a spiritually disciplined and mature individual who has learned the joy in giving God thanks in all things and in all situations.  As the apostle Paul writes in I Thessalonians 5:18, "Give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus."  Dietrich Bonhoeffer once wrote, "Only he who gives thanks for little things receives the big things.  We prevent God from giving us the great spiritual gifts He has in store for us because we do not give thanks for daily gifts."  This Thanksgiving and beyond, be thankful, be very thankful, and practice intentional, continuous thanksgiving in all circumstances because there’s something in the act of praising and giving thanks to God that makes us well.