This is Thanksgiving week (as if you didn’t already know!) 🙂 It is going to be a short week in the blogging department since I plan to post on Wednesday night and not do so again until Sunday night. I know that seriously disappoints you, but I’m sure you will survive. 😛

Sunday I preached from Luke 17: 11-19-the story of the 10 lepers. If you know the story, they cried out for mercy (translated: please get us out of this living hell called leprosy) and Jesus gave them unique instructions: go the priest and show yourself to him. That would require 8 days of various inspections, sacrifices and rituals. On their way, they were healed and only one returned. There are three thoughts that hit me from that encounter:

1. How could anyone be cured as they were and be ungrateful? Let’s not be too judgmental and condescending though. How often have we been recipients of good things and failed to say thanks?

2. Notice who does come back: a foreigner, i.e. a Samaritan. The hatred between Jew and Samaritan has been well-documented. There is no need to reiterate that. But isn’t it sad that those who have the most reason to say thanks don’t?

3. It took an effort to come back. He was running to the priest when he saw he was healed. He stopped and returned to say thanks. Sometimes gratitude is inconvenient. Sending an email. Writing a hand-written note. Making that personal visit. All of them take an effort. But it is well worth it.  On the day I was writing this particular part of my sermon, all three of those things happened. It was really uplifting.

I am personally going to really try to focus my heart this week so Thanksgiving is not just a holiday to observe. I want it to be a lifestyle to be lived.

How about you?