“Thank You!”
Happy Thanksgiving to all of you, may you have a blessed day with you and yours tomorrow. You know, thanksgiving, I have noticed, has become so commercialized and such a busy day that it is hard sometimes to see the real meaning in of it. There’s turkey’s and pies to be baked. . . houses to be cleaned (Thanks Ray and the girls for all you did today). . . groceries to buy. . . the list just goes on and on (This year is the first year I have hosted Thanksgiving at my house and I never realized how much you have to do in order to have it come out right).
But Thanksgiving shouldn’t be just one day a year. . . it should be a way of life. The Scriptures from Deuteronomy and 2 Corinthians (Deut. 8:8-18, 2 Cor. 9:6-15) remind us about what real thanksgiving is. It’s thanking God for all that He is, all that He has done and all that He will ever do in our lives.
As you read the stories of the Bible you can see many occasions of thanksgiving. People thankful to God for food as were the Israelites in the desert, thankfulness for God’s goodness as we read in many of the Psalms, and many more throughout the Old and New Testaments. There is one story that really stands out for me in the New Testament, it’s the story of when Jesus healed the 10 lepers. It is found in Luke17 verses 11-19. Let me read it for you and see if you can hear who is really thankful in the story. . . I am reading from the Message Bible tonight. . . (Read Scripture)
Out of all those who were healed, only one man. . . a foreigner even. . . came back to thank Jesus for what He had done. All of these men were healed physically but only one man. . . the one who returned to give thanks, was healed spiritually. Only he knew the real gift that he was given. These men were out casts in society. . . they were lepers. They were not allowed around anyone because of their disease but now. . . they were able to become a part of society again. . . no longer alone but freed to be whom they wanted to be. What a gift is that. . . it kind of reminds me of the work done on Calvary’s Cross. The Samaritan returned to the source of his healing. . . the Lord. By him returning to give thanks. . . it completed his healing. . . the other nine were healed on the outside only.
In order to be truly thankful, we need to return to the source of all that we are thankful for. . . the source of all our blessings. . . and to others through whom God blesses us. In order to live a life of “Thanksgiving” we need to put the thanks back to the people who have done the giving. Then and only then can we truly live a life of joy and thankfulness. We have a choice in life. We can either be like the 9 lepers that didn’t even take time to stop and thank the One who gave them a new life or we can be like the 10th leper who was humble enough and grateful enough to realize where he would be without the blessing of those around him?
The choice is yours and mine to make which will you chose? Is there anyone in your life that you need to thank? Is there anyone who may need to hear a word of thanks for what they do? What’s stopping you from being that blessing because of your being blessed? When was the last time you stood at the foot of Calvary’s cross to thank the One who gave new life it’s fullest to you and me?
Happy Thanksgiving, may our thanksgiving prayer be one that truly expresses our thankfulness to our Risen Lord Jesus Christ and honor Him with being truly thankful for the things and people that God has put in our lives as we sojourn this journey of faith.
Let us pray:
God of grace, you have blessed us beyond our knowing with gifts great and small. Give us but one thing more, a grateful heart, eager to return thanks for your continued bounties. In Jesus name we pray.
Amen
November 29, 2011
Luke 17:11-19
Deuteronomy 8:7-18
2 Corinthians 9:6-15
And sermon, “Thank You”
By Pastor Ruth Foss
http://www.facebook.com/pastorruthfoss
http://www.ahandmaidenofthelord.blogspot.com
http://pastorruth.posterous.com/
A Handmaiden of the Lord
http://www.suncookumc.org
Suncook United Methodist Church
http://facebook.com/groups/136632035559/
http://www.facebook.com/pages/Suncook-United-Methodist-Church/102221356487965
Suncook, NH
November 23, 2011
Thanksgiving Eve Ecumenical Service
All of my poems are copyrighted by Raymond A. Foss, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011. All rights reserved. Contact me at Ray Foss for usage.
See all 14,200+ of my poems at Poetry Where You Live.
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