Wednesday – Memorial of St. Martin of Tours

Gospel – Luke 17: 11-19

A Simple Gift, A Simple Thank You

Church of the Beatitudes, Galilee

The closer we get to the holidays, the more I am reminded of one simple thing from my childhood.  It’s not putting up the Christmas decorations or shopping for the tree; it’s not even Christmas morning and opening the presents.  No, it’s the thank-you’s we were expected to give. 

Whether it was Christmas day and we were shuttled to the phone to thank the relatives for the presents or it was the thank-you cards we had to write out.  Whatever form they take, the child in me always felt put out that I had to step away from all those wonderful new presents and say thank you!  Times change, of course, and we all realize the importance of saying thank you, much less hearing those words from someone we love and cherish.

A simple thank you!  That’s all that was, dare I say, expected after Jesus cured the ten lepers in today’s Gospel.  Given how lepers were shunned at the time, Jesus basically gifted them with a new life, a chance to return to their family and friends and start anew.  Was that too much to ask? Were they just so caught up in the gift that they forgot a simple act of gratitude?

Maybe we, at times, are not all that different.  We pray to God so often and FOR so many things – healing, peace, wisdom, patience, understanding, even financial security.  But too often, I think we forget to offer a prayer of thanksgiving, of gratitude for His presence in our lives, for answering our prayers. 

That one leper, a Samaritan, is the only one who returned to thank Jesus.  And it wasn’t a simple handshake or a nod of the head or just a simple “thank you”.  His gratitude was life-changing.  He fell down on his knees praising God in a loud voice and thanked Jesus.

Consider all the thank-you’s you receive on a daily basis.  Thank you for that cup of tea!  Thank you for helping with prepping dinner!  Thank you for holding the door open and holding my hand when we’re navigating the stairs!  Thank you for just being you!

May our prayers of thanksgiving gratitude always be as fervent and heart-felt as our prayers of petition!

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