Luke 17:15-16 (ESV)
15 Then one of them, when he saw that he was healed,
turned back, praising God with a loud voice; 16 and he fell on his face at
Jesus' feet, giving him thanks. Now he was a Samaritan.
In ancient times, lepers were social outcasts because of
their highly contagious disease. In this passage, ten lepers came to Jesus
begging for mercy and He graciously healed them.
Can you imagine? These lepers had an awful disease. Their
bodies were slowly deteriorating -- and worse, they were shunned from their
friends and family and forced to live in a community of only those who were too
withering away. Suddenly merciful Jesus comes along and "poof!" the
sickness leaves them! How life changing! These people must have been overjoyed!
Now they could go back to their families, their homes, their communities and
live normal lives!
But as I read my devotions today something stood out to me
as it had before. Only one of them returned to thank the Lord! But how often do
we do the same? We get so focused on our blessing and forget about the One who
gave it!
Just as the Samaritan returned to Jesus to thank and
worship Him who had redeemed his life, we too must thank God -- for every good
and perfect gift comes from Him and He deserves all the honor and the glory!
And as a matter of fact, one of the cornerstones of effective prayer is
entering His gates with thanksgiving and praise. Let's start thanking God for
all His goodness toward us!
It's easy to get caught up in the blessing -- God has
given us so much! But let’s be sure that we make daily habit of thanking God
first!
Dear Lord, help us not get so caught up in the blessing
that You give us each and every day that we forget to give You the praise and
honor. In the Name of Jesus, Amen.
No comments:
Post a Comment