Jesus was on his way to Jerusalem when ten men who had leprosy met him. Leprosy attacks the nerves in the cooler parts of the body, particularly those that relate to the hands feet and face. The result is a loss of sensation in these areas, and a person is at much greater risk of injury as they cannot feel pain. The lepers stood at a distance and called out to Jesus to help them. When he saw them, he said, “Go, and 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. Jesus asked, “Were not all ten cleansed? Where are the other nine? Has no one returned to give praise to God except this foreigner?” Then he said to him, “Rise and go; your faith has made you well.”
Ten lepers healed and only one came back to thank Jesus, the others were to happy with the physical blessing they received. But the one man who came back to thank Jesus received an additional healing. He was made whole, which means a deeper commitment to God, a more constant awareness of the indwelling Christ. How awesome is that! All because he came back and thanked God! How often do God answer our prayers and we go about our happy business? Yes, we might say thank you, but do we do as the leper, praise and thank him without ceasing? I want to be like the leper and take another step beyond healing. I want to be made whole! When our hearts are thankful, we position ourselves for even greater blessings. When we thank God for blessings, we also need to get closer to Him and grow in our devotion. Let “the things of this world” dim a bit more. And hear God say “You are made whole.” We need to thank God every moment of every day for everything! Much Love…
EMMANUEL 