Luke 17:11-19
Introduction
Count your blessings. Remember to be grateful. Realize how rich you are. Take the time, especially at Thanksgiving, to give thanks for everything you have been given.
These are the sentiments touted throughout the season we stand at the precipice of—Thanksgiving, Advent, Christmas, the New Year… the holidays. And they are absolutely right. We would do well to count our blessings, be grateful, take stock of how rich we are, and give thanks. It is the faithful thing to do. We know this… and so did Leper Number 10.
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In today’s passage Jesus is on his way to Jerusalem, and as he enters a village ten lepers see and approach him—socially distant of course— and cry out in unison, “Jesus, Master, have mercy on us!” These people know they have to keep their distance—because that is the law— but they are desperate for healing. Jesus knows this, of course; he sees them; has mercy for them; and commands them: “Go and show yourselves to the priests” which in this case means, you are healed of your disease, now go and show yourself to the priest who will certify that you are, and then you will be permitted to return to your community.
And with that said they all turn to do as they are told, all while something strange and unexpected begins to happen— something wonderful, yet mysterious. The lepers, these 10 people deemed unclean and thus cast out of their community, are miraculously cleansed and healed. No longer are they plagued by their condition. They are healed and made whole. They can now live again.
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These 10 people knew who Jesus was. They had heard of him, knew what he was capable of—if they hadn’t they would not have called out “Jesus, Master, have mercy on us!” So they knew with Jesus the impossible was possible—and yet when the impossible happened, when the healing they so desperately wanted came… only one turns back and gives thanks. Only one.
“Were not ten made clean?” asks Jesus. “But the other nine, where are they?” Only one takes the time to acknowledge what just happened. Only one bothers to come back to Jesus and say “thank you.” Only one counts his blessings.
Is that what happens when we count our blessings? Or does something else?
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“Counting our blessings”, “remembering to be grateful”, “realizing how rich we are”, “taking the time to give thanks for everything we have been given” is the good and faithful thing to do at Thanksgiving and all throughout the holidays. But there is something remarkable that can happen when we count our blessings all the time.
Move 1
The Journal of Personality and Social Psychology published research showing that people who count their blessings daily; who remind themselves of that which they are grateful— show significant improvements in mental health, and in some aspects physical health.
For instance, this study showed when those who counted their blessings did so they reported exercising more, having less food cravings, and getting better sleep. Additionally, the study showed an increase in caring more about others and a greater willingness to help others. This study was done with healthy college students and older adults with an incurable disease.
To perform this study, college students were asked to fill out a weekly report of just five things for which they were grateful. Among their lists were: “the generosity of friends”, “the chance to study and get an education”, “green grass” and “Phones.” (Zoomers—what are you gonna do?)
Another group, made up of adults with incurable diseases such as ALS, were asked to also write down a list of five things that made them thankful. The number one answer for this group was “the love and support of family and friends”.
In contrast, groups of similar status and condition were asked to list—not their blessings—but rather their hassles. These items included “hard to find parking,” “social media,” “finances depleting quickly,” and “fear of the unknown.” So instead of focusing on how rich and blessed they were, members of these groups focused on their deficits and struggles.
Well, you don’t need me to tell you the results were predictable. In the end, the grateful groups felt better about their lives and more optimistic about their prospects. The thankful college students exercised more, and the grateful chronically ill adults reported sleeping longer and waking up refreshed. Which, again, all shows how being thankful is good for our mental and physical health—and it doesn’t seem to matter what you are grateful for because these results come when we count our blessings. We can be appreciative of generous friends, or loving family members, or green grass, even smart phones, or whatever because when we count our blessings—when we see and recognize and acknowledge we are blessed—we become more whole and experience a healing that would otherwise not be.
That is true today. And it was true for Leper Number 10.
Move 2
The lesson and take away from all this is easy enough to glean from our text for today. However, there is a deeper take away often missed. In the story of the 10 lepers, there is a huge surprise revealed when it is made know that Leper Number 10 is a Samaritan.
Now, for us, the designation “Samaritan” is read as a good moniker. But when Jesus said the term “Samaritan” it was heard very differently by his audience because they saw Samaritans as low-life losers, second-class citizens, members of the wrong race, wrong region and wrong religion. But Jesus emphasizes it is only the Samaritan who counts his blessings.
And that is the deeper takeaway from this text— while the others had experienced the healing of their bodies, this one had healing of his body, but he also found healing in his soul.
Jesus asks, “Was none of them found to return and give praise to God except this foreigner?” There’s no parsing words here—Jesus slams the nine perfectly respectable lepers who went on their way without so much as a thank-you; the ungrateful nine who apparently felt they somehow deserved to be healed; the self-centered nine who had so much to do they couldn’t take a nanosecond to express their gratitude. But to Leper Number 10 Jesus says, “Your faith has made you well.” This man found a deeper healing than the other nine. And he found it not in the asking for, and the receiving of, healing. He found his deeper healing when he saw, recognized, and acknowledged the blessings that came to him. He found deeper healing when he counted his blessings.
Conclusion
In this time of Thanksgiving, we are encouraged to count our blessings— large and small, significant and silly— and to be grateful to the One who is the source of every good and gracious gift. And we know this is good and right and faithful because it just is. But still, the holidays remind us of such and naturally call for us to do so. But there is still a deeper reason…
All that we are thankful for… all we are blessed with… we don’t deserve any of it. We have done nothing to earn it—we can do nothing to earn it. All of it is because of the grace and mercy of the one who made us and the one who saved us. And that is truly the reason we ought to count our blessings.
Yes, we do so because it is good and right. Yes, we do so because it improves our health at multiple levels. Yes, we do so because it is in response to seeing and acknowledging all we are blessed with. But before any of it, when we count our blessings, we are humbling ourselves to the truth that we have done nothing to deserve or earn all we have because we—and every person—is loved without condition by God. And when we realize every person is loved by God—just we are—then not only do we see our blessings differently, we see others differently too. We see them as God sees them.
So whether it’s green grass or an honor roll kid or caring co-workers or healthy hearts—our attitude toward each day should be absolutely saturated with thanksgiving. Because if we can remember to be grateful; if we can intentionally and consistently see, recognized, acknowledged, and count our blessings, we’ll find ourselves even healthier in body, mind and spirit. We’ll feel better about our lives, more optimistic about our prospects and more helpful, kind, and loving toward people.
Jesus proclaimed it, and modern research confirms it— a grateful faith can make us well.
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So may we, in this season of Thanksgiving and beyond, be intentional about counting our blessings by taking some time to ask ourselves: What have I forgotten to say “thank-you” for? Who have I forgotten to say “thank-you” to? What has my response to my blessings been? Have my responses been that of an expectant, entitled “Gimme more!”? Or have my responses been that of extraordinary, unexpected blessings?
Such introspection can put us on the path toward the healing we all want and need. For no matter who we are, no matter what we have done; or not done, or left undone; no matter how our society views us— we are all children of God who have been blessed by God our Creator and Christ our Savior. And when we count our blessings… deeper and deeper levels of healing and wholeness always comes.
Happy Thanksgiving. Amen.
Pastoral Prayer, November 20, 2022, Thanksgiving Sunday
Gracious God, we come before you with gratitude this Thanksgiving week, for when we look intentionally, we can see clearly the countless blessing we have from whom all of them flow.
So amidst all the cooking and baking, the parades and football games, the traveling and hosting, all the busy-ness in the days and weeks ahead, may you keep us ever mindful of the abundance that surrounds us each and every day, imploring to never taking any of it for granted.
Yet we do admit, even in our awareness and our offerings of thanks, we do have concerns. It is easy to see all the chaos and hardships of a struggling economy, ongoing wars, and grow cynical and bitter and ask “What do we have to give thanks for?”
May you remind us in those moments you are still present, still working and creating. That in spite of all the chaos and destruction, you have not given up. And neither should we.
So may your blessings be upon all who suffer, who are enduring grief, whose lives are shattered. We pray your protection upon all those who are serving across the globe to bring about justice and peace. It is our prayer that you bring about a better world.
But we know that such a prayer is answered through us.
So we add to those prayers the moments when we shirk back from the challenges of life to be your people. Help us to reach out and care for others. Challenge us, as individuals and as a church to ask, “When did we see you in the guise of the homeless and fail to help you?”
Inspire us to ask, “When did we see you sick or in prison and fail to meet your needs?”
Move us to ask, “When did we see you as a victim of war or disaster and fail to come to your aid?”
And then dare us, as individuals and as a church to ask, “What O God do you require of us, who have been so blessed?”
On this Thanksgiving Sunday may those questions be in the hearts and minds of each of us as individuals and upon this your church. And may they be on our hearts and minds each and every day as we strive to be your good and faithful servants.
Hear now the prayers of our hearts as we offer them in this time of Holy Silence.
All this we pray in the name of Jesus the Christ, who taught us to pray saying, “Our …”