Ten Percent Thankful

Pain.  Numbness in parts of the body.  Then, the skin loses its normal color and becomes thick, glossy, and scaly.  After that, there are dirty sores and ulcers.  The skin around the eyes and ears begins to bunch, and the face becomes disfigured.  Fingers and toes start to drop off.  The throat becomes hoarse.  And there is a smell of decaying flesh.  This was the condition, in varying degrees, of the ten men who met Jesus in Luke 17:11-19.  Leprosy, known today as Hansen disease, was a disease you definitely did not want to get.

These ten men came to Jesus saying, “Master, have mercy on us.”  Jesus told them to go and show themselves to the priest.  Under Jewish law, only priests can declare them “clean.”  They had to have faith as they started to visit the priest.  But as they went, they were cleansed.  As one of them, a Samaritan, saw he was cleansed, he returned to glorify God and thank Jesus.  Since ten men had been healed, Jesus asked where the nine who failed to give thanks were.  Only ten percent of those healed felt compelled to give thanks.

You and I live in a miracle world that God created.  Our bodies that function well day by day for years are a miracle.  When was the last time you thanked God that your digestive system worked?  Or that your kidneys removed toxins and waste products from your body?  Or that the spleen filtered your blood and helped your immune system?  Or that your heart pumps blood throughout your body?  Or that your lungs kept you breathing?  We usually don’t thank the Lord for these things.  We take them for granted.

Recently, I noticed the prescription labels keep using smaller and smaller print.  I used to be able to read them.  Is the drug industry trying to keep the label information secret?  Surely, it couldn’t be my eyes.  I attend church services, and it seems that those who speak all have weak voices.  How come they only talk loud enough when I put my hearing aids on?

Stop and list all the functions of your body that you always assume will work well.  Then, thank God for them.  It seems that we only appreciate all these functions after we start losing them.

I remember hearing an old story that goes like this.  “I complained about my poor shoes until I saw a man with no feet.”

How many people go to bed hungry, and we have all we can eat and more?  We have plenty of clothing, but many struggle to have enough to cover themselves.

What about the blessing of family and friends?

And what about spiritual blessings?

If you have trusted Christ as Savior, you have the future of eternity in heaven in a glorified body.  You experienced your first miracle at the time of your salvation.

You can thank, praise, and worship the Lord for His marvelous creation of the earth and the heavenly bodies.

You have the work of the Holy Spirit transforming you into a new creature and working to conform you to the image of Christ.

You have access to a prayer-hearing and prayer-answering God.

You have the written Word of God to teach you about salvation and how to live the Christian life.

You have His presence every day of your life.

You have access to His love, grace, mercy, forgiveness, abundant life, peace, and joy,

You have fellow Christians with whom to worship, pray, be friends with, and help you.  You have opportunities to help other Christians and to help unsaved people.

You should be in a Bible-believing church with like-minded Christians and a godly pastor.  If you are in this kind of church, you can be very thankful.

This list could go on forever.

Are you a ten-percenter or a one-hundred percenter?  Do you start every day with thanksgiving and continue through the day giving thanks?  “In everything give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you.” (1 Thessalonians. 5:18).

Psalm 107:8 says, “Oh that men would praise the Lord for his goodness and for his wonderful works to the children of men.”

Make this Thanksgiving Day and every day a day of Thanksgiving.