Day Five: With a Heart of Thankfulness
Colossians 2:6-7,
So then, just as you received Christ Jesus as Lord, continue to live your lives in him, rooted and built up in him, strengthened in the faith as you were taught, and overflowing with thankfulness.
Ever have one of those moments where you couldn’t help but be so thankful to God that it was life changing? That you began to praise God and throw yourself at His feet? Perhaps the day Christ came into your life and cleansed you from your sin, or where you saw His intervention, his mercy and grace.
In Luke chapter 17:11-19, we read of a story that transformed one such life. A life of a leper.
In order to stop the spread of this infectious skin disease from becoming widespread, detailed instructions were given to those infected. They lived in isolation, in communities of only lepers, far away from the rest of the uninfected. If they were to come in close contact with people, they would shout “unclean, unclean.” People were so frightened of these unexplainable skin diseases that they were shunned, even by family members.
On His way to Jerusalem, Jesus runs into 10 such infected men who evidently must have been aware of Christ’s ministry and compassion. Having mercy on them, Jesus heals them. The atrocity is that only one comes back from the priests to thank Jesus. He comes praising God in a loud voice and throwing himself at Jesus’ feet in thankfulness.
If you’re like me, you really want to identify yourself with him rather than that of the nine others, but would our response be the same?
Worship begins with a heart of thankfulness and humility, thankful he cleansed us of the worst disease… sin.
Reading: Luke 17:11-19, Psalm 95