Power of Thanksgiving

And one of them, when he saw that he was healed, turned back, and with a loud voice glorified God, and fell down on his face at his feet, giving him thanks: and he was a Samaritan. And Jesus answering said, Were there not ten cleansed? but where are the nine? There are not found that returned to give glory to God, save this stranger. And he said unto him, Arise, go thy way: thy faith hath made thee whole. Luke 17:15-19 KJV 

The above story shows us the natural tendency/inclination of us human beings -- ungratefulness. Only 1 out of the 10 lepers who were cleansed glorified God and went back to give thanks to Jesus. It seems like an obvious thing to do once someone receives such a big miracle, but to the 9 it wasn’t so. The same is true for us. There’s a time we cried out to the Lord for some things and some miracles just like the lepers, and when they came we moved on very fast, and now are even complaining about the very things we once cried out to God for. The Bible says that unthankfulness is a characteristic of men in the last days (Tim. 3:1-2). Ungratefulness causes our hearts to be darkened and minds unfruitful (Rom. 1:21), besides causing us to miss out on God Himself. Everything God gives and does for us is meant to draw us closer to Him and His heart, and thanksgiving is the way we ensure that no matter what we receive from Him we don’t move further from Him, rather closer. 

When the thankful leper came back to Jesus, He made him whole. The rest were just healed, but this one was made completely whole (received all he was lacking). Truly ungratefulness causes us to miss out on God big time. Since it’s clear that thankfulness is not the natural human tendency, we ought to keep relying on God and His Spirit to help us develop and maintain a thankful heart that always sees and identifies God’s goodness and faithfulness and uses it to draw closer to Him even further. What God does for us or gives us will either draw us closer to Him, or further from Him. Thanksgiving is how we ensure that God's purpose for being good to us prevails in our lives, as we remain close to Him (Rom. 2:4). 

 Reflection: 
How important is thanksgiving to you? Are there some things you cried out to God for that you're not only not being grateful for, but are even complaining about? Allow the Spirit of God to reveal to you what God has done, is doing and will do, and help you develop a thankful heart. Grace and peace to you!