Hallelujah! I will give thanks to the Lord with my whole heart, * in the assembly of the upright, in the congregation.
The theologian, Karl Barth was fond of saying that the basic human response to God is gratitude—not fear and trembling, not guilt and dread, but thanksgiving. “What else can we say to what God gives us but stammer praise?[1]
Jesus and his disciples are walking to Jerusalem in “the region between Samaria and Galilee.” (vs. 11) They are approached by ten persons suffering from leprosy. Leprosy is not much known in our modern times thanks to the successful treatments that are now available. But in the time of Jesus, people lived in fear of leprosy. It was believed to be radically contagious so leprosy was not only a disease that affected one’s appearance and health, but it was socially devastating. People who were afflicted with one of the many skin diseases that were called “leprosy” were isolated from all family and friends. They were seen as unclean and their illness was believed to be punishment from God for some past wrongdoing. All contact was forbidden so as a result people who contracted leprosy were forced to live in total isolation; banished from their homes, from the loving touch of spouses, children, parents, and from their community. People with this disease were required to call out as they approached, announcing their illness, so people could avoid them.
In our Gospel reading from Luke, ten people, with what was believed to be leprosy, courageously call out to Jesus for mercy. They refer to Jesus as “Master.” Luke provides no description of physical healing, but Jesus tells them to go and show themselves to the priests so their social humiliation can be removed and they can be restored to their community. As they walk away, their skin begins to heal. Nine of them continue walking, or skipping, or running to the priests. But one, we are told, recognizes what has been done for him. He stops, turns and in a loud voice, gives praise to God. Falling at Jesus’ feet, he thanks him. Jesus, in a tone we cannot quite make out, asks “where are the other nine?” Then he says to the one grateful man at his feet, “Get up and go on your way; your faith has made you well.”
Jesus offers the grateful man a wellness that runs beyond simply restoring his body. This one man, this Samaritan, this marginalized ‘foreigner’ has received a deeper wellness. In returning, praising God with a loud voice, and giving thanks, he has tapped into the eternal reservoir of what God is always doing in and through our lives. He has truly opened himself to the gift he has received and so he says, “thank you.” When Jesus replies, “Your faith has made you well,” Jesus is telling us about the nature of faith. To have faith is to live it and to live it is to give thanks. By Jesus’ definition, faith and gratitude are closely related, faith is not complete without gratitude, and there is something healing and life-giving about gratitude.
And science is bearing this out. There is research evidence that being grateful has positive health benefits. Robert A. Emmons and his colleague Mike McCullough randomly assigned participants to one of three groups. Each week, the participants were asked to keep a short journal. One group briefly described five things they were grateful for in the past week. One group recorded five things that irritated them from the previous week. And one group was asked to list five events from their week, but were not told to focus on either positive or negative aspects.
Ten weeks later participants in the gratitude group reported being happier than the other two groups– significantly more so than the irritated group–and reported fewer health complaints requiring a visit to the doctor. Now there is no cause and effect established in this study, but studies find that gratitude is a stress reducer, that grateful people are more hopeful, and there are links between gratitude and a healthy immune system.[3]
But gratitude is not only a source of health for us as individuals, it has important communal effects. Studies of people in relationships who took time to express gratitude to their partners not only experienced a more positive bond, but their communication flourished as well. People who were asked to record their blessings found that they were spending more time offering support to others in need. So my mother-in-law was right about writing thank you notes.
Gratitude unlocks the fullness of life. The practice of gratitude opens us to the working of God in our midst. It can turn what we have into enough, and more. John Milton said, “Gratitude bestows reverence, allowing us to encounter everyday epiphanies, those transcendent moments of awe that change forever how we experience life and the world.”
If faith is not something we have, but something we do—something we live—then in living we express our trust in God. When we practice gratitude, we find that faith is given in abundance from God, the giver of all good gifts.
Sometimes gratitude can be harder to achieve. It can be simpler to feel and express thanks when our lives are going well—when we have been cured from a difficult illness, when the diagnosis comes back clear, when the challenging boss decides to retire. But even when life throws us into a tailspin—as life often does—by assuming a constant posture of gratitude—thankfulness can save us. Even when bad things happen in life, a life of faith and gratitude can help us gently find our way back to the present moment to see that step by step we will make it through another ordinary or impossible day.
Gratitude is a part of our healing and deliverance. It is giving thanks that saved the grateful leper. His skin was healed, but it was through his praise of God and thankfulness to Jesus that he was made well or whole, and such thankfulness is available to us all. We can give thanks to God for a good day and we can give thanks to God for giving us the courage to face our day. We can give thanks to God for our good fortune and we can give thanks to God for those people who will walk with us in our hardship.
We have entered into a season of generous living. Every day we have the chance to notice the beauty, the wonder, and the love that surrounds us. Every day we are given the opportunity to lift up with thanksgiving all that we are and all that we have to God in recognition that everything comes from our Creator. Every day we have the chance to shout out loudly through our words and through our actions what God has done in our lives. Every day we have the opportunity to offer in joy, our praise and gratitude to God.
God has given Grace Church so much to be grateful for. God has given us each other as companions as we walk together on this journey of life. God has given us beautiful music and glorious prayers that draw our hearts to God.
God has given us ministries that enliven our worship of God and our service to others.
God has given us generous hearts so that together we can offer much goodness to the world.
God has given us partners and neighbors that invite us to good work. God has sheltered us in difficult times helping us to not lose heart, but to continue forward in faith.
And in response to God’s goodness, Grace Church has always acted in gratitude–by sharing fully from our time, our talents, and our treasure. This gratitude praises God with a loud voice so that others can know of God’s love.
A Samaritan, the foreigner, the doubly outcast due to his disease and his nationality—embodies joyful faith and a humble attitude. He demonstrates a faith that cannot and will not remain silent in response to what God has done in his life. Being thankful was not a precondition for his healing by Jesus. All ten were healed of their physical affliction and restored to their community.
But the Samaritan turned around and came back, and in doing so he was reoriented to Gods’ grace-filled work in him. Jesus’ words, “Your faith has made you well,” points beyond the physical healing– to making this man whole and directed toward God. When the Samaritan bows down at Jesus’ feet and gives thanks, his faith is complete because it includes gratitude. In this moment, the Samaritan understands with his whole self who his Healer and Savior truly is and accordingly, who he is. His heart turned to gratitude, he sees God throughout all existence and recognizes that all he loves and needs will come from this never-ending stream of God’s grace.
[1] Karl Barth. Church Dogmatics ,III/3. Edinburgh: T. & T. Clark, 1960, 564.
[2] C.S. Lewis. Reflections on the Psalms. London: G. Bles, 1958, 78-81.
[3] http://www.health.harvard.edu/newsletter_article/in-praise-of-gratitude