Are We Grateful

Two psychologists, Dr. Robert A. Emmons of the University of California, Davis, and Dr. Michael E. McCullough of the University of Miami, have done much of the research on gratitude. In one study, they asked all participants to write a few sentences each week, focusing on particular topics.

One group wrote about things they were grateful for that had occurred during the week. A second group wrote about daily irritations or things that had displeased them, and the third wrote about events that had affected them (with no emphasis on them being positive or negative). After 10 weeks, those who wrote about gratitude were more optimistic and felt better about their lives. Surprisingly, they also exercised more and had fewer visits to physicians than those who focused on sources of aggravation.

Another leading researcher in this field, Dr. Martin E. P. Seligman, a psychologist at the University of Pennsylvania, tested the impact of various positive psychology interventions on 411 people, each compared with a control assignment of writing about early memories. When their week's assignment was to write and personally deliver a letter of gratitude to someone who had never been properly thanked for his or her kindness, participants immediately exhibited a huge increase in happiness scores. This impact was greater than that from any other intervention, with benefits lasting for a month.

Of course, studies such as this one cannot prove cause and effect. But most of the studies published on this topic support an association between gratitude and an individual's well-being.

https://www.forbes.com/sites/amymorin/2014/11/23/7-scientifically-proven-benefits-of-gratitude-that-will-motivate-you-to-give-thanks-year-round/?sh=10e23a26183c

Gratitude Matters To God

Luke 17:11–19 KJV 1900

And it came to pass, as he went to Jerusalem, that he passed through the midst of Samaria and Galilee. And as he entered into a certain village, there met him ten men that were lepers, which stood afar off: And they lifted up their voices, and said, Jesus, Master, have mercy on us. And when he saw them, he said unto them, Go shew yourselves unto the priests. And it came to pass, that, as they went, they were cleansed. 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.

INTRODUCTION

Five years ago before he succumbed to cancer, Tony Snow, former political commentator, speech writer, and White House press secretary, said the following to the 2007 graduating class at the Catholic University of America: “Wherever you are and whatever you do, never forget at this moment, and every moment forward, you have a precious blessing. You’ve got the breath of life. No matter how lousy things may seem, you’ve got the breath of life. And while God doesn’t promise tomorrow, He does promise eternity.”

It was and is good advice. We need to look beyond our momentary troubles and see both this life and the life to come as precious gifts for which we should be grateful. Luke reminds us of the importance of being grateful. This of course is the passage where Jesus heals ten lepers but only one comes back to thank Him.

Passage At A Glance

What was Jesus’ reaction to the nine lepers signified?

Luke 17:17–18 KJV 1900

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.

Jesus seemed surprised that only one out of ten returned and praised God. Jesus demonstrated his mercy and surely did not expect something in return. He equally showed mercy on everyone – Jews and Samaritans alike. However, Jesus was not impressed with the ungratefulness of some of those to whom He showed mercy.

Psalm 103:2–5 KJV 1900

Bless the Lord, O my soul, And forget not all his benefits: Who forgiveth all thine iniquities; Who healeth all thy diseases; Who redeemeth thy life from destruction; Who crowneth thee with lovingkindness and tender mercies; Who satisfieth thy mouth with good things; So that thy youth is renewed like the eagle’s.

The Psalmist tells us to remember to praise the God who forgave all our sins and healed all our diseases, who redeemed us from the pit and crowns us with love and compassion, and who satisfies our desires with good things so that our youth is renewed like the eagle’s. Many times God uses other people and we should not forget to express our gratefulness to them – parents, siblings, friends, military, employers, strangers, co-workers, fellow believers, and others.

There are many ways to show our gratefulness to them and to God – words, service, goods, prayers, commitment, obedience, love, kindness, etc.

But the question remains, "Why did nine of the lepers fail to return and thank Jesus?"

I don't know. But we all know some reasons we fail to show their gratefulness.

1. We become self-righteousness

Deuteronomy 8:17 KJV 1900

And thou say in thine heart, My power and the might of mine hand hath gotten me this wealth.

We become ungrateful when we become self-righteous because we think that we deserve help or blessing. Or worse yet we think that it is someone’s duty or responsibility to make us happy.

2. Forgetfulness

Deuteronomy 8:18 KJV 1900

But thou shalt remember the Lord thy God: for it is he that giveth thee power to get wealth, that he may establish his covenant which he sware unto thy fathers, as it is this day.

We become ungrateful when we fail to give honor to whom it is due. We begin to think that our success or achievement was due to our own strength, wisdom and abilities.

3. Commonplace

We become ungrateful when we no longer fail to show our appreciation for the good things or people that are always there for us. It becomes “normal” that God provides and it no longer surprises us.

4. Discontentment

We become ungrateful when we become discontent. No matter how much we receive, we start to feel like it is always too little and therefore we feel no obligation to express gratitude. A contented heart will always say thank you no matter how little he feels that he has received.

There is a story told of two old friends, Bob and Eddie, who bumped into one another on the street one day. Bob looked miserable, almost on the verge of tears. Eddie asked, "What has the world done to you, my old friend?" Bob said, "Let me tell you. Three weeks ago, my long lost uncle died and left me forty thousand dollars." "That’s a lot of money" Eddie replied. Bob continued, "Two weeks ago, a cousin I never even knew died, and left me eighty-five thousand dollars." "Sounds like you’ve been blessed...” Eddie began to say. "You don’t understand!” Bob interrupted. "Last week a distant aunt passed away. I inherited almost a quarter of a million from her." Now Eddie was confused, "Then, why do you look so gloomy?" Bob responded, "This week... no one died!"

What can we learn from the example of the grateful Samaritan?

1. Gratefulness PRIORITIZES the Giver over the gift.

Luke 17:15 KJV 1900

And one of them, when he saw that he was healed, turned back, and with a loud voice glorified God,

When the Samaritan learned that he was cleansed, he delayed his visit to the priest for the inspection and cleansing ceremony.

Here is a man who had been an outcast due to his leprosy for some time. It would have been understandable for him to rush on to be readmitted to his community, but instead, he returns to glorify the giver rather than just revel in the gift.

Take for example a child who just receive a gift or toy from his parent; immediately the child will open the gift and go to his room or sit in a corner and savor the pleasure of owning that thing and so we remind them to say thank you.

The Samaritan however set aside his personal pleasure and went back to praise God. And he did it significantly: Did it personally – “he came back”; Did it vocally – “praising God in a loud voice”; Did it immediately – “he saw… came back”

We should always delight in the presence and goodness of the Giver. The gift may not last but the Giver will always be there for us.

Psalm 73:25–26 KJV 1900

Whom have I in heaven but thee? And there is none upon earth that I desire beside thee. My flesh and my heart faileth: But God is the strength of my heart, and my portion for ever.

2. Gratefulness GLORIFIES God, the Giver.

Luke 17:18 KJV 1900

There are not found that returned to give glory to God, save this stranger.

When we thank God, we are giving testimony to His goodness and loving kindness. We give Him the credit and honor for whatever blessing we receive. We encourage others to turn to God and trust him for their needs and desires when we express gratitude. Every time we give credit to God for any blessings or good experiences, we are being a witness for the Lord.

1 Chronicles 16:8 KJV 1900

Give thanks unto the Lord, call upon his name, Make known his deeds among the people.

When we failed to give thanks to God and to others, we are actually robbing them of the credit and honor due to them. When we give thanks to God, we are declaring his power, his wisdom, and his love before the world. We are declaring the reality of His presence and existence. We are acknowledging that He is the source of all our successes.

Notice the actors and actresses who receive an Oscar or Grammy awards; in their speech, they enumerate the people behind their success and thank them.

3. Gratefulness RESULTS in greater blessing from God.

Luke 17:19 KJV 1900

And he said unto him, Arise, go thy way: thy faith hath made thee whole.

After the Samaritan expressed his gratefulness to God, Jesus declared that his faith had made him whole. The other nine were physically healed but the Samaritan was also made whole.

A U.S. News and World Report article said, “People who made a daily and/or frequent habit of being thankful were not only more joyful; they were healthier, less stressed, more optimistic, and more likely to help others."

Since gratefulness prioritizes God and glorifies Him, He continues to bless our lives. Good stewardship produces gratefulness and good stewards receive greater opportunities in life.

There was this man who had just separated from his wife and he went to a small restaurant to drown his sorrows.

Many similar people were there sitting alone but a mother and a little girl came in and sat at a nearby table. Before eating the little girl asked if she could give thanks for the food. The waitress, hearing this, said, ’Yes honey, we don’t mind you doing that.' The little girl announced loudly for all in the restaurant to hear, ’Everyone, bow your heads and close your eyes, I’ll give thanks to God for the food.' Everyone complied and she prayed, "God is great, God is good, We thank Him for all this food!" Immediately the atmosphere in that little restaurant changed and people started smiling. Some even got up to talk to others. The little girl’s heart of thanksgiving brought honor and salvation that day.

4. Gratefulness DEMONSTRATES faith in God.

1 Thessalonians 5:16–18 KJV 1900

Rejoice evermore. Pray without ceasing. In every thing give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you.

When we thank God not only for things or people whether good or bad, we demonstrate our faith in God’s goodness and wisdom. We demonstrate that we believe that in God’s own ways and time, he will provide His blessings to you and me. In fact, every difficult situation and every need is an opportunity for God to show His greatness and loving-kindness, and for us to demonstrate our gratitude.

There was a man who found a barn where Satan kept his seeds ready to be sown in the human heart. He found that the seeds of discouragement were more numerous than the others and he learned that those seeds could be made to grow almost anywhere. But when Satan was questioned, he reluctantly admitted that there was one place in which he could never get them to thrive. “And where is that?” asked the man. Satan replied sadly, “In the heart of a grateful person.”

CONCLUSION

The famous Bible scholar Matthew Henry was once robbed of his money. Later, he wrote these words in his diary, “First, let me be thankful, because I was never robbed before. Second, let me be thankful that although they took my money, they did not take my life. Third, let me be thankful that even though they took all I had, it was not much. Fourth, let me be thankful that it was I who was robbed, and not I who robbed others.”

Let's always be grateful.