Twenty-Eighth
Sunday in Ordinary Time
October 12/13 2019
Gratitude is the key to a stewardship way of life. Today’s readings demonstrate the power and vital importance of gratitude in the life of the Christian disciple, for gratitude leads us to worship God, who offers us salvation.
We see the power of gratitude on display in the Gospel passage from Luke after Jesus heals ten lepers. “And one of them, realizing he had been healed, returned.” Only one of the ten recognized the tremendous blessing he had received from Jesus, and he returned to thank Him. While it’s easy to feel indignant at the failure of the nine others to return and thank Jesus, how often do we fail to recognize the blessings, answered prayers, and healing (both physical and spiritual), that the Lord showers upon us day and night?
The truth is that our very lives and every breath we take are His gift to us. But we can get so caught up in the stresses and distractions of daily life that we lose touch with this truth.
The Samaritan reacts to his gift of healing with the proper response to our loving God. Recognizing what he had just received from the Lord, he “returned, glorifying God in a loud voice; and he fell at the feet of Jesus and thanked Him.” He was grateful for what God had done for him, and this gratitude led to worship.
And because of this response, Jesus offered him a far more precious gift that physical healing. He offered him the gift of salvation. “Stand up and go; your faith has saved you.”
Too often we hear the phrase, “Count your blessings,” and write it off as nothing more than a trite saying. Today’s Gospel shows us otherwise. Gratitude is powerful. It deepens our faith in God and leads us to fitting worship of Him.
