“As he [Jesus] was going into a village, ten men who had leprosy met him. They stood at a distance and called out in a loud voice, ‘Jesus, Master, have pity on us!’ When he saw them, he said, ‘Go, show yourselves to the priests.’ And as they went, they were cleansed. One of them, when he saw he was healed, came back, praising God in a loud voice. He threw himself at Jesus’ feet and thanked him—and he was a Samaritan. Jesus asked, ‘Were not all ten cleansed? Where are the other nine?’”1
William Stidger, a Methodist minister, began to think of the blessings he had received during his life. He remembered a special elementary school teacher who had gone out of her way to give him an appreciation for verse. It had been more than 50 years since Stidger had been in her class, but his appreciation for verse had endured since that time. Stidger wrote to his former teacher a letter of appreciation and she replied: “My Dear Willie, I cannot tell you how much your note meant to me. I am in my eighties, living alone in a small room, cooking my own meals, lonely and, like the last leaf of autumn, lingering behind. You will be interested to know that I taught in school for fifty years and yours is the first note of appreciation I ever received.”2
Suggested prayer: “Dear God, please give me a grateful heart and a thankful spirit, so that I will always give and express credit where credit is due, thanks where thanks is due, and appreciation where appreciation is due. And above all, give me a thankful heart for the countless blessings you have given so freely to me and especially for your gift of salvation and a home in Heaven to be with you forever. Help me to so live that my life will be a living expression of gratitude for all that you have done for me. Thank you for hearing and answering my prayer. Gratefully, in Jesus’ name, amen.”
1. Luke 17:12-17 (NIV).
2. From Pastor Ron Clarke, Tasmania, Australia.
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