How to Get Your “Thank You” Back – Guest Post by Julie Sanders

Today I have a great post by Julie Sanders (another M.O.M. teammate). I love this post and I am sure you will too.

How to Get Your “Thank You” Back

With sweaty hair matted on foreheads, they filed around party tables as bounce house staff appeared with birthday boxes of pizza. “Pizza, pizza!” the famished kids all shouted. As soon as triangles arrived on paper plates, it was devoured. I waited; I listened. It never came. Not a single, unprompted “thank you.”

When did we stop saying “Thank you?”

With Thanksgiving only a week away, most of us have a lot of catching up to do. Ever since Satan first suggested we should have the best of everything, mankind has been struggling to be grateful. At this time of year when “Thanks-giving” is all too familiar, we would do well to solve the mystery of what makes one grateful when no one else is. What made one healed leper give thanks when his nine companions skipped it?

Ten lepers in a single village dared to approach Jesus, forbidden by law to mix with healthy people. Luke 17:11-19 tells the tale of their brash cry for mercy, standing at a distance from the Healer. Answering them with a command to go show themselves to the priests and be declared clean, their disease was taken away as they were turning to obey the Jesus. That moment separated them; one stood out, and the others skipped the most important step of their lives.

Gratitude is the expression of faith.

Only one newly disease-free man had faith to be made spiritually whole. All the others saw their miraculously healed state, but after that he was alone. At that moment, he took four steps that most of us skip today, even in this season of “Thanksgiving.”

• Turn – He turned back.  Nine went on, satisfied with having what they asked for.
• Praise – He praised God. Nine were caught up with their new gift.
• Speak – He used a loud voice to verbalize his heart’s cry. The words of nine are lost to us.
• Worship – He fell at the feet of Jesus to pour out his gratitude. Nine missed the chance to fall at the feet of Jesus.

Gratitude is the expression of faith.

One healed leper from a despised people group had the kind of faith we long for; he couldn’t keep from expressing his intense belief in Jesus, and so he turned, praised, spoke up, and fell down in worship. He didn’t skip the step of giving thanks, and he stands out because of it.

Being grateful means we have to step out of the crowd, acknowledge God’s action, say out loud what He has done, and worship Him. Once we get what we ask for or desire, it’s easy to run off with it in our momentary pleasure. Those who practice gratitude stop and turn and verbalize their thanks, and as they do, faith echoes.

Have you stopped saying “Thank you?” To God? To the people in your day? We can get our “Thank you” back.

There’s still a week to prepare our hearts for a celebration of gratitude, a feast of faith. There’s still time to stop our hurry, turn, praise, speak up, and worship. It’s a step we don’t want to skip.

Julie has never gotten to the bottom of her ironing pile, but she loves to teach God’s word and write about His peace covering everyday life. Not a day goes by when she isn’t thankful for the truth that, “where sin abounded, grace abounded much more” (Rom. 5:20b).

Julie is a pastor’s wife and mom of two teenagers who have been schooled in every way possible.  As a Women’s Ministry Director, she loves to teach God’s word and minister to women online and in her own community. Ministering to and mentoring women internationally makes her heart soar, and her favorite travel partner is husband Jeff, Pastor of Mobilization.

When not writing or serving women, you will probably find Julie with coffee in hand or cheering at the cross country course. Weekends you’ll find her baking bread and running back to her planner often to remind herself of what matters most.

Check out Julie’s almost daily blog Come Have a Peace at www.comehaveapeace.blogspot.com and her weekly Marriage Mondays for more encouragement and info.