PREPARATION

There doesn’t seem to be an immediate threat, but in today’s climate you never know. Thanksgiving Day is about more than overeating great food and napping during half-time. There is more to it than football and parades  and family pictures. Thanksgiving reminds us of a necessary part of our faith...it forces us to rekindle the secret behind thankfulness.

If you want a full life the way God intended, then choose to be thankful. Gratitude is the key that unlocks the door to ultimate healing and wholeness in the middle of brokenness.

Toward the end of his earth-visit, Jesus traveled along the border between Samaria and Galilee. As he 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? Was no one found to return and give praise to God except this foreigner?" Then he said to him, "Rise and go; your faith has made you well." (Luke 17:11-15, NIV)

"Rise and go; your faith has made you well." The man was already free of Leprosy, so what does this "made you well" phrase mean?

All ten had been healed physically, but this thankful one received the ultimate healing--he was made whole. Thanksgiving was a key to something deeper than the physical disease.

Thanksgiving heals our spirit, our attitude, and our future.

INSPIRATION

In January of 2002 I experienced a series of heart events that took me to that narrow edge between life and death. For 24 hours it was a touch and go, but it took me days to grasp how critical the time had been.

I remember a constant stream of visitors, dozens of cards, a few phone calls, and strangers peeking into my room, smiling and waving.

Just before I headed home to await a date for by-pass surgery, my doctor and I had an extended one-on-one chat. Toward the end he asked, "Have you noticed a few strangers coming by the room?"

"Yes, who are they?" I responded.

"They are nurses and techs who worked on you in the ER and all through that that first night," he began. &quoturing breaks they come by your room because you are their miracle man. Not many people go through what you did and live beyond the day. They feel connected to you."

Two months later I had triple by-pass surgery, and my talk with the doc faded. Then, on one of the annual cardiac reviews, I learned that my heart was rewiring itself; this discovery process reminded my of those ER workers. I was a breathing billboard of thanksgiving for what God had done, but I had failed to express my thanksgiving for what those ER workers had done.

A few days later I visited my ER. I stuck my head in and smiled. There were two nurses and one tech in the room, but none of them were there the morning I had arrived.

Why had it taken me so long? It had been four years...I should have done this sooner. I told my three listeners about what had happened to me, about the edge I had been on, and about the visits to my recovery room.

"I just want to say thank you...thanks to them for being there and for everything."

As I turned to go, each one hugged me. With tears in his eyes, the supervisor spoke, "We have a combined total experience of 37 years in ER's, and we have never been thanked for what we do. You may not have been able to connect with the staff that was here that day, but you have made this day unforgettable for us. Thank you!"

As I walked to the car, I felt alive and whole and strangely like I had been in the presence of God himself. All I did was say, "Thank you."
 

MOTIVATION

So, before you gather at the table and enjoy feast, make sure you have enjoyed a moment with Jesus. Make sure you have returned to him with a thankful heart. In one way or another, Jesus has healed us all.

Our decision to be thankful, truly personally thankful, for his gracious healing of our condition unlocks power that changes everything. Our choice makes the day holy, transformational and sacred.   

The choice: In spite of our differences, our failures, and our misgivings, we gather family and friends around a table of fellowship and food. We may bicker and banter, but we gather around that table because, for that day, we choose to enjoy the best life has to offer on this planet.