Thankfulness is a HEART response to God's goodness...

The nineteenth century preacher Henry Ward Beecher once said:

"The unthankful heart discovers no mercies; but let the thankful heart sweep through the day and, as the magnet finds the iron, so it will find, in every hour, some heavenly blessings!" 

A short while ago I was making pancakes for my family and a guest. Ollie, our ravenously hungry first son, was less than pleased with the allocation of goods. He was given, like everyone else, 1.5 pancakes. Now these are no box mix pancakes. They have substance and can hold a man (just not a 9yr old boy). 

Ollie, making his displeasure known, was pouting and upset when he asked for seconds and was denied. At this point, I had not eaten and wanted to enjoy the spoils of my labor as much as any would in my shoes. When Ollie became a hardened I confronted the attitude. I shared with him that we have a guest and your mother also needs to eat - to say nothing of the fact that I had not even eaten yet... Still with his arms crossed he was upset (seeing yourself in this little vignette?). 

I worked to stretch the batter and was able to make enough for me to have a pancake and still had some left to give each of the kids another half. Ollie knew at this point his attitude was less than grateful and even wrong, but he was determined. I fed the others, looked at Ollie and said, "Get your plate son." 

I was quickly met with, "Why?" 

"I'm giving you this half pancake," I said sliding it on to his plate. 

Then the most curious thing happened. He pushed it away not just one or two times but three. Each time it was accompanied by the following report, "I don't deserve it." 

By this time I was already at the table with my own food. I gently reached across the table and with sticky sweet fingers I slowly slid his plate back up in front of him and said, "I know son. That's the point. Not only do I want you to have this pancake, but I want to eat with you too." 

He broke. He looked up at me and asked forgiveness and we went on to eat the sweetest lukewarm pancakes we'd had in a long time. 

It is the same with God isn't it?  He gives us half a pancake (Romans 5:8) and invites us to eat with him! 

Our pancake story reminds me of what we see when Jesus heals the ten lepers in Luke 17:11-19. Their desperation met the mercy of Jesus and he healed them. Restoring all that was eaten by that horrible, life-robbing disease.  

Yet, only one returned to give praise to God for the healing. This brave soul came and fell on his face at the feet of Jesus - an act of utter humility leading to praise and thanksgiving - for his healing.  

What comes next is where Jesus confirms that two miracles occurred in this story. They were all healed - physically and socially. But only ONE was healed physically, socially and spiritually - so he came back to Jesus to express his thanks: 

When our desperation is met with mercy and we humbly respond to Jesus - there is a hunger for more of Him. 

Thankfulness is a heart response to God's goodness

Consider this Thanksgiving:

• What is your situation like? Your marriage, job, relationships, witness among neighbors and coworkers, etc... Just like the ten cried out to Jesus and "he saw them..."(Luke 11:14) He sees you too! Let your desperate and needy cry reach the ears of the Savior!
• Secondly, no matter what else is going on around you, be like the one in ten who came back with a holy hunger for more of God! He won't disappoint! 

Thankfulness is a heart response to God's goodness!