October 31st, 2022
Today’s devotion comes to us from HomeTouch.
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Are you, or were you ever, a list-maker?
Generally, once a list-maker, always a list-maker. These lists are reminders. They ensure that we don’t forget to do something important.
The list might be arranged in order of importance, so that the urgent items are dealt with first. If we don’t get to all the items on our list, well, we will get to them tomorrow.
In Luke 17 we read the familiar story of the 10 lepers healed by Jesus and restored to perfect health, with skin flawlessly smooth and pure. It is the story of nine Jewish men who then ran from Jesus without so much as a “how-do-you-do!” The 10th leper — “this foreigner,” (v. 18) as Jesus puts it (he was a Samaritan) — also took off.
But when he saw that he’d been healed, unlike his companions, he paused after a few paces and returned to throw himself at the feet of Jesus. There, he praised God for his healing.
Jesus was amazed on several levels and was clearly impressed with this Samaritan and tells him to “Get up and go on ...” (v. 19). Another version puts it: “Rise and go.” Jesus has this guy on the move.
So leper No. 10 has a to-do list. Go back and thank this Healer, he told himself. “Rise and go,” Jesus said. “Show and tell,” he thought. “I am going to show the priests. I am going to tell my parents, my aunts and uncles, my brothers and sisters, my friends and neighbors and anyone who will listen what Jesus has done for me — how he has changed my life forever!”
What’s on your “To-Do List” today? Do we need to “get up and go on”? What keeps us — who are so blessed, healed, as it were — from sharing this good news?
And, do we need to make a list of people — friends, family, caregivers — who would be thrilled to accept some words of gratitude and encouragement from you?
Prayer:
O God, thank you for making me whole. Thank you for the many people in my life who contribute every day to my spiritual and physical health. In Jesus’ name. Amen.
_________________________
Are you, or were you ever, a list-maker?
Generally, once a list-maker, always a list-maker. These lists are reminders. They ensure that we don’t forget to do something important.
The list might be arranged in order of importance, so that the urgent items are dealt with first. If we don’t get to all the items on our list, well, we will get to them tomorrow.
In Luke 17 we read the familiar story of the 10 lepers healed by Jesus and restored to perfect health, with skin flawlessly smooth and pure. It is the story of nine Jewish men who then ran from Jesus without so much as a “how-do-you-do!” The 10th leper — “this foreigner,” (v. 18) as Jesus puts it (he was a Samaritan) — also took off.
But when he saw that he’d been healed, unlike his companions, he paused after a few paces and returned to throw himself at the feet of Jesus. There, he praised God for his healing.
Jesus was amazed on several levels and was clearly impressed with this Samaritan and tells him to “Get up and go on ...” (v. 19). Another version puts it: “Rise and go.” Jesus has this guy on the move.
So leper No. 10 has a to-do list. Go back and thank this Healer, he told himself. “Rise and go,” Jesus said. “Show and tell,” he thought. “I am going to show the priests. I am going to tell my parents, my aunts and uncles, my brothers and sisters, my friends and neighbors and anyone who will listen what Jesus has done for me — how he has changed my life forever!”
What’s on your “To-Do List” today? Do we need to “get up and go on”? What keeps us — who are so blessed, healed, as it were — from sharing this good news?
And, do we need to make a list of people — friends, family, caregivers — who would be thrilled to accept some words of gratitude and encouragement from you?
Prayer:
O God, thank you for making me whole. Thank you for the many people in my life who contribute every day to my spiritual and physical health. In Jesus’ name. Amen.
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