One day, when Jesus was on his way to Jerusalem, he came upon 10 lepers. The lepers called out to him and asked for mercy. Jesus had them seek out priests to be cleansed and they did. They discovered after their cleansing that they had been healed. One of the men who had been healed, a Samaritan, came back praising God. That man threw himself at the feet of Jesus and thanked him. Jesus then asked on the whereabouts of the other nine men. Likely being a rhetorical question there was no answer. Jesus gave the man his leave and told him that his faith had made him well. ~ paraphrase from Luke 17: 11-17.

Many lessons can be learned from the story; the grace and power of Jesus, that even a "foreigner" (a Samaritan) can receive God’s blessing, and etc. The one point that I’d like to comment on is the thankfulness of the Samaritan. I sometime wonder if I’m one of the 9 or the thankful Samaritan. Do I throw myself at the feet of Jesus and thank him? The truth is that I often fail at telling Jesus that I appreciate what he has done for me, but I hope that my work and Stewardship can be my "thank you."

I challenge all who read this to reflect upon Luke 17: 11-17 and decide that they can be the thankful Samaritan. You can say "thank you" in your actions by giving your time, talents, and resources to God’s ministries. If you would like to say thank you, see me or one of your Stewardship team members for help. I believe that this thankful response, for what Jesus has done for you, will build your faith in the goodness and truth of God.

Robert Armijo, Elder