Surviving a close call is a reason for celebration. Yet survivors often face other emotions when someone says, “You’re lucky!” as the reality of what they survived sinks in.
I remember a time when I was “lucky to be alive” several days after emergency surgery, after my appendix burst. This was what I heard from the partner of my primary physician when he came into my room to check on me after surgery. For some reason, his comments angered me. I wasn’t feeling lucky?
Of course, I was grateful, but I usually think of luck as gambling—drawing the right card or buying a winning lottery ticket. I was too young to die and had too many reasons to stay alive. No! Luck is for games. When my life is on the line, I want something more than luck on my side.
God never revealed why this happened or why my life was spared. Instead, I learned about grace. The dictionary defines “Grace” as something you receive without asking. Grace is a gift. I never truly understood what Grace was until that week I spent in a hospital, fighting for my life.
When we receive a gift we don’t deserve, we’re grateful. Or at least, gratitude is the only response I can imagine. The experience might take our breath away, we may be overtaken with joy, or just silently stunned. I don’t see luck as a part of such a scene, however. Love, on the other hand, permeates every fiber of such an experience.
Definitions of gratitude focus on actions rather than words. While gratitude includes a feeling of appreciation, we show that we’re grateful through the kindness we give back. Although appreciation begins with a thank you, what comes afterward reveals whether we’re truly thankful.
Gratitude is a key theme in scripture. The Hebrew enslaved people gradually learned to be grateful as they journeyed through the wilderness toward the fulfillment of God’s promise of a new life. Thankfulness did not come easily for them. As they encountered new challenges, complaints became their main focus. Let’s face it, it’s tough to feel thankful while facing ongoing struggles.
This week’s stories from our companion book focus on the theme of thankfulness. Each story offers an illustration of gratitude on the part of the storyteller.
Chapter 8 begins with the story of Rosemary and her family, who faced the terror of waking up to their home engulfed in fire and smoke. Rosemary was awakened when her three-year-old daughter Molly fell out of bed, and she walked into a wall of smoke in the hallway. Her husband, Bill, rushed into Molly’s room, while Rosemary rescued their ten-month-old, Barry. Fortunately, neighbors brought over a ladder so they could safely climb down from a second-story window.
Too many conversations with friends and neighbors started with “You’re lucky!” The McLaughlin family wasn’t feeling lucky. Gratitude doesn’t come to mind when imagining what this experience was like. Of course, the couple was grateful to be alive, but they lost their home and belongings, and they were celebrating Christmas while living in a tiny apartment.
The family decided to attend Christmas Eve worship, which included a nativity scene. Rosemary shared that she just could not keep her eyes off the tiny baby and his homeless family. Suddenly, she realized how grateful she was that their lives were spared and they still had each other.
Other stories featured items that held great significance for the person praying to find them. Ann prayed that the man whose vehicle keys she sold to someone would miraculously appear. Emily prayed that she would find the watch her family had given her. Paulette prayed that she would find pictures, taken by her sister, of her sister’s cats.
At first, their requests seem minor compared to the other stories, but gratitude doesn’t measure importance.
Emily, who goes by Susie, prayed for comfort in her grief over the loss of her father after dying in an auto accident. She wished she had paid more attention to her father’s stories when the idea of writing a family memoir from her storyteller dad’s perspective. The experience reminded her that she also frequently put God on ignore. Emily’s prayers were answered when she found a composition book full of stories left by her dad.
Luke recounts a story about Jesus being approached by ten men, all suffering from a dreaded skin disease who hoped for healing. Jesus told them to go and show themselves to the Temple. If their skin cleared up, they could ask for permission to return to their community.
He threw himself to the ground at Jesus’ feet and thanked Him.
Luke 17:11-19
On their way, their skin became clear. They were healed. Afterward, one of the men returned to thank Jesus for healing him. “Weren’t there nine others?” Jesus asked out loud. “Why was it that the immigrant was the only one to return to show gratitude?”
Perhaps the immigrant had the most to gain and so he was the most grateful? We’re left to speculate, see ourselves in the story, and faithfully interpret the lessons Jesus offered. Do only one in ten of us thank God for what He has done for us?
The story from our companion book that grabbed my attention the most this week was told by Julia.
Julia had gone to three different specialists and had every test the specialists knew to try, but the cause of her symptoms remained a mystery. Her prayers for healing had gone unanswered until Julia heard, “Julia, you haven’t told Me thank you.”
“What do I have to be thankful for?” Julia thought out loud. Her devotion to God didn’t seem to help. Was sickness her reward for faithfulness?
“I’ve cleared your schedule, you have no responsibilities and no one expects anything of you,” God responded. “I’ve given you a chance to start over with your time, and you’ve not told Me thank you.”
“Thank you,” Julia remorsefully murmured. “Thank you for letting me start over.” Julia was assured that she would get better, but it would take a while. But what did God expect from her in the meantime?
Julia’s health gradually improved. She and her husband, David, were captivated by a piece of art showing children waiting for the school bus in the rain under an umbrella. It was a print of a painting by artist Beth Henrickson Logan. In the scene, one child stood to the side, looking upward as rain splashed on his face. A caption beneath the print read, “Smile at the rain.”
The couple bought the print for their home as a reminder that God’s plans for us are always made with love. But the rains come.
Rain or drought, we can be grateful for each breath we take and each heartbeat. Life is a gift, after all.
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This is a reminder that we publish a weekly newsletter called the Circuit Rider. You can request this publication by email by sending a request to FlintAsburyUMC@gmail.com, or let us know when you send a message through our website. We post an archive of past editions on our website under Connect – choose Newsletters.
Pastor Tommy
Our series was inspired by Jack Canfield, Mark Victor Hansen, and LeAnn Thieman. Chicken Soup for the Soul: Answered Prayers: 101 Stories of Hope, Miracles, Faith, Divine Intervention, and the Power of Prayer. Cos Cob, CT: Chicken Soup for the Soul, 2011.