In his gospel account of Jesus’ life, Luke recounts an incident that highlights the mercy and generosity of Christ. As Jesus and His followers entered a village during their journey to Jerusalem, ten lepers saw Him from afar and cried out for healing. Moved with compassion, Jesus cleansed each of them from the horrible disease, which allowed them to re-enter society and enjoy life once again (since in those days lepers were expelled from society).

One of the lepers returned to Jesus, praised Him, and expressed his gratitude for Jesus’ blessing. In fact, Luke tells us he glorified God with a loud voice – he didn’t just whisper a quiet, ‘thanks,’ and move on. Surprisingly, this leper was a Samaritan, an ethnicity generally viewed unfavorably by the Jews and considered unclean. In contrast, the other nine lepers never offered thanks or made any effort to recognize Jesus’ blessing. Evidently they were too busy getting on with their lives. His healing created a situation where they now had so many activities on their calendar that they couldn’t afford the time to praise and thank God for His kindness.

We’re like that sometimes, too. When confronting a difficult circumstance or painful situation we often turn to God and ask for His mercy, blessing, intervention, or help. We request He heal us, find us employment, give us a perceived need, or extend His protection. Then when He answers our prayer we often return to our demanding schedules and frenetic lives without crediting Him for what happened or lifting a prayer of praise to Him.

What does that say about our faith when we have no difficulty finding time to cry out to God when we need Him but cannot spare a few minutes each day thanking Him for the many blessings He has rained down on us? Does it reveal a degree of selfishness in our hearts? Does such behavior indicate a less mature, perhaps even less authentic faith?

Fortunately, God is gracious and not vindictive. He never withdrew His healing from the nine lepers who declined to thank Him. He doesn’t demand we express our gratitude when He answers our prayer. He doesn’t inform us that His blessings are conditional on our appreciation. Yet, shouldn’t we extend our voice to Him in praise and worship whether He requires it or not. Is such a small act of gratefulness too much for us to offer?

I encourage you to set aside a few minutes every morning to thank God for the many blessings He has given you – perhaps during your commute into the office, while eating breakfast, or as you complete your morning exercise regimen. Develop a habit of offering gratitude to start each day.

Are you healthy? Thank God. Are you employed? Glorify Christ. Do you have any friends? Family? Offer gratitude to God. Do you have a roof over your head and a mattress to sleep on? Praise the Lord. Can you walk, see, hear, and think? What a blessing! Do you have the confidence of spending eternal life with God in heaven? Rejoice.

No doubt you can identify many more blessings for which to extend appreciation to God. Take some time now to do so and make today the first day of your new habit to praise Jesus for answered prayer and blessing.