Thanksgiving: The Uncommon Path to Greatness

Thanksgiving: The Uncommon Path to Greatness

Your Circle has Everything in “Common”
There was once a group of 10 guys who were considered outcasts; rejected from society because of their disease. From a distance they yelled out to Jesus. They called Him master. They recognized Him as an uncommon man-different than those in their circle. They knew He wasn’t an ordinary person.
They asked Him to have mercy on them. What they were really saying was can you help me out of my bad situation. Notice this is what normal people thirst for…to get out of their bad situations.

Change Doesn’t Come By Way of Being “Normal”
It appeared that each person in this group of 10 friends wanted the same things. What I’ve noticed, and this story illustrates, is that ordinary people need help from a person that is no longer ordinary, not in their situation. Could it be you’re looking for help from your circle of friends, that same circle who need just as much help as you? An ordinary person can’t help another ordinary person rid themselves of what they are both experiencing. It takes someone who has done what the others couldn’t or wouldn’t. Not one person in this group could help the other out of their problem. They all were suffering. They had to come to someone who had already overcome their circumstance. They pleaded with the Uncommon One.

Being Uncommon Takes Uncommon Actions
Jesus says to them, go show yourselves to the priests. They had to be willing to not only follow this strange request, but take a risk by seeing the priests who declared them outcasts in the first place. As they were on their way, something good happened to these men, they were cleansed. They had been healed of their disease.
This is where the story gets really interesting. Only one of the guys after seeing that he was healed returned to Jesus. He returned to give “thanks”. There were 10 guys who shared a “common” disease and a “common” healing, but only one decided to leave the group. How difficult was it for this one man to do what the others obviously wouldn’t do? In this act, he left what was “common.” He left what the other “normal” guys were doing and he did what none of the others would do. Not only that, he was the least expected to return. Many times others will consider you the least to be able to achieve that dream or goal. In this act he, became unlike the rest, no-longer-common. As a result, something great happened to this one guy…Jesus made him whole. Not only was he healed, but his wounds and scars were healed. His body restored as if he’d never had the disease in the first place.

Being Thankful is Not a “Common” Act
Are you going to be like the other nine guys? Like your friends? Like the ordinary people in your circle?

Or are you going to be the one unlike the rest?
Thankful for what God has done in your life.
Thankful for what God has done in your family.
Thankful for what God has done on your job, in your career.
Thankful for what God is doing in your community or your country.
Thankful for what God has done in your relationships.

No doubt, there are good things that happen to ordinary people. Being grateful for those good things happens to be uncommon. This person will drink from the cup of greatness. Good things can happen to you, but great things happen to the person that’s thankful.