Thank you CELEBS

A trip to Billy Way's CELEBS bible study meeting on Monday night was not only cleansing physically, but spiritually as well. We all know it can be hard at times to read the bible and fully understand and get what we need out of each passage. This was my chance at focusing on a few verses and really analyzing what God was saying.

A group of about 10 of us took about 40 minutes to look over Luke 17:11-19. I know you are looking at a computer screen, so take a look at the passage below...

Now on his way to Jerusalem, Jesus traveled along the border between Samaria and Galilee. 12As he was going into a village, ten men who had leprosy met him. They stood at a distance 13and called out in a loud voice, "Jesus, Master, have pity on us!"14When he saw them, he said, "Go, show yourselves to the priests." And as they went, they were cleansed.15One of them, when he saw he was healed, came back, praising God in a loud voice. 16He threw himself at Jesus' feet and thanked him—and he was a Samaritan.17Jesus asked, "Were not all ten cleansed? Where are the other nine? 18Was no one found to return and give praise to God except this foreigner?" 19Then he said to him, "Rise and go; your faith has made you well."

Sure, this happened thousands of years ago, but as you look more closely, these words really relate to the present time.

With Thanksgiving around the corner, the idea of thankfulness is clearly evident here. Sure, we have the day of Turkey, stuffing, and mashed potatoes to make us think about what we are thankful for, but what about on a daily basis? We all have our problems, like the lepers, and when God cleanses us of those worries, are we thankful? In this passage, the nine lepers who did not come back did what many of us do after our problems are solved, move on to the next worry in their lives. It is like when you get a test back you had been worrying about: you do better than you thought, but instead of taking a step back and thanking God for that gift of knowledge, you start thinking about an argument you had with a friend or the fact you might not be happy with your girlfriend or boyfriend at the time. All Jesus wanted was for those nine lepers to take a step back and thank God for His good works. He wants us for that too.

It is not that hard or time consuming to be thankful, all you really need to say is "Thank you Lord for (insert gift/something that makes you happy here)". Why not thank God for one of those November Ithaca sunsets, or a beautiful winter's night. Taking things like that for granted is one of the worst things a person can do. It's life, so take it in, enjoy it and be thankful for everything, instead of worrying about the next problem on the neverending list.

Another striking message from the passage is that faith will save us. The one leper who came back gained Jesus' trust because of his faith in knowing why and how he was cleansed. The others may have not even had enough faith and trust in the Lord to see the priests in the first place.

Faith is facinating to me, it is not something that people can handle on a normal basis. Faith can be shaken and stirred, it can change on a daily basis for some. The more consistent you are in your faith, the more you will trust in God's plan. That one leper's faith may have given him a one-way ticket to heaven, which isn't a bad deal. I'd say it is even better than the Polar Express, though Santa is a pretty big deal too.

And when it comes to all of the "end of the world" speak, faith becomes even more important. Considering the readings, Father Carsten talked about it in Mass, you can't always be waiting, scared to death over the world ending. What kind of life is that? Faith saves us. Who knows, our world might end tomorrow, are you ready? Fear isn't always a bad thing, but faith makes us stronger.

We need to know that whenever the world ends for us, either individually or in a catastrophic world population fashion, we have another life waiting for us with God and Mary and Jesus and the whole gang in heaven. But alas, God's work for us here is obviously not finished. So whether it is tomorrow, or next year, or 2012, or 2112, be thankful for today, and have the faith that God will be with us through everything that happens tomorrow as well.