The Most Thankful People in the Bible: A Thanksgiving Top Ten

Thanksgiving (last week) got me thinking about thanking, particularly from a biblical standpoint. Honestly, there was a minute or two earlier in the week when I thought I might be called upon to facilitate a Thanksgiving-themed devotional at church. So, my mind started working. Why not simply consider folks from scripture who were especially thankful—thankful for God, thankful for life, thankful for healing, etc.? This Top Ten is my attempt to highlight the most thankful from the Bible. Ranking them wasn’t necessary, I know, and I certainly wouldn’t have for a devotional, but this blog entry’s different. Gotta make it interesting/controversial, right?

#10 Jonah (Jonah 2)
Of course the first word that comes to mind when we think of Jonah is anything but “thankful.” It’s more like fearful, bitter, pompous. But have you read Jonah’s prayer from the belly of the fish lately? We tend to think he had it coming. Trying to run away from God. Serves him right to get sucked up by a whale of some kind. But he actually didn’t have it coming—salvation, that is. He deserved a grave at the bottom of the ocean. But God rescued him and Jonah recognized that. Filled, seemingly with thankfulness, Jonah confesses, “In my distress I called to the Lord, and he answered me.” Later, he says (in contrast to idolaters), “I, with shouts of grateful praise, will sacrifice to you (God).” Like so many people, Jonah had to (first) get to one of his lowest points…only to be brought up out of it…to be filled (finally) with thanksgiving. He definitely seems to make the Top Ten…barely.

#9 One of Ten Lepers Healed (Luke 17)
It’s like a Top Ten within a Top Ten. Only the thanksgiving focus in Luke 17 isn’t on ten, it’s on one. Ten lepers encounter Jesus. All ten seemed to believe that Jesus was pretty much who He claimed to be. So they cried out to him for healing. “Master, have pity on us!” Jesus asks them to visit the priests, and on their way they were made whole. No more leprosy! Only one responded with a spirit of thankfulness. A Samaritan. He “threw himself” at Jesus’ feet and thanked him. Even Jesus seemed surprised there weren’t a few more of the former lepers at His feet. “Were not all ten cleansed?,” He asks. “Where are the other nine?” This man stood out from the crowd because of his thankfulness. I must confess that he puts me to shame. How often do you or I plea for a blessing from God? Praying numerous times a day, perhaps. And when the blessings come, we might think to tell Him thanks, what, once or twice tops, if at all. Unlike Jonah, this man probably deserves a higher “thankfulness” ranking than I’m giving him.

#8 Moses (Exodus 14-15)
If there’s anyone who had something (many things) to be thankful for, it was Moses. Has anyone enjoyed such a special relationship with the creator of the universe? It’s hard to find, though, very much in-your-face thanksgiving on the part of Moses. One exception, of course, is the “song” attributed to Moses in Exodus 15. With all the plagues and the parting of the Red Sea fresh on his mind, Moses (along with the Israelites) sang a song—a song that doesn’t mention specifically the word “thanksgiving,” but one that has thanksgiving implications on seemingly every line. I mean, couldn’t you insert a parenthetical “Thank you, Lord!” at the end of just about every line? “Pharoah’s chariots and his army he has hurled into the sea. (Thank you, Lord!)” “Your right hand, Lord, shattered the enemy. (Thank you, Lord!)” “Who among the gods is like you? (Thank you, Lord!)” And so on and so forth.

#7 The Man Formerly Known as “Legion” (Mark 5)
Before he met Jesus, the man lived among tombs. He’d been chained who knows how often. No chain was strong enough, though. No one could subdue him. He cried out night and day, cutting himself with stones. Not because of some chemical imbalance, but because of an impure spirit living within him. Jesus comes and has a conversation with the spirit(s). He sends them into a herd of pigs. The pigs run off a cliff into a lake and drown. The man is himself again—calm, dressed (evidently he wasn’t quite dressed previously). The eyewitnesses are so blown away, they ask Jesus to leave. The man, though, feels just the opposite. He wants to stick to Jesus like glue. A big reason, seemingly, is because of his thankfulness for what Jesus had done. Jesus, instead, encourages the man to return home. The man does and can’t seem to stop telling people about Jesus and what he’d done for him. I’m sure it was a thankful testimony, indeed.

#6 Mary, the Mother of Jesus (Luke 1-2)
I’m not sure exactly how thankful Mary was when she first heard about her virgin pregnancy. Perhaps, not much. Everything seemed to change, though, when she visited with Elizabeth and heard more than once from her how “blessed” she really was. One verse later (in Luke), Mary breaks out in praise and thanksgiving, saying things like, “(God) has done great things for me!” It’s because of this unmistakable, not to mention lengthy, statement of outright thanksgiving that Mary makes the list. No question.

#5 The Woman Who Anointed Jesus (Luke 7)
Can a person be too thankful? From God’s perspective, no. From man’s perspective, maybe. That sort of seems to be the case in Luke 7. A woman known as “sinful” just lavishes love upon Jesus, particularly his feet…and it must’ve made the onlookers squirm. She cries so much that her tears (of thanks?) wet Jesus’ feet. She dries them with her what was likely long hair. She then kisses them (for who knows how long), and finally pours perfume on them. You could call it a “love” fest. In fact that’s the term that comes up more than once in the episode. But just think how much love and thanksgiving are intertwined in life. It’s hard to separate them, actually. I like to view this scene as a love scene with a whole bunch of thanksgiving mixed in. She’s obviously responding to Jesus’ (a holy person of God) apparent acceptance of her (a not so holy person). The response is loving, yes…but it’s also tremendously thankful. Her over-the-top thanksgiving convicts me. It has no fear. No boundaries. It’s like she just puts herself out there and thinks, “Who cares what anyone else thinks?” And what's more...she's the only representative in this list who speaks no words, sings no songs, writes no psalms. She's a doer, not a talker. She lets her actions proclaim her thankfulness. Who needs to speak? Just do.

#4 The Father of the Prodigal (Luke 15)
The son gets all the attention, usually. But not today. He’s not the one who seems most thankful in the story. We can assume he was grateful, but it’s not crystal clear from the text. What is clear from Luke 15 is that his father was. Scholar types who know what they’re talking about talk about how undignified/embarrassing it would’ve been for a Palestinian-type father to hike up his robe and run to meet a son who’d pretty much said “drop dead” when he asked for an early inheritance. Like the “sinful woman” (above), the father doesn’t seem to care what any of his neighbors think. He’s thankful to see his son again. He proclaims, “…this son of mine was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found.” That’s just about the most thankful statement from scripture, it seems to me. What’s especially encouraging is knowing who the father figure is supposed to represent—God, Himself, right? Doesn’t that suggest that God is one of the most thankful people in scripture? Goodness knows He has a lot to not be thankful for, when it comes to the way we behave (i.e., misbehave). But this parable implies that there are some things, some events, some turn-arounds that He is most certainly thankful for.

#3 Nebuchadnezzar (Daniel 4)
I love surprise entrants like Nebuchadnezzar. His life (overall) wasn’t one of thankfulness—not to the one true God, that’s for sure. But when it comes to thankful “moments,” there aren’t many that rival the moment Nebuchadnezzar’s sanity/humanness was restored. He recounts his miraculous downturn and upturn in Daniel 4. His story begins on the roof of his royal palace when he says to himself, “Is not this the great Babylon I have built…by my mighty power and for the glory of my majesty?” Basically, his story begins with a surprising amount of “I” and “my.” It ends, though, with a lot of God. How is that possible? God reduces Nebuchadnezzar to a wild animal. He lived remotely, alone. He ate grass like an ox. Dew would accumulate on his back each morning. His “hair grew like the feathers of an eagle and his nails like the claws of a bird.” After Nebuchadnezzar “raised his eyes toward heaven,” God restored him. Then…and this is how he makes the list…he “praised the Most High.” Similar to love (discussed above), humility, like the kind Nebuchadnezzar experienced, is often wrapped up inextricably with thankfulness. I personally see thanksgiving hiding behind his words of praise and respect for God (4:34-35). And why wouldn’t there be, after the ultra-lowly state he’d been in?

#2 Hannah (1 Samuel 1-2)
You were waiting for her, weren’t you? Her name is practically synonymous with thankfulness. Out of desperation, she asks the Lord for a son. Not only that, she basically says up front, “God, if you answer my prayer now, here’s how I’ll thank you later.” She commits her yet-to-be-born son to God’s service. “I will give him to the Lord all the days of his life,” she promises. In case you didn’t fully appreciate those words….that’s called extreme thanks. Of course, Hannah’s prayer (of thanks) is what we typically think of when we think of Hannah’s response to God’s gift. With language like, “I delight in your deliverance,” and “my heart rejoices in the Lord,” Hannah expresses pure praise. And speaking of synonyms…is praise synonymous with thanks? If so, Hannah’s place in the Thanksgiving Top Ten is definitely top tier.

#1 David (2 Samuel 6)
It’s not a fair fight. David composed so many psalms, how can anyone else compete? Not that all his psalms are thanksgiving psalms, but still. When it comes to expressions of thanksgiving that are obvious, clear, and preserved for all time, David leads the way. What’s obvious is that David had an unprecedented awareness of God’s blessing, protection, presence, and judgment in his life. If he defeated a giant, it was because of God. If his army was victorious, it was because of God. If his nation enjoyed peace, it was due to God’s protection. If he endured pain, it was caused by God. That kind of awareness will naturally lead to thanksgiving more often than not. It’s an awareness I need…perhaps you, too. Without a doubt, some of the psalms can give us a glimpse into David’s thankfulness. I think, though, that one of the best glimpses is an event from his life—something someone else recorded about him. It was the time he brought back the ark of God to its rightful place, among its rightful people. If you remember, David had tried to reclaim the ark before, and it cost Uzzah his life. The second attempt was different…certainly a more thankful occasion. With the ark in the house of Obed-Edom, David’s assistants picked up the ark, took six steps, didn’t die (like Uzzah), causing David to sacrifice a bull and a calf to God (out of thanks?). Next thing you know, David is “dancing before the Lord with all his might.” If only he’d danced with (only) most his might. His leaping and dancing “before the Lord” was too much for Michal, his wife. She scolds him later for “uncovering” himself before others, using words like “shameful” to describe his behavior. David basically tells her that he was dancing for an audience of one and that’s all that mattered. It was before God he danced—the One who’d “chosen” him, “appointed” him. With all that in mind, David “celebrated before the Lord.” The “Michal” in me wants to ask again, Can a person be too thankful? Can you celebrate God too much? Evidently, David didn’t think so. He let all his thankfulness come flying out. Held none of it back…come what may. Thanks be to God that he did.

PDA

I normally try to recount events from my walk TO work, not FROM it. Sometimes, though, I just can’t help myself. On the way home from work today, I walked a quarter of a block—down one of the busiest streets in town—in an embrace with another man! I didn’t initiate it, mind you…I was just following his lead. His arm was across by shoulders & mine was across his. This “other man” is one of those guys who literally couldn’t care less what others think of him or whether someone’s staring or whatever. It’s just the way he’s wired, but not me. His fearlessness rubbed off on me a little while we walked. At one point I almost thought, “So what if someone drives by and sees us.” That thought quickly faded when a couple of guys (blue collar types) pulled up in their work truck at the corner we were approaching. They hardly noticed us, if at all. Whew.

At the corner, my friend had to continue straight ahead and I had to “hang a ralphie.” That’s when our hug-on-the-go ended. Two seconds later an older couple in a truck pulled up and asked if I knew how to get to Mifflin (a small town about 20 minutes away). I said, “Uh, let me see. Um, I sure do.” I gave them some directions but mustn’t have been convincing. I’d been talking through the window with the woman. The man (behind the wheel) was obviously not going to put his trust in someone who paused so long before getting on with it. He basically said to his wife, “Let’s go up here to Main Street and see what we can find out.” What’s wrong with that, you say? Main Street was in the exact opposite direction I suggested they go. Oh, well.

Sweaty Protest

I never walk home for lunch when it’s in the upper 90s. Why? One word: sweat. I’d have to change clothes, towel off, sit in front of a fan (on High) for 5 minutes…then squeeze in lunch before heading back to the library. I always wimp out in August, getting as many rides to and fro as possible—usually from Julie. She actually offered me one today…just before noon. In fact, I had even asked her for one when I left the house this morning. “Hon,” I said. “It’s gonna be close to 100 today, so I might need a ride home later, if possible.” No sweat for me.

My attitude changed, though, at the office…when I almost accidently discovered that 54 years earlier—on this day—tons of people were voluntarily walking through the streets of Montgomery, Alabama in 99 degree weather. They were walking to work. Walking to school. Walking home for lunch. Walking when they could’ve been riding. It was the latter (hotter) half of the Bus Boycott. Sure, a number of people hitched rides from friends and passersby. But most walked. And, I imagine, most sweated.

In their honor, I decided to walk home (instead of ride) for lunch. On my way I contemplated—tried as hard as I could to feel—what it would’ve been like to be an African-American man or woman walking in protest of racial injustice. I wondered if it wouldn’t have felt quite as hot, knowing that your reasons for walking were so noble. Would 99 degrees have felt more like 95? Or would it have seemed hotter…as you thought of the bigotry that led to the boycott & not knowing if the peaceful protest would even make a difference? For me, today, the walk seemed a bit cooler. It almost seemed shorter. It even seemed slightly less sweaty. I can only hope it was the same for those admirable souls (soles) in the Summer of 1956.

P.S. Too hot to pick up trash. :-)

Summer Break

Some may walk more in the Summer--I walk less. I do work less, which is part of it. But it's mainly because I simply can't take the heat. The morning commute to work is bearable...the sun's not too high. The walk home for lunch is another story, though. Thankfully, the library's so cool in the Summer that it takes me about a block to thaw out. That still leaves 3 more blocks. By the time I get home, I have a nice glaze all over. It's kind of a bummer, but I can handle being sweaty at home. The office is where I really dread that sticky feeling. That’s why I drive back after lunch in the Summer, or perhaps get a ride from Julie. I say all this to say…I have a lot less to blog about in the Summer.

As many of you know, I took my first trip out of North America this Summer—to Ethiopia. What for? A sweet, little girl who needed a home. While in her country, I observed an amazing amount of walking. It was even a bit unsettling. I’m used to deserted sidewalks & plenty of room on the roads for cars. Not in Ethiopia. There were people everywhere. If you started on a walk somewhere, you basically had to merge into the foot traffic. The personal space I’m used to here is virtually non-existent in the streets of Addis Ababa. Even in the countryside—seemingly in the middle of nowhere—there were walkers. Who knows where they came from or where they were going?

According to a Wikipedia source, there’s only 1 car per 1,000 people in Ethiopia, which puts them virtually at the bottom of any cars-per-people list you’ll find. That’s compared to America’s #1 ranking with a ratio of more than 700 per 1,000. In a nutshell, when it comes to walking wherever it is you need to go, Ethiopia is the polar opposite of where I live. It was truly eye-opening to see (first hand) such a place. It’s a scene I’ll try to recall this coming school year whenever I feel like walking to work is weird. I’ll remind myself, it’s not weird…it’s just foreign.

P.S. I tried to make up for lost time this morning by grabbing three day's worth of litter: a plastic lid from a soft drink cup, a cellophane wrapper of some sort, and a package of Smarties candy in mint condition.

Sweat?

If you’ve been following along these past few weeks, you’ve heard me raving about the sun…even throwing caution to the wind in terms of skin cancer, UVs, etc. Well, no more! Call me fickle, but the sun actually caused me to sweat this morning. I wasn’t power walking. I wasn’t running horribly late, like yesterday. Just calmly walking. But when I got to the library, I had sweat on the top of my head. I’m pretty sure the sun’s to blame. It had a baking feel today, as opposed to a basking one.

I got a honk from a passerby in a white car. I waved but couldn’t at all make out who it was. Honks from passersby (to date): 7
I also spotted a husband/wife walking to work/school. That brings my Fellow walker sightings total up to 25.

P.S. In the alleyway behind the drugstore, I found a plastic wrapper for a plastic utensil from Subway. I honestly think that if fast food restaurants ever become extinct, so would 90% of litter.

Late, Late, Late

I’m at least slightly late to work almost every day. But sometimes I’m so late that all I can think about on my walk to work is how late I am. Like today. I took my late, as the bird flies, route to campus this morning. It’s a shame, too. It was such a perfect morning weather-wise. I’ve come to realize that a frantic walk to work…keeping it as short and sweet as possible…is hardly worth doing.

P.S. I passed by a used tissue on the sidewalk this morning. I’ve been using a lot of tissues myself this past week & know how gross some of them can be…so I turned my nose up and walked on by. What I didn’t walk on by was the empty pack of (Sweet Peppermint) Stride gum I found down the hill from the front of the library. How gross can a pack of gum be?

After the Flood

I wish the Bible talked more about how much Noah and his family enjoyed life after the flood. During this morning’s walk, I think I had at least a tiny idea of what they felt. This weekend was (seemingly) non-stop clouds, rain, flooding, thunder, warnings, etc. After two days of it, I was worn out. On my walk to work, I was more thankful than I’ve been in a long time for the sun & dry ground. Just think how thankful Noah must’ve been after the skies cleared. If he hadn’t been such a man of faith, he might’ve become a full-blown sun worshipper like the ancient Egyptians. All I know is, I rarely “live” for Mondays. it’s usually the weekend I look forward to…but knowing today (Mon.) would be a “normal” weather day made me thankful…even as I made my way to work. Fellow Walker Sightings (to date): 23

P.S. I found an empty container of KoolAid Burst on the side of the road behind the library. One of these days I’ll say a word about why I stopped, stooped, and threw away that piece of plastic.