Written Thanksgiving Day 2020
“It is good to give thanks…” Psalm 92:1a
I was meeting Mrs. Edwards for the first time. Her husband was along for the appointment, and he did all the talking for his wife. I had scarcely introduced myself before he said the words that filled me with dread.
“You have to do something. She’s seen so many doctors and no one has been able to help her.”
The prospect of facing a challenge that has eluded others did not appeal at all. In these sorts of circumstances I rarely fare any better than my talented colleagues. But I try to assure my patient that I will do everything in my power to help and will not give up. Still I knew it was a recipe for failure.
She had an intensely itchy skin eruption. Night and day the burning tormented her. Drainage from the denuded areas ruined her clothing; blood from sores stained furniture and embarrassed her. For over a year she had undergone skin biopsies, seen specialists, and been treated with a variety of antihistamines and other oral medications, as well as various topical creams. Nothing helped.
On examination, there was a fiery dermatitis, but it was so excoriated by her scratching that trying to decipher the underlying skin condition was like looking for a clue in a crime scene after a bomb has gone off. The only pattern seemed to be the distribution. The dermatitis covered the parts of her body that were exposed to the sun. There was no rash in the middle of her back or groin area, while her neck, arms, and lower legs were raw and weeping.
Poring over her drug list, I noted a blood pressure medication that on very rare occasions could cause a photosensitive rash. There was a slim chance that stopping this would help her. I held out some cautious hope of an improvement and scheduled here to see me in six weeks, enough time for the trial off the medication to work.
When she came for her six week follow up, I was eager to find out if there had been any improvement in her long-standing struggle. Fighting back my fear of failure, I asked enthusiastically: “How are you doing? How did it go?”
“Terrible,” shot back Mr. Edwards.
I was crushed, but not surprised. “Oh, I’m sorry. So the rash is no better?”
He did not pause: “Oh, the rash is gone, but her allergies are bothering her. She’ll sneeze three times in a row. And her nose runs. You’ve got to do something about it.”
Trying to absorb the information, I stammered out again: “So the itching is better, then?”
He shook his head dismissively “There is no itching, but sometimes when it rains, her knees will ache.”
I felt elated, but a little puzzled. I let him talk some more, waiting for him to come around to the life-dominating skin ailment. Mr. Edwards launched into several new complaints that were fairly trivial and unrelated to skin.
Finally, out of my own incredulity and for complete clarity, I had to ask one more time: “So this rash and itching are totally resolved?”
He seemed a little exasperated. “Sure. But I am more worried about how weak her fingernails are. Can’t you help that?”
I suppose it was my foolish pride. I confess that I felt a little disappointed that there was no word of gratitude from either of them. I had seen first-hand the dreadful impact of this rash on her. Just to celebrate the fact of her healing, even without any acknowledgment of the part that I had played, would have been gratifying. But there was neither gratitude nor celebration.
It Is Good To Give Thanks
In Sociology in college I was taught the fundamental rule that there are no absolutes in human culture. Rubbish! Giving thanks is a worldwide practice, and “Thank you” is one of the first phrases anyone learns in a new language. The Roman philosopher Cicero insists that “Gratitude is not only the greatest of virtues, but the parent of all the others.”
In the same way, thanking God seems to be one of the most indispensable and primary forms of worship. The ancient Psalmist highlights this by writing: “Enter His gates with thanksgiving.” (Psalm 100:4)
Romans 1, a passage that explores the depths of human depravity, reveals one of the “gateway drugs” that leads to the addiction of sin. Verse 21 relates that:
“Although they knew God, they did not honor him as God or give thanks to him, but they became futile in their thinking, and their foolish hearts were darkened.”
Failing to give thanks is one of the most fundamental ways in which we go astray from God. Seemingly innocuous, this little neglect sets humanity on the course to terrible acts and grievous woes. To flip Cicero’s observation around: ingratitude is not only the greatest of vices, but the parent of all the others.
Must we thank God, then? Does he demand this of us? Wouldn’t such an expectation be heavy-handed on his part? I might ask if we are being abusive when we urge our children to say thank you. Of course not – we instill this practice in them because we are convinced that gratitude is intrinsically good.
Furthermore, have you noticed how we all instinctively respond to ingratitude? When we see generosity met with indifference, it bothers us – whether it is a kid grabbing a present without a word, an athlete hogging the spotlight without a nod to teammates, or a magnanimous act met with a shrug.
There is something unseemly about thanklessness. If someone labors to prepare you a sumptuous feast, and you reply that you would rather nibble on fast food, almost everyone would see this not simply as a valid choice, but as rude. If someone saves your life, you want to thank your rescuer – and not just out regard for etiquette. What then of the one who gave you life in the first place? Perhaps thanksgiving to him is not unreasonable, after all.
We exist because of God. He conceived our being in the infinity of his mind. His hands shaped the formless clay of our bodies. His lips breathed the spark of life into our inanimate frames. We inhabit the universe he founded. Do such profound gifts and intimate connections lend themselves to indifference? God has a claim on our lives by virtue of creating us. For that we owe him at the very least our thanks.
Truly it is good to give thanks. It is healthy for our spirits.
In Luke 17:15-19 we learn that Jesus healed ten people with leprosy and what followed:
“Then one of them, when he saw that he was healed, turned back, praising God with a loud voice; and he fell on his face at Jesus’ feet, giving him thanks. Now he was a Samaritan. Then Jesus answered, “Were not ten cleansed? Where are the nine? Was no one found to return and give praise to God except this foreigner?” And he said to him, “Rise and go your way; your faith has made you well.”
Unlike me, the Lord of heaven and earth did not need recognition for something good he had done. Secure in his deity and his manhood, he needed no affirmation, for he knew he was eternally, infinitely, and perfectly loved by his Father. The need was all on the part of the man who had been healed.
All ten lepers were healed of their terrible skin affliction. But only one entered into the even more vital soul health offered by Jesus. Let us strive to enter that health by faith.
It is good to give thanks.
Dr. Bill Maynard