Realization through Expression 

In the story of 2Kings 5: 14-17, Naaman made a common mistake. When he asked Elisha to cure him and was told to just go wash in the river, he did not think that was impressive enough: 

“I thought that for me he would surely come out, and stand and call on the name of the LORD his God, and would wave his hand over the spot, and cure the leprosy! Are not … the rivers of Damascus, better than all the waters of Israel? Could I not wash in them, and be clean?” He turned and went away in a rage. 

But his servants convinced him:  

If the prophet had commanded you to do something difficult, would you not have done it? How much more, when all he said to you was,” Wash, and be clean”?  

And he was cured. 

But the story doesn’t end there, just as none of our prayers to God should end when they are answered. Naaman “returned with his whole retinue” to Elisha to thank him, and he acknowledged, “There is no God in all the earth, except in Israel.” His awareness of who God was and what he had done for him became complete in his expression of faith and gratitude: “I will no longer offer burnt offering or sacrifice to any other god except to the LORD.” The “dynamic triangle” of life, both human and divine, is awareness and expression augmented by sharing with others. 

Faith Experience 

In Luke 17: 11-19, we see the same dynamic triangle: Jesus cured ten lepers, but when they became aware of their cure, only one returned to express that awareness in thanksgiving. And he shared the experience with everyone in hearing: “Praising God with a loud voice, he prostrated himself at Jesus’ feet and thanked him.” To him alone Jesus spoke the confirming words: “Stand up and go; your faith has saved you.”  

The other nine were physically healed, but for them, the event did not become the faith-experience it should have. And when God answers our prayers, the experience does not become for us the faith-experience it should be until we acknowledge his response with an expression of gratitude, one — depending on the nature of the event—preferably shared with others. 

Insight: How have you experienced God answering your prayers, intervening in your life? Did thanking him or sharing the experience with others add anything? What? 

Initiative: Form the habit of asking God for everything you need and thanking him for everything you receive. 

— Fr. David M. Knight

View today’s Mass readings, Lectionary #144, on the USCCB website here

Fr. David M. Knight (1931-2021) was a priest of the Diocese of Memphis in Tennessee, a prolific writer, and a highly sought after confessor, spiritual director, and retreat master. He authored more than 40 books and hundreds of articles that focus primarily on lay spirituality and life-long spiritual growth.