Recognizing healing

"And one of them, realizing that he had been healed, returned, glorifying God in a loud voice..."

Luke 17:15

Most often this reading calls us to express our gratitude, but it hit me a bit differently this morning.  I see the one returning leper as a person who has the ability to recognize he is changed after his encounter with Jesus.  In their haste to follow Jesus' instructions to show themselves to the priest, the other lepers were caught up in that--following the instructions, doing it as Jesus had said.  They may have been so involved in that it took them a while to realize the healing that had taken place as they hurried along.  The healings in our lives may be much more subtle than these, certainly.  But, after struggling with a difficulty for a while, it may take us a while to notice we no longer feel the painful twinge or we may feel more compassion for someone who hurt us. We may finally recognize that a healing has taken place within us. 

Khaled Hosseini, the author of "The Kite Runner," expressed it so well in his book, when one of the characters suddenly realized he had gotten over a terrible wrong done to him many years before.  "I wondered if that was how forgiveness budded, not with the fanfare of epiphany, but with pain gathering its things, packing up, and slipping away unannounced in the middle of the night." (Khaled Hosseini, The Kite Runner)

Isn't that amazing?  Today, let's spend some time with Jesus, taking stock of all the healing God has brought to our lives and give thanks.  Love, heidi