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PRAYER FOR THE WEEK
Jesus, help me keep what's important, but not keep too much! Amen.

As Jesus traveled, He met 10 men who had a disease. "Jesus, have pity on us!" they called. Jesus did, and told them, "Go see a priest" -- and, as they were leaving, they saw they had been healed! One went back to Jesus, shouting thanks. "Ten were healed," Jesus said. "Where are the other nine?" He told the man, "Your faith has saved you."

Are you a kid who keeps everything? Some kids want to save every page they ever colored, every homework assignment, every toy they ever loved -- even things they don't use or really need at all.

Other kids toss everything. They can't imagine why people would keep old stuff. If the reason to have it isn't obvious, they get rid of it -- even things that can be fixed or might be important later.

Of course, it's best to be in the middle: not saving junk, but not throwing away what has value. Jesus liked that idea. In this week's Gospel (Luke 17:11-19), He talks about forgetting something important: saying "thank you!"

If you're a kid who keeps everything, it can get hard to find what's important in your piles of stuff. The same thing can happen to a kid who tosses everything: When you need something, it isn't there. Either you can't find it because you have too much, or because you threw it away.

When Jesus healed 10 men, most of them threw away that gift. They just left, not even thanking Jesus for the miracle. Only one man realized what was important: He turned around and said "thank you" to Jesus.

That guy saw what had real value: his connection to God. He must have been as eager as the other nine men to start his life as a healthy person, but he didn't leave Jesus in the dust like a pile of old homework assignments or a wastebasket full of important stuff. He realized the middle road and took it.

The man who thanked Jesus was in the middle: He lived his life, but he stayed close to Jesus. He knew what to keep. What do you keep?[[In-content Ad]]

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