One of the things that I enjoy when I go over to the school, especially the first and second graders, is to listen to some of their humorous little stories and their jokes. They love to tell knock-knock jokes. Well one day I went over there, and I had a little joke for them. And so I said to them, I caught them off guard. Kids, what happened when Dad saw the super-high electric bill? They listened. What happened when Dad saw the super-high electric bill? He was shocked. You laughed; they didn’t. They didn’t quite get it. Shocked? Surprised? That might be a good way to understand how Jesus might have felt in the Gospel story when we hear him say, “10 lepers were cleansed, “were they not? “Where are the other nine?” Jesus cures the lepers, but only one returns to say thanks. And then Jesus says to the man, “Go, your faith has saved you.” One of the lessons we learn in this short story is the importance and the power of saying thank you, and we’re reminded how important it is for us to cultivate in our lives that attitude of gratitude. But there’s a second message in this story, not to be overlooked, and that’s the fact that salvation that comes from God through Jesus is extended to all, in this case the Samaritan who we’re told was a foreigner. What’s the message for us? Well we’re reminded that God’s unbounding kindness and care for others cannot be controlled or confined. And so friends, if we in our minds and hearts, in our own words and actions, try to define who is inside or outside of God’s kingdom, this Gospel today reminds us that’s not our place to do so. The way we look at others, the way we treat others, should reflect the word of God that we are trying to live by, and that word we are told today is one that offers healing and wholeness to all. Let’s remember as we go throughout this day and the week ahead to be sure we reflect that word, that love, of God.