A Canaanite woman who lived in that region came to him. “Son of David!” she cried out. “Have
mercy on me, sir! My daughter has a demon and is in a terrible condition.” But Jesus did not say
a word to her. His disciples came to him and begged him, “Send her away! She is following us
making noise” Then Jesus replied “I have been sent only to the lost sheep of Israel.” At this the
woman came and fell on his feet. “Help me, sir!” she said. Jesus answered, “It isn’t right to take
the children’s food and throw it to the dogs.” That’s true, sir,” she answered, “but even the dogs
eat leftovers that fall from their master’s table.” So, Jesus answered her, “You are a woman of
great faith! What you want will be done to you.” And at that very moment her daughter was
healed. (Matthew 15:22-28)
Unexpectedly a gentile woman came to Jesus asking Him to heal her child who was possessed
by demons. Jesus responded quite differently from how He usually did. At first, He kept quite so
that His disciples asked Him to send the woman away. When she kept on calling and asking,
He, who had healed so many people, told this anxious mother that he had come to this world
for the Israelites.
However, the Canaanite woman kept on pleading. She knelt before Jesus and asked again,
“Lord help me!” Then Jesus said something that sounds quite unsympathetic to us, “It is not
right to give children’s bread to their dogs” The woman’s faith was great, and she refused to give
up. She answered, “But even the dogs eat crumbs that fall from their master’s table” The
woman’s faith touched Jesus so deeply that He healed her daughter. “Woman you have great
faith” Jesus said.
In this lent period and in the women’s month, what is the state of your faith? May we have an
unshakable trust and faith in God in all circumstances. The woman’s wish was granted because
of her great faith. We too have our own difficulties and challenges in this journey called life, that
question our encounters with the Lord and our faith in Him. But I want to assure you that the
Lord is with us, even in our doubts and uncertainties. Let us remember that the blind received
sight, the lame walked, those who had leprosy were cleansed, the deaf heard, the dead were
raised, and the good news is proclaimed to the poor. Even when we can not see God’s presence
in our situations, we should look around and see what He’s doing in the lives of those around
us. John Wesley said, “The best of all God is with us.”
Sipiwe Chisvo World President
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