“O woman, great is your faith! Let it be to you as you desire.”
Matthew 15:28 NKJV
When our loved ones are troubled—emotionally, spiritually, financially, physically, mentally—our hearts are heavy and we feel helpless. But with Christ’s ear within reach of our voice, we are anything but powerless. We have an interceder, someone to whom we can continually go and present our petitions.
In Matthew 15:21–28, a Canaanite woman asked Jesus for mercy and to heal her demon-possessed daughter. At first Christ seemed not to hear her pleas. The disciples, irritated with her persistence, told Jesus to send her away.
Yet this woman had dogged determination. She knew that the Son of God could heal her daughter. She continued to plead, driven by love for her child and faith in Christ’s power.
Her insistence was met by a reproach from Christ, who told her He did not come to help the Gentiles but the Jews. This had to have crushed her expectations. Yet even then she persisted. She did not despair but continued running after Him, worshipping Him, pleading with Him, begging for mercy.
Jesus reproached her again. But still she was undeterred. Finally, Jesus said the words we all long to hear: “Woman, great is your faith! Let it be to you as you desire.”
May we live our lives as persistent in our petitions as the Canaanite woman. And may God see our faith and honor our requests as we boldly bring the needs of others before His throne!
God, I come to You, bringing the concerns of others. Lord, have mercy! Help these people in their hour of need. Amen.
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Today’s reading was adapted from Daily Wisdom for Women: 2013 Devotional Collection with permission from Barbour Publishing, Inc. All rights reserved. Reading was written by Donna K. Maltese.