Then Jesus went from that place and withdrew to the region of Tyre and Sidon. And behold, a Canaanite woman of that district came and called out, "Have pity on me, Lord, Son of David! My daughter is tormented by a demon." But he did not say a word in answer to her. His disciples came and asked him, "Send her away, for she keeps calling out after us." He said in reply, "I was sent only to the lost sheep of the house of Israel." But the woman came and did him homage, saying, "Lord, help me." He said in reply, "It is not right to take the food of the children and throw it to the dogs." She said, "Please, Lord, for even the dogs eat the scraps that fall from the table of their masters." Then Jesus said to her in reply, "O woman, great is your faith! Let it be done for you as you wish." And her daughter was healed from that hour.
 
Introductory Prayer: Lord Jesus, I come to you in this meditation to seek your light, strength and grace. I know that you look upon me with mercy and I firmly believe that you desire the best for me. In faith, I also know you help me to understand your will in my life and give me the courage to follow it, even when that path requires humility, fortitude and courage. I trust in you, Lord Jesus, and I will follow you no matter what.

Petition: Lord, increase my faith in you as the true answer for my life.

1. The True Cure to Our Afflictions. Having a daughter tormented by a demon was frightening and the mother was helpless. Medicine offered no remedy and perhaps time only made her torment worse.

Imagine the hope that shone in that mothers darkness when she heard of the power of Jesus, the man who did miracles, healed illnesses and cast out demons, surely here was the answer! Although this mother did not share the Jewish faith, a miracle is a miracle, and this was her only chance to save her daughter. Her insistence seems born of desperation, she will do anything to save her daughter, and this opens her to an act of faith. 

The pressing crowd could not deter her. Jesus silence did not deter her.  She kept calling out, Have pity on me, Lord, Son of David! Mercy is the deepest cord of our Saviors heart and this mother struck it firmly, repeatedly, to the point that the disciples grew tired of her. Jesus, however, said not a word, he didnt recognize her presence.

In one way or another, we are all faced with the silence of Christ at some stage in prayer or in some time in life. Do those difficulties weaken our faith or strengthen it? Do we give up or insist? Do we realize that it is only in our reaction to difficulty that we discover how much we truly want something, and if we give up easily it means that what we were looking for was not really all that important to us? How badly do I want to overcome sin, or to find my path in life, or conquer virtue, as deeply as this woman wanted her child to be cured?  My reaction to the difficulties in my path will give me the answer.

2. Love perseveres. This mother was resilient. As she insists, things only seem to get worse. Jesus goes from silence to apparent rejection. I was sent only to the lost sheep of Israel. She has nothing to say but to express her abject poverty, her utter need, she simply says, Lord, help me! No further explanation. And what seemed to be the worst grew worse still, It is not good to take the food of the children and throw it to the dogs. Mysterious words. Jesus would himself undergo the same apparent rejection by his Father, My God, my God, why have you abandoned me he would say from the cross.

Then she gives us a great lesson. Who are we to be demanding favors of God, yet God is the one who can make us his children, make us what we were not, make us heirs to the grace we have no right to, if only we recognize what we are without him. How humbler can we get than her reply? Like the publican that dared not raise his eyes to heaven, who recognized that all he had to his name was sin, she said in utter simplicity, Yes, Lord, you are right, Im no more than a little dog sitting under the table, pleading patiently and hopefully, waiting for a scrap. Im not asking you for anything more than to let a scrap fall so I can pick it up, my daughter needs it. I am not worthy to be treated in any other way.

3. In praise of her faith. Once, when Jesus was visiting his hometown, he was not able to work many miracles because of their lack of faith. The children rejected the food. Now, Jesus finds in this woman such great faith that it allows him to work the miracle. God can raise up out of these stones sons of David, which is what has happened here. Out of her testing she becomes for all intents and purposes a member of the new family of God. 

If God tests us it is because he needs us to grow in order to be able to receive his gifts and to become his instruments. If we tend to resist his action and get disheartened with his pedagogy let us go back to look at the life he lived himself, and take courage from the extraordinary example of this woman of faith who would simply not let go, who knew that only Jesus could answer her prayer, and who gave Jesus his rightful place.

Conversation: Lord Jesus, persevering, simple faith is what you seek in order to be able to give me the graces and the strength I need. Strengthen my trust in you, strengthen my love, help me to see every moment in the light of faith so as to have the courage to follow you regardless of the hardships. I know that you can transform my life and heal it. Have pity upon me, Lord.
 
Questionnaire:
 
1. How persevering am I in the face of difficulty? Do I really want what I pray for?

2. How does my humility compare with this womans?

3. Is there anything I do, that would make Christ say, How great is your faith? Is there anything I could do that would?