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Then God Answers

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And she said, “Yes, Lord, yet even the little dogs eat the crumbs which fall from their masters’ table.”  Then Jesus answered and said to her, “O woman, great is your faith! Let it be to you as you desire.” And her daughter was healed from that very hour

Matthew 15:27-28

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When Jesus said, “Great is your faith!” it is interesting to see that she had two kinds of faith operating here at the same time. The first faith said, “Jesus can heal my daughter.” While the second, “He wants to heal my daughter.”.

Most of us when we are praying believe that God is able to grant our request. God’s ability is tied directly to His existence. If there is a God He is certainly able to do anything. But for us to have the great faith of this woman we must also pass in the dark testing so then we will know His true joy when the ray of hope breaks through

In spite of His silence she continued to believe that He was listening. In spite of the discouragement by His disciples she continued to ask. Finally in the face of seeming refusal she continued to believe that Jesus was truly willing to give her the help that she needed.

The source of our answer to our plea for grace is unfailing but it often lies at the bottom of the well of humility. Will you and me, like this woman accept grace on any terms. Will we be willing to take the lowest place possible? It is not that God is out to humiliate us but He is inviting us to a deeper fellowship with Him, who came as a servant of all!

 

God Answers Prayer – Part One

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 And behold, a woman of Canaan came from that region and cried out to Him, saying, “Have mercy on me, O Lord, Son of David! My daughter is severely demon-possessed.”  But He answered her not a word …Matthew 15:22-23a

Did it ever feel like God wasn’t paying any attention to your or your needs? That is undoubtedly exactly the feeling that this woman experienced. She cried. She begged. She fell to His feet. Nothing she could do or say seemed to touch the Lord. Her story reminded me of the Bangladeshi people who came to work the gravel of the dry river banks in North India. They were rejected by most of the local people and forced to take the lowest and most menial jobs. Yet Jesus made His only trip abroad and in retrospect came only for this one woman as an answer to her prayers.

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Bangladeshi Women in North India

So when it seems as if Jesus is not listening and when no one else seems to believe that we will find the answer, we have a decision to make. Will we continue to believe or will we go away? Will we continue to ask or will we give up in desperation?  For all of us there comes that single moment when we have to decide what to do with silence. This woman who appeared to have no background, no friends and no hope leaves us with a testimony of hope, not only that God is listening but that He cares enough to hear and answer our prayer! It is if you could think that Jesus made the trip to earth, just for you!

Stretch Out Your Hand

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Then Moses stretched out his hand over the sea, and the Lord drove the sea back by a strong east wind all night and made the sea dry land, and the waters were divided.  And the people of Israel went into the midst of the sea on dry ground, the waters being a wall to them on their right hand and on their left. Exodus 14:21-22

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In our walk of grace we sometimes begin to think that since nothing happens without God’s approval and that everything comes to us by grace that we have no role whatsoever in God’s plan. Nothing in the Bible however gives us any indication that such thinking is accurate. All of the heroes of faith listed in Hebrews chapter eleven are inked to action! Abel offered a sacrifice, Noah built an ark, Abraham left his native land. Moses was hidden by his parents and Rahab protected the spies. Not only these brave men and women but in fact all of us who belong to God’s family have a distinct, active and essential role to play.

Notice the order of the verses we are reading in Exodus: Moses stretched out his hand, then the Lord drove back the sea. The people of Israel passed through the sea then God closed the waters over their enemies.

The staff Moses carried wasn’t some mystical gift from an angel or a golden scepter which he had taken from Egypt.  Moses’ staff was simply the tool of his shepherding work.

When the people of Moses’ time saw the staff Moses lifted up they didn’t think of it as something quaint or impressive in any way. The fact that God chose to honor his simple obedience had nothing to do with the staff and everything to do with the humility of surrender.

What are the tools of your own daily life? Whether you carry a chain saw or a laptop to work, God can choose to use anything you surrender to his command. Stretch out your hand! God is waiting on our faith made visible by our obedience to His Word!