Never Give Up on God: Sunday Breakfast with the Word. 20th Sunday Ordinary Time Year A

 

Whenever we seek the presence of God, we always want our prayers to be answered immediately. Sometimes we might be tempted to stop praying because the results seem not coming. There are times when things seem to be so difficult and everything becomes challenging. There are moments we feel like God is not answering our prayers. Sometimes in the midst of these challenging moments, we give up and lose our faith.

 

There are times we feel God has closed His ears to our prayers and pleas. Many times we think all hope is lost and God will never answer our prayers. When we encounter these challenges and many more we become weak and tired.

 

The Canaanite woman in today’s gospel provided us with a step and hint on why we should not give up even when we think that God is not working, even when we feel that God has closed his ears and remained adamant to us. The key still is not to give up nor back out but to increase our faith and surge forward. The only key to stop praying is still to continue and never give up on God. We can never quit turning to God.

 

 

To Tyre And Sidon

 

 

 

The gospel of today started by telling us that Jesus withdrew to the region of Tyre and Sidon. The Greek word used here is ἀνεχώρησεν (anechōrēsen) to explain such withdrawal. To withdraw here could then mean, to quit, to leave, or to move out. It means to quit talking to people immediately and leave.

 

Then to understand what led to this withdrawal we have to read from the beginning of chapter 15 of St. Mathew’s gospel. It is in this chapter that Jesus had a heated argument with the Pharisees and teachers of the law who came to Jesus from Jerusalem to question “Why his disciples break the tradition of the elders and don’t wash their hands before they eat!”.

 

It was opined that these sets of religious leaders must have come to Jerusalem to put a stop to these. It was during this heated argument, that Jesus quit talking to them and left. He withdrew from the conflict with the Pharisees and elders and went about thirty to fifty miles north into Gentile country. 

 

 

It appears that Jesus withdrew either to let the conflict settle or to turn his attention to Gentiles. The Jewish leaders rejected Jesus and were only interested in challenging Him. They have seen His works and probably listened to Him but they have stubbornly blocked their hearts while the Gentile woman who hardly knows Him, and had rarely listened to Him was seeking Him with all her heart.

 

Sometimes, those who know you, are the people who fight to pull you down. Sometimes Christians like the Pharisees are yet to know the value of what they have. This is why we lose faith easily. If we truly know Jesus and believed that what we heard is true, then we can never give up on Him.

 

 

Appeared Suddenly

 

 

1.While Jesus withdrew to Tire and Sidon, the gospel reports that a Canaanite Woman came out suddenly from nowhere and began to shout “Lord son of David, take pity on me”. One then begins to ask how did she know that Jesus is coming? How did she know that He is the Son of David? A name many referred to the Messiah. Has she met Jesus before? Because there was no record that She did. How could she be certain that Jesus could heal the daughter when She has not seen him do such before?

 

Here, we can opine that this woman must have heard about Jesus. The use of the word “suddenly” is an indication that she must have heard about Jesus and ran immediately to meet Him because we could hear the Apostles shouting “Give her what she wants because she keeps shouting after us”.’ An indication that She was following them behind, maybe running and shouting. She may have been acting only on what she heard and nothing more.

 

In Mark 3:8, we heard that many people from Tyre and Sidon used to come to Him. So, there are people who know Jesus already from the town. She heard and believed even when she may not have seen. 

 

 

We also have heard, even more than the woman, but the problem is our inability to accept and believe that what we heard is true and certain. This is why Jesus says that those who hear the word and keep it are solemnly blessed. (Luke 11:26). Things will begin to go well in our lives again when we relinquish every atom of doubt in what God can do, even in our own abilities and strength.

 

 

 

 

2. The way she is begging for healing indicates how certain she is that Her daughter must be healed. We see in this woman that inner conviction that what she is begging the Lord must come to pass.

 

Heb 11.1 says faith is confidence and certainty in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see. And without faith, it is impossible to please God because anyone who comes to him must believe that He exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him. (Hebrew 11:6).

 

The only way to keep our faith strong is to still believe that the future will be brighter even when we have not seen it. It is having a conviction that God can never abandon us even when things become so strong. If we don’t possess such a never give up attitude, we will always be afraid of what the future brings.

 

 

Never Waste an Opportunity

 

 

One of the things we are yet to dig out today is the attitude of the woman who met an opportunity and did not waste it. Even, if it is not recorded we are certain that this woman must not be only the person Jesus passed along the way, nor the only one that may have heard about him nor saw Him.

 

Sometimes, if we do not make that move, if we do continue to act like those who are sincerely in need, we may not get what we want. Many who met Jesus today must have folded their hands looking at him, some may be doubting if he will ever listen or not.

 

Sometimes, why we lose great opportunities is because we doubt whether we are going to make it or not. The Canaanite woman met an opportunity to save her daughter’s life. She did not think twice. She kept asking until She got what she wanted. A confirmation of Jesus’ statements in Mathew 7:7 that He who asks, receives, he who seeks finds. 

 

 

Never Lose Faith 

 

When you check the meaning of “never” in the dictionary, it means “at no time in the past or future” or even not once “on no occasion” “not at all, not in any degree” “not under any condition” etc.

 

This implies that never in your life, at no time in the past or present or future, not even once and on no occasion, not under any condition must we lose faith in God nor doubt His power. Whether in sickness or in poverty, even in the midst of lack, in the presence of impossibility, even when it looks as if it is not going to work, hang your faith there rather than losing it entirely. There might be reasons for you to do that, but keep your faith strong and persist. There are reasons the Canaanite woman today would have lost faith, they are:

 

 

 

 

1. She is a Canaanite

 

 

Canaanites are just like an amalgamation of different groups of people living in the land of Canaan, including the Phoenician cities of Tyre and Sidon. Because of their seaports and prominence in trading, the Canaanite empire was a dominant power in the third millennium B.C.

 

They provided a formidable military challenge for Joshua and the Judges. But the Canaanites were also thoroughly pagan and corrupt. Even Isaac commanded Jacob never to take a wife from there (Genesis 28:1).

Their presence in the land was a strong threat to the purity of Israel’s religion and morality. So there is a long history of spiritual and military conflict between the Israelites and the Canaanites. Under normal circumstances, the woman should not have had the courage to approach Jesus today. But She broke every protocol to do so. 

 

 

2. The Disciples” Attitude

 

 

When the disciples saw her shouting, they also began to shout to Jesus to please attend to the woman. Imagine the scenario. Everyone was shouting, and Jesus kept quiet.

 

The attitude from the disciples is enough to keep her down but she persisted. In life, never allow the attack from people to make you lose hope in life, never allow people’s attitude to you, the negative things they tell you, deter you from going forward. Keep your eye to your goal and to what you want. 

 

 

3. Jesus’ Attitude

 

Jesus’ response is, perhaps, the most discouraging here. At first, he does not say a word to her, Only after her persistence does he converse with her. The shouting from this woman must have disturbed the disciples that made them shout to call Jesus’s attention. But Jesus kept quiet. What a discouraging response.

 

For example, Keeping quiet on me is simply a sign that you don’t need me and the best thing to do is to quit. But despite the silence, She kept begging. Even when it looks as if God is keeping silent, never think of giving up.

 

 

4. Jesus’ Response

 

After keeping silent for a long time, Jesus replied “’I was sent only to the lost sheep of the House of Israel.’ An indication that seriously, this woman is wasting His time. Invariably Jesus is telling her that what She is begging for is not for her.

 

The more Jesus was trying to keep her down, the more She was begging, she even came up and knelt before Jesus. Still asking, ‘help me.

 

The truth is that the more every circumstance tries to go against her, the more she increases her longing for healing, teaching us that the more problems try to pull us down is not a reason to lose hope but the more reason we have to increase our faith. Instead of quitting your prayer life at this time, it is time to increase it all the more.

 

 

2. Jesus even compares her status as a gentile to that of little pet dogs but even at this, She accepts the status of a little pet dog as long the little pet dog can still enjoy the little crumbs from the table. She recognized that even the little from Jesus is enough to pull down mighty strongholds. Her faith was so high that Jesus had to do what she requested.

 

 

 

 

Conclusion.

 

 

1. How do we treat those we think are not to our standard? How do we treat those we feel are not our friends? Today Jesus did not refuse the prayer of the gentile.

 

Paul in the Second reading deemed it as an honour to be called the apostle of the gentiles, and in the first reading, Isaiah affirmed that God loves even the foreigners for the fact they serve Him. Also never allow how people see you and what they talk about you to keep you down. For the fact God loves you and approves you, you are good to go.

 

 

2. Our attitude and response in the time of difficulties are enough to either make or mar us. The attitude of the Canaanite woman was so great.

 

The more things try to work against her, the more she increases her longing for the miracle. Her attitude was on the positive and never on the negative. And she never thought of losing faith, she did not doubt, and she kept her eyes on the goal. All her response was never negative, but positive.

 

When things come against us, how do we react? Faith is seen in our attitude and response to great challenges. Keep speaking positive, faith, and healing words over your condition and act towards them.

 

 

 

3. Sometimes unlike the Canaanite Woman, when a problem comes, we try to look for who to blame, we give up on God, hate ourselves even. We feel ours is the worst. Sometimes it is the midst of difficulties that our faith in God is tested. If we cannot continue to love God even when things are hard, then know that our love of God is superficial. She held onto her goal.

 

 

 

“It is astonishing,” says Dr. Theodore Cuyler, “how many men lack this power of holding on‘ until they reach the goal. They can make a sudden dash, but they lack grit. They are easily discouraged. They get on as long as everything goes smoothly, but when there is friction they lose heart.

They depend on stronger personalities for their spirit and strength. They lack independence or originality. They only dare to do what others do. They do not step boldly from the crowd and act fearlessly.”

 

 

 

4. Do we discover that the faith of this woman continued even when Jesus told her “Let your desire be granted”? There was no report that She insisted that Jesus must give her a sign to know whether it is true or not. She never doubted for the fact, it was Jesus that spoke. 

 

 

 

5. One thing I so much cherish today is that little but effective prayer “Lord have pity on me”. The prayer was so simple but carried great power. The more words we say do not necessarily move God.

 

What God wants is the faith that He can do what we are asking for. We do not need to speak in tongues before God will hear from heaven, prayer comes from the heart. At prayer, strong faith behind the word we utter is what God needs. We do not need to kill ourselves to draw God’s attention, what God needs is that little faith like that of a mustard seed.  , 

 

 

6. Do we see that despite the disturbance from this woman, Jesus did not send her away. Though he tried to test her, He could not send her away. This Jesus for you. We are the people that easily lose hope and lose strength when we feel we have not gotten what we want. But God’s love for us is everlasting. Like Paul said in the Second reading “There is no change of mind on God’s part about the gifts he has made or of his choice”. His mercy is everlasting.

 

There is always room for a man of force.–Emerson. The king is the man who can.–Carly.  So stay inspired, remain blessed, and be faithful, there is always light at the end of the tunnel. God bless you and Happy Sunday.