“Leaving that place, Jesus withdrew to the region of Tyre and Sidon. A Canaanite woman from that vicinity came to him, crying out, ‘Lord, Son of David, have mercy on me! My daughter is suffering terribly from demon possession.’
Jesus did not answer a word. So his disciples came to him and urged him, ‘Send her away, for she keeps crying out after us.’
He answered, ‘I was sent only to the lost sheep of Israel.’ The woman came and knelt before him. ‘Lord, help me!’ she said.
He replied, ‘It is not right to take the children’s bread and toss it to their dogs.’
‘Yes, Lord,’ she said, ‘but even the dogs eat the crumbs that fall from their masters’ table.’
Then Jesus answered, ‘Woman, you have great faith! Your request is granted.’ And her daughter was healed from that very hour.”
Matthew 15:21-28
How many times do we have to live with the leftovers that others leave behind? So many times in our lives we feel that we are not appreciated or valued enough, so we have to conform ourselves with what we know is much lesser than what we really deserve.
Reading the example above, I think I can relate to the Canaanite woman. I remember how many times I have grabbed that “crumb” with so many illusions and how happy it has made my life for awhile.
There are many “crumbs” in our lives. It could be an emotion, a memory or a material thing; but each one of these “crumbs” have a lot of value for all of us. We grab that feeling or memory and we hold it dearly to our hearts and mind, so it could fill us with so much happiness or excitement. It makes us feel somewhat special; even though it’s just a “crumb” not the whole bread. Just imagine what would happen if we could have the whole loaf of bread…
To whom we relate better..? The “children at the table” or to the “dogs who eat the crumbs”? I have seen some “children at the table”. They are blessed in many ways but don’t seem to appreciate their blessings. They’re not grateful for what they have and they are always wanting more. They’re never satisfied. They see themselves as worthy of such good things. I guess that’s why they let those “crumbs” fall to the floor. They don’t need what they have in abundance.
There is a difference in letting things fall to the floor than sharing what’s on the table. When there’s sharing, it’s something voluntary and it’s done at the same level of height; maybe the sharing takes place with people that are considered worthy of sharing it with.
But there are some of us who have been waiting beside the table to see when or if a “crumb” will ever fall to the ground so we can grab that memory, that simple kiss, that word, that presence and hold it dearly close to our hearts and it can fill our lives with happiness, hope, faith and love. Do we deserve to be eating from the floor? I think not. We all should be “children at the table”. But we should be grateful children, who know how to share, feel secured, loved and appreciated.
Then, why so many of us have to live from “crumbs”? It would seem life is not fair. But I think WE don’t make it fair. We just don’t take decisions to change our lives, we let others make decisions for us; we let circumstances take a hold on us; we live on excuses and more excuses….
So, let’s learn a lesson from the Canaanite woman who with one simple answer astounded even the Son of God…Each one of us is valuable, unique, rare…let’s make our faith move mountains… you see…if God, the King of kings, Lord of Lords, Creator of the Universe was amazed by the faith of a simple woman… then why can’t we amaze a simple fellow human being?
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