Shameless Prayer!

Jesus left that place and went to the vicinity of Tyre. He entered a house and did not want anyone to know it; yet he could not keep his presence secret. In fact, as soon as she heard about him, a woman whose little daughter was possessed by an impure spirit came and fell at his feet. The woman was a Greek, born in Syrian Phoenicia. She begged Jesus to drive the demon out of her daughter. “First let the children eat all they want,” he told her, “for it is not right to take the children’s bread and toss it to the dogs.” “Lord,” she replied, “even the dogs under the table eat the children’s crumbs.” Then he told her, “For such a reply, you may go; the demon has left your daughter.” She went home and found her child lying on the bed, and the demon gone.

Jesus once told a parable about a widow seeking justice from an unjust judge (see Luke 18:1–8). In it, a judge who lacks compassion is repeatedly petitioned by a poor widow for justice. Despite being rebuffed time and time again, she never stops approaching him to get what she believes is owed to her. Some might consider the woman as shameless in her continuous attempts to persuade the judge to give her what she wants, but eventually she succeeds. The judge honors her request.

In today’s passage we find a woman who seems even more shameless in her desire to get her petition granted. She has a daughter who was possessed by an impure spirit. Hearing that Jesus was in her neighborhood, and knowing what he was capable of doing, she came and fell at his feet, begging Jesus to drive the demon out of her daughter. Rather offensively — or so it seems — Jesus told her that it wasn’t right to take the children’s bread and toss it to the dogs. The “children" was a reference to the people of Israel. 

The woman refused to take offense. She wanted her daughter healed and this man — whom she recognized as divine — could compare her to anything he liked. “Lord,” she replied, “even the dogs under the table eat the children’s crumbs.” One can almost picture Jesus looking pointedly at his apostles as if to say, “See, this is what real faith is,” before turning to the woman and saying, “For such a reply, you may go; the demon has left your daughter.” When she returned home she found her child lying on the bed, and the demon gone. 

Now, the question for us is: how persistent are we when we pray? Are we willing to continue petitioning God for something that we need, even if it takes years to obtain it? We are not talking about asking him for a Ferrari, but for something that will help us in our heavenly journey. Like, perhaps, the gift of wisdom. Or deliverance from some addiction. Or the salvation of a child. God sometimes takes his time answering prayers. He obviously has his reasons for this, but one of them could be just to see if we persist in faith. Or give up in frustration.

Let us never give up but persist in asking him for good things. Even if it appears shameless!