How would you feel if you asked Jesus for something and He said that it’s not right to take from the children and give to the dogs? I know I would feel terrible. The woman in this week’s gospel asked Jesus to heal her daughter who was tormented by demons and Jesus basically said she was unworthy of help. We don’t know exactly what the woman’s sins were, but she was not in a good relationship with God. However, the woman ended up showing great faith by saying that even the dogs eat the scraps of their master. Upon the moment of her profession of faith, her daughter was healed.
Demons don’t torment anyone and everyone, but are usually welcomed into someone’s life either willingly or accidentally by dabbling in magic, witchcraft, or anything that seeks to give us access to power that doesn’t come from God. Ouija boards are marketed as a fun game to play, but they can cause serious spiritual problems. When we turn away from asking God for help and instead seek to solve our problems using our own methods, we are going through life without protection or insurance which can lead us to a world of hurt.
I know it’s terrible to lose a loved one, but we need to pray to them and pray for them. Don’t try to go around God and attend a seance in an attempt to speak to them or summon their spirit. Our lives may not be great, but we should ask God to help us and lead us to where He wants us to go. We shouldn’t try to manipulate powers we don’t understand and ask other foreign spirits for help. It would be nice to know the answer to all questions that we have, but God wants us to ask Him and allow Him to reveal the answers to us when the time is right. We shouldn’t seek to bypass God and discover the answers through other means like ouija boards or psychics.
Jesus didn’t decide to help the woman because she had a good comeback. He helped her because her words expressed her desire for Jesus to help her. In saying that even the dogs eat the scraps of their master, she was basically saying that Jesus was her master and that she was seeking His help, no matter how little. When we place our trust in Jesus and ask for His help, He will not disregard us. We may not always get the answer that we want, but we should embrace the answer that Jesus gives us.
Jesus is always here to protect us from spiritual harm, but He can’t do that if we venture away from Him and seek out other means to solve our problems. Pride was the initial sin of mankind and it’s a part of many different sins. Many people seek to control their own destiny instead of working with God to achieve the destiny that He is calling us to. Someone may get their way, but their way usually ends in pain and suffering. When we stay close to God, not only will He and His angels protect us, but He will also lead us to eternal happiness. Ask Jesus for Heaven and He will respond, “Let it be done as you wish.”
