Hebrews 10:22, 22 let us draw near to God with a sincere heart and with the full assurance that faith brings, having our hearts sprinkled to cleanse us from a guilty conscience and having our bodies washed with pure water.
When Jesus reached the lands of Tyre and Sidon, He was approached by a Canaanite woman.In Matthew 15 we read, 22 A Canaanite woman from that vicinity came to him, crying out, “Lord, Son of David, have mercy on me! My daughter is demon-possessed and suffering terribly.” A mother seeing the pains endured by her daughter, with a broken heart but with full faith came to Jesus. She had a heard a lot about Jesus from others, and having full faith in His healing power approached Him. We can understand this from her cry for help, “Lord, Son of David, have mercy on me! Jesus had said to the sister of Lazarus in John 11:40, 40 Then Jesus said, “Did I not tell you that if you believe, you will see the glory of God?” The poor mother cried out for help with full faith but Jesus did not answer, how strange!!!
The disciples of Jesus requested Jesus to send her away when they saw her following them. It cannot be said that they asked this feeling sympathy or mercy for her. The reason being they did not ask Jesus to heal her daughter. When the blind Bartholomew called out to Jesus, it must have been the disciples who asked to keep silence. They must tried to get rid of the nuisance. Yet, the mother had full faith and assurance that Jesus was the only person who had the power to cure her demon possessed daughter. She came before Jesus and knelt before Him. In the Good News version of Bible we read that she fell down at his feet. We can believe that the mother knelt before the Lord with folded hands, blocking His way forward. The lament of Bartholomew stopped Jesus in His tracks and he was cured by Jesus. But here we see that the woman received no response from Jesus. We can observe two things here:
1. Never dying Faith: The reply to the cry of Canaanite woman was not of assurance. Jesus replied, 24 Then Jesus replied, “I have been sent only to the lost sheep of the people of Israel.” She must not have expected such a response from the Lord. Was Jesus testing her faith?? Reason because she could have come with the only aim of getting her daughter healed. Jesus did not heal the paralyzed man near the pool of Bethesda because he had asked for it (John 5:1). Whoever has full and deep faith in Jesus was never returned empty handed.
The poor woman was not ready to give up. Even after repeatedly pleading with the Lord, she did not receive a favorable answer. But she did not step back. Her faith also did not diminish. Even after receiving unfavorable answers from the Lrd, she held on to Him.
2.Faith that compels: Lord had used harsh words with her, Matthew: 11:25, 25 At this the woman came and fell at his feet. “Help me, sir!” she said.
26 Jesus answered, “It isn’t right to take the children’s food and throw it to the dogs.”
To which she replied with full faith, 27 “That’s true, sir,” she answered, “but even the dogs eat the leftovers that fall from their masters’ table.”
Her answer was from faith and belief. Jesus has said, “Ask and you shall receive”. Luke 11: 1, The Lord teaches disciples(us) how to pray. Jesus also used a parable to explain this better, 5 And Jesus said to his disciples, “Suppose one of you should go to a friend’s house at midnight and say, ‘Friend, let me borrow three loaves of bread. 6 A friend of mine who is on a trip has just come to my house, and I don’t have any food for him!’ 7 And suppose your friend should answer from inside, ‘Don’t bother me! The door is already locked, and my children and I are in bed. I can’t get up and give you anything.’ 8 Well, what then? I tell you that even if he will not get up and give you the bread because you are his friend, yet he will get up and give you everything you need because you are not ashamed to keep on asking. 9 And so I say to you: Ask, and you will receive; seek, and you will find; knock, and the door will be opened to you. 10 For those who ask will receive, and those who seek will find, and the door will be opened to anyone who knocks.
To her faith Jesus answers, 28 So Jesus answered her, “You are a woman of great faith! What you want will be done for you.” And at that very moment her daughter was healed. She did not step back even after receiving a defeating answers from Jesus, the result was she was blessed and her daughter healed. Like the above mentioned parable she too pleaded before Jesus without shame and insistently. Her faith came out to be victorious in the test put by Jesus, and hence Jesus said, “You are a woman of great faith!.
In today’s world, everything is available to us at the press of a button. Those pray also expect the same, no one is willing to wait. Dear children of God, our faith can also be tested by God. We should be able to pray without fail and not give up.
Jacob on the way home met an angel of God, lets see what happened, Genesis 32: 24-26, Then a man came and wrestled with him until just before daybreak. 25 When the man saw that he was not winning the struggle, he hit Jacob on the hip, and it was thrown out of joint. 26 The man said, “Let me go; daylight is coming.” “I won’t, unless you bless me,” Jacob answered.
The word prayer mean talking to God or conversing with God. Just like a child pleads with his/her mother, let us also plead and pray to our Father.
Isaiah 49: 15-16, 15 So the Lord answers,
“Can a woman forget her own baby
and not love the child she bore?
Even if a mother should forget her child,
I will never forget you.
16 Jerusalem, I can never forget you!
I have written your name on the palms of my hands.
He never breaks His won words. Sometimes when we pray and not receive is because of lack of content, selfish motives and despite having everything we crave for more.
Luke 11:11-13, 11 Would any of you who are fathers give your son a snake when he asks for fish? 12 Or would you give him a scorpion when he asks for an egg? 13 As bad as you are, you know how to give good things to your children. How much more, then, will the Father in heaven give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him!”
Our Lord knows what we need, not want. So introspect what we pray for and plead for to our Lord. May our faith be never die and be ever compelling.
Hebrews 11:1, To have faith is to be sure of the things we hope for, to be certain of the things we cannot see.
Jehovah Roi 
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