crazy faith

Hebrews 11:1-2 (NLT)

What is faith? It is the confident assurance that what we hope for is going to happen. It is the evidence of things we cannot yet see. God gave his approval to people in days of old because of their faith.

If you’ve never read chapter eleven in the book of Hebrews, I highly recommend it—especially if you’re running short on faith.

Merriam Webster’s Dictionary describes faith like this:

¹faith

noun \ˈfāth\

: strong belief or trust in someone or something.

I think most of us would agree that there are times when we are running low on faith. I’ve been there. Sometimes, in a hard situation the last thing I want to do is believe. 

How do you have faith when you’re walking through a furnace of fiery trials? Whether it’s losing your job, or running short on money, or being betrayed by a friend, faith is no easy thing. And maybe what makes things even more difficult is the feeling that God has let us down.

I sometimes wonder why God is so interested in faith; why He values it so much. Maybe it’s because faith is a hot commodity, and not always easy to come by. 

My favorite bible story about faith is found in Matthew Chapter Fifteen when a Gentile woman asks Jesus to heal her daughter. When she begs for help, Jesus doesn’t respond with the love and compassion we would expect. No, He ignores her. 

But this woman is not so easily deterred. In fact she begins pleading in earnest. So much so that the disciples ask Jesus to send her away. They’re very annoyed by all of her begging. 

Jesus’ response to the woman’s cry for help seems rather harsh, “I was sent only to help the people of Israel—God’s lost sheep—not the Gentiles.”

This tenacious woman does not give up. She throws herself at his feet and pleads again, “Lord, help me!” 

Once again, Jesus speaks to her, but rather than the merciful words we would expect, He uses rather severe language. In fact, He compares her to a dog, saying, “It isn’t right to take food from the children and throw it to the dogs.” 

Really? He’s calling her a dog? What the heck. But maybe there’s more to this story than meets the eye. Because in response to being called a dog, she replies, “Yes, Lord, but even dogs are permitted to eat crumbs that fall beneath their master’s table.”

And that’s when the truth is revealed. It turns out that Jesus wasn’t being rude, disrespectful, impolite or unmerciful. He was testing her—testing her heart to see what kind of mettle it was made of. 

In fact, Jesus seems pleased with her responses to his rebuffs, and says, “Woman your faith is great. Your request is granted.”

So why the delay in healing her daughter? Why the harsh words? It’s simple. Jesus was giving her the opportunity to show just how strong her faith was.

Are you starting to lose heart, lose faith, give up? Don’t. It might seem that Jesus is passing you by, ignoring your cries for help. But remember this. If Jesus seems to be turning his back on you, He may just be giving you the opportunity of a lifetime, too. The chance to let your faith shine for all the world to see.