Publisher Shearon Hurst-Roach        www.wherepeacefulwaters.com             Issue 43      March 24, 2004

NEED IT NOW BLESSING - THE FAITH OF A MOTHER

  Scripture Reading: Matthew 15:21-28

Part 2

In part one of Need it Now Blessing, we left off with the mother dealing with the silence of God.  Now let’s talk about the other things you deal with while God is being silent….

STUMBLING BLOCKS IN THE WAY

Then if the silence of the Lord wasn’t enough for her to deal with, we read His disciples decided to put their two cents in.  “Send her away, for she crieth after us.” She’s bothering us with all her begging.  Now I don’t remember reading anywhere that it says she came crying to His disciples.  She was probably so stressed and determined to see Jesus that she probably didn’t notice they were there until they opened their mouths.  Doesn’t it just get on your last nerve when you are trying to hear from Jesus and somebody gets in your way?  If you can’t help me, get out of my way! 

I like what this mother did.  When they tried to get her to leave, she ignored them.  You have got to learn how to ignore, climb over, or go around stumbling blocks in your way reaching Jesus. I don’t care what it is, or who it is - get them out of your way!  Don’t take your eyes of Jesus. In your walk with the Lord there will be discouraging voices.  You can call them static or background noise, that every so often will urge you to give up.  Not only voices, but also circumstances will rise up causing you to lose sight of reaching Jesus.  You can’t find a job. Your kids won’t act right. There is no peace in your home. Your bills can’t get paid on time. Your credit is shot and your car keeps breaking down all over the place. Oh the stumbling blocks in the way.

No matter what was going on around her, this mother wouldn’t budge.  She just kept pleading her case.  First he ignored her. Then she had to endure the ridicule of the disciples. Finally, when this Jesus opened His mouth, words of discouragement came forth. How she must have felt that day when God rejected her. Oh it is hard when you feel like God has rejected you!  God has not forgotten you.  He will speak to your situation.  God will answer your prayers.  He knows where you are and will deliver you from the wilderness of darkness and silence.  Listen to what His word says:

But in my distress I cried out to the LORD; yes, I prayed to my God for help.
He heard me from his sanctuary; my cry reached his ears.   Psalms 17:6

 I prayed to the LORD, and he answered me, freeing
me from all my fears.   Psalms 34:4

The eyes of the LORD watch over those who do right;
his ears are open to their cries for help. Psalm 34:15

But God did listen! He paid attention to my prayer.   Psalm 66:19  

 But he is ready to hear those who worship him and do his will.   John 9:31

JESUS FINALLY SPEAKS

After a period of silence (which must have seemed like eternity to this mother) the Lord finally answers her: “It is not good to take the children’s bread and to cast it to dogs.” Now I don’t know about you but this was not the response I would have expected from my Savior.  Was Jesus calling this woman a dog?  Is she now thinking, “I came for a little help and it sounds like He is calling me a dog.  My daughter is demon-possessed and the Lord is talking about dogs.   Oh no, is He talking in those parables that I have heard about?  Oh Lord, not now, I need you!”  Oh but she remembers and reflects on how the dogs eat the crumbs that fall from the table, oh yes this was just a test. She’s not giving up, not now she is in this to win it.  Oh yes, that’s the answer, even the dogs eat from the crumbs that fall from their masters’ table.”

You see?  This woman realizes that even if God gives her only a crumb, her daughter will be made whole.  His word says that if we have the faith as small as a grain of a mustard seed that we could speak to a mountain and it would be removed. He said a grain, not even the whole mustard see, so okay Lord, give me the crumbs.   That’s all I need Jesus, the crumbs.  I’d rather have the crumbs of the Lord than any 5-course meal the world could offer.

You see?  She knew He was no ordinary man, no ordinary prophet, and no ordinary healer. He could do what ever He wanted, whenever He wanted. He was The Healer, The Prophet, Jesus is THE MAN, and He didn’t just have some power. He had ALL power!

And so she says Him, “Lord, just your crumbs alone will satisfy me.  Just a little morsel from your hand is more than enough; just a little touch from you will make me whole.  Just the sweat from your brow would quench my thirst; just a little word from you will soothe my aching soul.  Just a little move of your Spirit can change my life.  Just your crumbs, Lord give me your crumbs and I will be satisfied.

THE LORD BLESSES

Can you imagine this mother’s anticipation as she waited for the Lord’s response?  She had to have been on pins and needles waiting for Him to respond. Praying that she hadn’t offended Him, praying that she had spoken the right answer.  But most of all praying that Jesus would have mercy upon her and heal her daughter. She let Him know that she would be happy for the Lords crumbs, no matter what she thought He was calling called her.  She would take any of His crumbs for her daughter.  She wasn’t giving up - she couldn’t give up.  Her daughter’s life depended upon her getting blessed by the Lord.  She had no place to go, and would stay before Him all day to get her blessing.  How many of us would labor before the Lord all day to get what we wanted?

Imagine now the Lord turning - ever so slowly towards this mother, smiling at the faith He sees in her, and He tells her, “Woman, your faith is great. Your request is granted."  Can’t you see this woman kissing the feet of Jesus as tears rolled down her face?  Now mind you she hadn’t been home yet, but His spoken word was all that she needed to hear.  She didn’t need to see her daughter to know that she was healed; she knew it because the mouth of the Lord had spoken it. The very moment the words came forth her daughter was healed…  “And her daughter was instantly healed”.

Now it’s your time go before the Lord for what you need, stay right there until you hear from Him.  Where else can you go but to the Lord? Go Jesus is waiting to bless you.

A word of Encouragement:

God has appointed for you certain blessings. There ARE blessings out there with ‘YOUR’ name on them.
There are doors of opportunity that have been opened with ‘YOUR’ name on them. But sometimes you will be tested to see if you really believe what God has shown you and has for you, is for you. You will be tested to see if you are willing to stand and press your way through. 

Blessings will be in your path, but sometimes you must walk to them, you can’t get them sitting down. Doors of opportunity will be opened, yet you must walk - take that step of faith to get to them. Don’t listen to what the enemy saying.  If God said it was for you, it is for you. Go get what belongs to you.  Don’t stop praying!  Press your way through to your blessings! 

Struggles in Our Lives
 Author Unknown

A man found a cocoon of an emperor moth.  One day a small opening appeared, he sat and watched the moth for several hours as the moth struggled to force its body through that little hole.

Then it seemed to stop making any progress.  It appeared as if it had gotten as far as it could and could go no farther.

Then the man decided to help the moth, so he took a pair of scissors and snipped off the remaining bit of the cocoon.  The moth then emerged easily.

But it had a swollen body and small, shriveled wings.  The man continued to watch the moth because he expected that, at any moment, the wings would enlarge and expand to be able to support the body, which would contract in time.

Neither happened!  In fact, the little moth spent the rest of its life crawling around with a swollen body and shriveled wings.  It never was able to fly.

What the man in his kindness and haste did not understand was that the restricting cocoon and the struggle required for the moth to get through the tiny opening were God's way of forcing fluid from the body of the moth into its wings so that it would be ready for flight once it achieved its freedom from the cocoon.

Sometimes struggles are exactly what we need in our life. If God allowed us to go through our life without any obstacles, it would cripple us.  We would not be as strong as what we could have been. And we could never fly!

Thoughts to Live by
Author Unknown

You shall not worry, for worry is the most unproductive of all human activities.

You shall not be fearful, for most of the things we fear never come to pass.

You shall not carry grudges, for they are the heaviest of all life's burdens.

You shall face each problem as it comes. You can only handle one at a time anyway.

You shall not take problems to bed with you, for they make very poor bedfellows.

You shall not borrow other people's problems. They can better care for them than you.

You shall not try to relive yesterday for good or ill, it is forever gone.
Concentrate on what is happening in your life and be happy now!

You shall be a good listener, for only when you listen do you hear ideas different from your own.

You shall not become "bogged down" by frustration, for 90% of it is rooted
in self-pity and will only interfere with positive action.

You shall count your blessings, never overlooking the small ones,
for a lot of small blessings add up to a big one.

I Wish You Faith

I wish you truth for your decisions,
I wish you doubts to make you sure,
I wish you fear to give you caution,
I wish you courage to keep you pure,
But beyond these hopes and wishes,
One prayer soars high above,
I wish for you my graduate
Faith and Hope and Love.

I wish defeats to make you humble,
I wish success to let you soar,
I wish you tears to make you tender,
I wish you joy and so much more.
For beyond these hopes and wishes,
one prayer soars high above,
I wish for you my graduate
Faith and hope and love.

So as you stand and face tomorrow,
When life gets rough and tough,
There's someone who believes in you
With faith and hope and love.
So I wish for you my graduate
Faith and hope and love.

Contributors to this newsletter:
THE HOLY SPIRIT
Dana Ahern – Editing

And all of your prayers and words of encouragement
MAY THE PEACE OF GOD BE WITH YOU ALWAYS