Invisible Lives
Created with Notegraphy.com
It is said that when you are desperate, you will do anything.
When your child is dying, you are desperate for help.
He answered, "I was sent only to the lost sheep of the house of Israel." But she came and knelt before him, saying, "Lord, help me." - Matthew 15:24-25
The woman who cane to Jesus for help for her daughter was desperate. And she wouldn't take "No" for an answer.
She was not one of the chosen, but she believed this man could perform miracles, he could save her child.
Compared to those who rejected him, she was a true believer, she had faith.
What seems odd about this story is that Jesus rejected her plea, telling her she was not one of the children he had come to save. He was sent for the children of God and she was nothing but a dog.
Wow, that's not the way we would expect him to act toward anyone, and yet, how often do we do the same thing?
We may not call someone a dog, but we might not give them the time of day. If they are not like us, not part of the select circle of friends with which we associate, or they are not members of our community of faith, we might feel justified passing them by, ignoring their pleas, failing to acknowledge them at all.
To us, they live invisible lives.
The woman made herself visible. She didn't accept the inevitable. She pushed harder when challenged.
And Jesus didn't stick with the program. He listened. He accepted the fact that his purpose, his ministry may change, may grow beyond its boundaries.
Perhaps we are to be like the woman, making our case against all odds, not giving up.
Or perhaps we are to be like Jesus, making exceptions when the message is clear that we are needed and someone believes in us.
If we take this story to be just about a woman's faith being strong, I think we miss much of the power of this encounter. We walk away without seeing a call to action for us. We leave not being able to see the invisible people God has put in our path, hoping we will seek them out and make that encounter that will change their lives and ours.
When we are not afraid to show and share our faith, those encounters will happen. Maybe that is what we are afraid of, why we keep our faith hidden.
But of we do that, we too will become one of the invisible people, leading invisible lives, chasing invisible dreams.
It is time to see the world the way it is meant to be seen, and to be seen in the world as one of Christ's followers, healing, curing and being there for the invisible.
More to come...