Dear brothers and sisters! I greet you on this wonderful day and I pray that God’s most precious desires would be fulfilled in your life today.
We are still talking of the faith of the Canaanite woman that overcame all the obstacles on her way and received what she expected from the Lord. One of the things that strengthen her faith was a humble heart of a worshipper. We are going to talk about it today.
«And behold, a woman of Canaan came from that region and cried out to Him, saying, “Have mercy on me, O Lord, Son of David! My daughter is severly demon-possessed.” But He answered her not a word. And His disciples came and urged Him, saying, “Send her away, for she cries out after us.” But He answered and said, “I was not sent except to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.” Then she came and worshipped Him, saying, “Lord, help me!» (Mathew, 15:22-25).
After Jesus told her that He was sent only „to the lost sheep of the house of Isarel”, this woman did not get offended; instead, she worshipped Jesus and asked for help.“Then she came and worshipped Him, saying, “Lord, help me!» (Mathew, 15:25).
Many people have a hard time even saying the words „help me”. Many people have a hard time acknowledging that they actually need help. They do not want to admit they are helpless in certain situations and call out for help. Help does not come to those that do not ask for it. Only a humble, broken person is able to ask for help. This woman had a broken heart; for this reason she was able to worship Jesus and ask Him for help.
May our hearts be humble before God, so that we can worship God and ask for His help. When you need help, you must humble your heart before God.
In the beginning, when this woman first came to Jesus, she said: „Have mercy on me!” In other words, she did not come being haughty and insolent, ordering God around like some people do today; their prayers remain unanswered. Today many people act as if God owes them something. This woman asked Jesus to have mercy on her, and doing so she acknowledged that she is not worthy and does not deserve anything from God. She did not rely on her merit; she relied on God’s mercy because she knew God was merciful.
I read a story of a woman who prayed for the salvation of her child and said: «Lord, save my child because he is so good and wonderful». But there was no answer; she believed that her child deserves salvation. As she grew in her knowledge of God, she understood that nobody is good because everyone has sinned. After that her prayers changed and she asked God: „Lord, have mercy on my child and save him, because he is so sinful”. And, you know, the answer came.
When we come to God, the attitude of our heart plays especially important role. God always hears the call of a broken heart. A broken heart is the biggest sacrifice to God. We cannot come to God as if He owes us something. He is not obliged to do anything for us! That is why worship is the right basis for a true prayer. A person with a broken, grateful heart that realizes his helplessness, a person that is poor in the spiritinherits the Kingdom of God.
Come to God with an attitude of worship. The woman we have been talking about worshipped God.
God is calling you today to worship Him in hard times. When you do not see a way out and when everything looks hopeless and bleak, – worship God. It opens necessary doors and changes the situation.
God bless you!Pastor Rufus Ajiboye
