Why did I bother ?

from Helen

Have you ever had one of those times when you think, ‘ why did I bother’ ?  I certainly have, it all started on a Monday morning when I was in University. I woke up early, as I had to leave the house at 7:00am for an early lecture. I needed to get a train and so rushed to the train station only to find that the train was late-why did I bother rushing ? Anyway by the time the train arrived it was jam packed with people and so I had to stand up for the journey I was really wondering by now why I had bothered. When my train finally reached Cardiff I realised I was going to be very late for my lecture, now I had two options. The first meant missing my lecture- but then getting up early would have been pointless and I really would know that I shouldn’t have bothered. The second meant paying money for a taxi to my lecture.  Well I went for option 2, and arrived in the nick of time for my lecture, for my lecturer to be 30 mins late. I was convinced that I shouldn’t have bothered. Then I went to get a bottle of water out of my bag which had been bought in an attempt to be healthy. It was strawberry and kiwi fruit flavour, it had exploded inside my bag though, ruining my notes ! I was convinced by now that I shouldn’t have bothered, because even trying to be healthy hadn’t worked !

I can’t remember much of the lecture but I did get my degree so I probably was right to have bothered. Sometimes though we get those times when something goes wrong and it follows another and another.

I wonder if the Canaanite woman in the gospel reading (Matthew 15:21-28) felt that way. 

The woman went to Jesus and at first she may well have wondered why she had bothered as Jesus seems to treat her in a way that was harsh and judgemental.Rather than Jesus being different to everyone around it is as if He had joined with the people of His nation in a total disdain for anyone who was a Canaanite, that is the lowest of the low, yet Jesus who brings life and hope changes His mind. This seems really strange, there is almost the sense that Jesus is so impressed with this woman’s faith that He accepts her. The way He talks of the children’s food thrown to the dogs, could have been meant as the dogs being the Canaanites and the Children being the children of Israel. Or it maybe could have been a jokey retort that is lost in translation to us. Whichever way this is taken,it is not the main point.

The main point is someone went honestly to Jesus with all their fears and concerns and asked Him for help. Jesus responded by noting the faith of this woman and offering her acceptance and love.

This woman whom Jesus seemed at first to reject harshly was a woman whom He found to have great faith. This faith could almost be translated as Jesus saying, “Woman you have mega-faith.”

This woman went honestly to Jesus with all her fears and concerns and asked Him for help. Jesus responded by noting the faith of this woman and offering her acceptance and love.

This is great news for us as well. Jesus shows us acceptance and love as well. It is one of my favourite things to hear that Jesus loves me, and all I have to do is to go to Him. Faith is hard sometimes but God is always there ready to accept us, to love us and to help us. 

It is not just the acceptance, healing and love of God that we can see in this passage. We can also be reminded that in the same way that Jesus welcomed someone who was so different to Him then we are to do the same. 

There is a story of a Church one Sunday morning where the priest was late.  No-one thought anything of it and waited for the service to begin trusting that the priest would arrive. Whilst they were waiting a homeless man came in to the Church all dressed up in a warm but shabby coat with a huge hat on. The people at the door of the Church were trying to find somewhere for this man to sit where he would not offend the sensitivities of anyone and particularly not the Priest.  They were horrified when this man went to sit at the front of the Church, so they tried to stop him but to no avail. They were even more surprised when the homeless man, lifted his hat and turned out to be their priest.

What a lesson in welcome and acceptance of others. This Priest had tested his congregation and they in turn had not done well in the test.  It is a good challenge to all of us, are we prepared to welcome and accept even those who don’t seem as if they belong? Those who are very different to us, those for whom life is difficult. 

Sometimes we can all make judgements of people, we can assume it is someone’s own fault that they are in a mess through addiction and financial difficulties. The thing is though that we often only see a part of someone’s story and don’t know what is behind it, who are we to judge ? All we can do is remember that God has welcomed us as we are and we are to do the same. To accept someone means that we accept them as they are and we want to help them and to show them love.

We have all had times when we have wondered why we bothered perhaps like the Canaanite woman, however also like the Canaanite woman we have met Jesus and we know that His love is great enough to accept us wherever we are and whatever we do. All we have to do is to have faith in that love of God, that faith which is prepared to go and accept His love. It doesn’t end here though, we are to reach out to others to welcome them knowing that the love of God is that wide, wider than we can ever imagine. 

May we be ready to reach out in love as people who have been accepted by God. May we have the faith to know, to truly know, that God is for us so who can ever be against us. AMEN.