Christmas Crumbs

Prepare your heart for the holidays in this devotion with Heather Hart.

Bible Verse for Today

“Yes, Lord, yet even the dogs eat the crumbs that fall from their masters’ table.”

Matthew 15:27

Devotion for Today

Christmas Crumbs

This was it. The day she had been hoping for. Christmas was coming to her! She could hardly believe it, but she knew Jesus was the One who could help her daughter.

She hurried out and cried so her voice would be heard above the crowd, “Have mercy on me, O Lord, Son of David; my daughter is severely oppressed by a demon.”[1] And she wept. She knew He would do it. He had to. This was Jesus of Nazareth. She had heard the stories and she believed.

But Jesus didn’t answer her. He didn’t even acknowledge her. And she wasn’t the only one who noticed, His disciples spoke up. They wanted Him to make her go away. She was causing a scene, they said. Well, what mother wouldn’t cause a scene to help her daughter? She wasn’t about to give up now. Not when Jesus was this close. She tried again, and this time… this time Jesus answered.

“I was sent only to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.”[2]

She had heard He had come to save the Israelites, and that wasn’t her, but that didn’t mean He couldn’t save her daughter. She had heard about the Samaritan woman. And even a Roman or two. She knelt before Him and simply begged, “Lord, help me.”[3]

“It is not right to take the children’s bread and throw it to the dogs.”[4]

With tears in her eyes, she tried once more, “Yes, Lord, yet even the dogs eat the crumbs that fall from their masters’ table.”[5]

And that’s when she saw it. A smile broke on Jesus’ face, and she heard the words she had been longing for, “O woman, great is your faith! Be it done for you as you desire.”[6]

She leapt to her feet and ran back inside. Just as she knew she would find; her daughter was already healed. Jesus had delivered. He healed a little girl that had never even met Him.

I love the story of the faith Canaanite woman. So often I am left craving more of Jesus, but she was content with just the scraps. Granted, the scraps she got were pretty amazing. That’s the way it is with faith. Great faith comes in small packages. We don’t have to be spiritual giants to have great faith. We just have to have faith for the moment. Faith that Jesus is enough for right now. Enough for today. Enough for this problem, this situation, this circumstance. All we need are crumbs of faith.

What I love most about this encounter is that Jesus reached out. Share on X

[1] Matthew 15:22

[2] Matthew 15:24

[3] Matthew 15:25

[4] Matthew 15:26

[5] Matthew 15:27

[6] Matthew 15:28