Impressed

Matthew 15:28 (NIV)

Woman, you have great faith!

When was the last time we impressed God? Have we been able to wrest a blessing from the Lord when He refused to bless us? When was the last time we so impressed God with our faith that He changed His mind and blessed us!?

This is the narrative (Matthew 15:22-28) about a Canaanite woman who so impressed the Lord that He changed His mind! This woman was a gentile and wanted the Lord to heal her demon-possessed daughter. Christ replies to her very curtly that He was only sent to the lost sheep of Israel. Further requests from her only result in more insults when the Lord calls her a gentile, the equivalent of an unwanted dog to the Hebrews. But her humility and faith when she responds that even the dogs have a right to salvation were so profound that the Lord changed His mind!

We have to notice that the Lord Jesus was not shutting the woman out of God's kingdom during that altercation but was merely testing her faith. There are times when the Lord will stretch and challenge our faith even when we know that we haven't done any wrong, as he did with Job. Our faith-filled responses, humility and a clean conscience from diligently adhering to His word will impress Him enough to change His mind.

When was the last time we stood our ground in a clear conscience like Job that so impressed the Lord that He changed His mind and said, "Well said"!