In this week’s Gospel reading, we hear of Jesus’ encounter with the Canaanite woman. Through faith in God, her demon-possessed daughter was healed. Fr. Micah shares three key elements of the woman’s faith that we can emulate.
First is prayer. This is not merely a few minutes of prayer in the morning or evening, but rather unceasing prayer. Further, our prayer must not be simply for the purpose of getting what we want. The power of prayer is in our being shaped and changed through communion with God. Second is love. True, selfless love lays down its life for its friends and thinks nothing of itself. This is the love we see the Canaanite woman exemplify, and it’s the love that pulls God down to Earth. Third is humility. We see great humility in the words of the Canaanite woman, and it was on account of this that her daughter was healed. Fr. Micah gives several examples from the desert fathers and saints who emphasized the power of humility, which brings clarity to our lives and causes the demons to flee.
Prayer, selfless love, and humility—this is what we see in the Canaanite woman’s faith and in the example given to us from our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. By fostering these three virtues, we too can have unshakeable faith.