A woman who had heard about Jesus came and fell at His feet. Her little girl was possessed by an evil spirit, and she begged Him to cast out the demon from her daughter. Since the woman was a despised Gentile, born in Syrian Phoenicia, Jesus told her, “First I should feed the children—my own family, the Jews. It isn’t right to take food from the children and throw it to the dogs.” She replied, “That’s true, Lord, but even the dogs under the table are allowed to eat the scraps from the children’s plates.” “Good answer!” He said. “Now go home, for the demon has left your daughter.” And when she arrived home, she found her little girl lying quietly in bed, and the demon was gone. Mark 7:25-30 NLT, Adapted
Jesus might just have said, “don’t bother me Gentile woman, I am busy feeding my own children”. The woman was not hindered by His initial response. Nor did she challenge or disrespect Jesus. Instead this distressed mother humbly continued based on His assertion that His children came ahead of her need.
The Gentile mother implicitly understood that Jesus represented abundance and that He could heal her daughter without taking anything away from His children. When He heard her answer, He responded: “Because of your faith I have healed your little girl. Go on home, for the demon has left her!”
The lesson? We mustn’t think in limiting terms or let anything hinder our faith. Our God is not a god of or. He is God of and.