I always saw the story of the Canaanite woman to be an interaction that shows we need to know what we truly want from God. There are times when God doesn’t answer our prayers immediately, or in a way we think is satisfying. While we can accept this as God’s will (I tend to fall into that camp), it’s also entirely permissible to keep after God, to try to affirm in your heart and mind what you hope He will do for you. In that way, it’s a lived-out example of The Parable of the Persistent Widow (Luke 18:1-8), which teaches us to be persistent in our prayers.

In a similar way, it’s another example of how humanity is expected to “argue” with God . . . and even prevail. This is similar to how Abraham negotiates with God to spare Sodom from destruction, where Abraham begins with the notion that — were he able to find 50 righteous men — God should not destroy the city . . . only to negotiate that number down to 45, 40, 30, 20, and then 10 (Genesis 18:16-33).

So, to me, this story relates how — in the person of Jesus — God walks with us as our brother. And brothers aren’t generally those who are to be obeyed without question, but rather are generally approachable, open to debate, and able to be persuaded if presented with the right evidence or information.

As a final point to consider: Note how much more we learn about the nature of faith and God by how this story plays out, versus how it might have played out otherwise. If Jesus answered her prayer immediately, what would that feel like? “And Jesus arrived and cured some people, and a Canaanite woman came up to him and asked for her daughter to be healed, and Jesus did that, too.” It’s not very inspiring, is it? I mean, not in the sense that it would shed any new light on our relationship with God, or the universal gift that is salvation, or the power of faith when petitioning the Almighty.

Does that make that passage shine in any better a light for anyone?