"Have mercy on me, Lord!" the woman pleads. Mercy is a word that means to give kind or forgiving treatment of someone who could be treated harshly. The woman says, "I know! I may not deserve your kindness, but please, do it anyway." And maybe she is thinking, "I believe you can. I believe in you as one who will show mercy, even if I am not 'worth it.' And even if I am not worthy to sit at your table, you are one who will show mercy to my daughter who is in need of your healing touch."

While the disciples have little time for this woman, and even Jesus at first refuses to listen to her, still her faith propels her to her knees. "Help me!" she continues to plead. She will not let go.

When in our life do we fall to our knees and plead, "Help me." Not very often, I would guess. Even with all the history of Jesus' love and forgiveness of the outcast, we still find it hard to fall to our knees and even harder to completely believe that Jesus will grant us mercy.

But he does.