Voice: Jennifer
Today is Thursday, 11th of December.
As we start another day, let us observe a moment of silence.
We pray:
Blessed are you, creator of all,
to you be praise and glory for ever.
As your dawn renews the face of the earth
bringing light and life to all creation,
may we rejoice in this day you have made;
as we wake refreshed from the depths of sleep,
open our eyes to behold your presence
and strengthen our hands to do your will,
that the world may rejoice and give you praise.
Blessed be God, Father, Son and Holy Spirit.
Amen
Psalm 54
O God, save me by your name,
and vindicate me by your might.
2 O God, hear my prayer;
give ear to the words of my mouth.
3 For strangers have risen against me;
ruthless men seek my life;
they do not set God before themselves. Selah
4 Behold, God is my helper;
the Lord is the upholder of my life.
5 He will return the evil to my enemies;
in your faithfulness put an end to them.
6 With a freewill offering I will sacrifice to you;
I will give thanks to your name, O Lord, for it is good.
7 For he has delivered me from every trouble,
and my eye has looked in triumph on my enemies.
Glory to the Father, and to the Son,
and to the Holy Spirit:
as It was in the beginning, is
now, and shall be forever. Amen.
Matthew 15:21-28
21 And Jesus went away from there and withdrew to the district of Tyre and Sidon.22 And behold, a Canaanite woman from that region came out and was crying, “Have mercy on me, O Lord, Son of David; my daughter is severely oppressed by a demon.” 23 But he did not answer her a word. And his disciples came and begged him, saying, “Send her away, for she is crying out after us.” 24 He answered, “I was sent only to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.” 25 But she came and knelt before him, saying, “Lord, help me.” 26 And he answered, “It is not right to take the children’s bread and throw it to the dogs.” 27 She said, “Yes, Lord, yet even the dogs eat the crumbs that fall from their masters’ table.” 28 Then Jesus answered her, “O woman, great is your faith! Let it be done for you as you desire.” And her daughter was healed instantly.
This is the Word of the Lord
Thanks be to God
The Humble Access
The Gentile woman begged Jesus to cast the demon out of her daughter. His reply sounded rude. Perhaps He was testing her response with a common Jewish saying. She answered:
“Yes, Lord; yet even the dogs under the table eat the children’s crumbs.”
She felt unworthy to receive help from this Jewish rabbi. She did not approach Him with entitlement, but with humility. Her reply was essentially: “I am unworthy, but by Your mercy and grace, bless me, Lord.”
This story is familiar to us Anglicans because of its echo in the Prayer of Humble Access, prayed just before the Communion is served. There we confess that we do not “take” the communion as a right, but we receive it as a gift of grace.
We are sinners; God is holy. But He is also merciful. The prayer holds both truths together. To approach Him, we look again to His grace and mercy.
Through the death of Christ—when the veil was torn—we now have access. As Hebrews 4:16 declares:
“Let us then approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.”
Was the woman confident? Yes. But she was not prideful. She harbored no sense of self-entitlement. She knew she was unworthy, yet she trusted that Jesus would bless her if she asked.
Likewise, our confidence is not in ourselves or in any personal entitlement. Our confidence rests solely in the One “whose nature is always to show mercy.”
Confidence at the throne does not cancel humility—it creates it.
So we kneel.
We don’t sprint to holiness.
We move on our knees, step by step.
We may even beg.
But we shall come boldly to His Table—
and there, we feast.
We end with the Prayer of Humble Access:
We do not presume to come to this your table,
merciful Lord, trusting in our own righteousness,
but in your manifold and great mercies.
We are not worthy so much as to gather up the crumbs under your table.
But you are the same Lord whose nature is always to have mercy.
Grant us therefore, gracious Lord,
so to eat the flesh of your dear Son Jesus Christ
and to drink his blood
that we may evermore dwell in him and he in us. Amen.
In closing, be blessed by this song, So you would come
Before the world began, you were on His mind
And every tear you cry is precious in His eyes
Because of His great love, He gave His only Son
And everything was done, so you would come
Nothing you can do could make Him love you more
And nothing that you’ve done could make Him close the door
Because of His great love, He gave His only Son
Everything was done, so you would come
Come to the Father though your gift is small
Broken hearts, broken lives, He will take them all
The power of His Word, the power of His blood
Everything was done so you would come
Nothing you can do could make Him love you more
And nothing that you’ve done could make Him close the door
Because of His great love, He gave His only Son
Everything was done, so you would come
Come to the Father though your gift is small
Broken hearts, broken lives, He will take them all
The power of His Word, the power of His blood
Everything was done so you would come
Come to the Father though your gift is small
Broken hearts, broken lives, He will take them all
The power of His Word, the power of His blood
Everything was done so you would come
The power of His Word, the power of His blood
Everything was done so you would come
Link to today’s Morning Office
About This Daily Devotion
This weekday devotion is drawn from the Morning Office and is part of a project initiated by Revd Canon Terry Wong, with contributions from clergy and members across various parishes. Each entry includes selected readings from the appointed Psalm and another Scripture passage, accompanied by a reflection and prayer. An audio option is also available, often ending with a hymn or song. We encourage you to both read and listen.
Our aim is to help Anglicans engage more deeply with our rich liturgical tradition, while meeting the devotional needs of today’s believers. This project began on Ash Wednesday 2025 and is offered on weekdays only.
For feedback, please write to us at terrywong@anglican.org.sg
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