Elation found in scraps

And He answered and said, "It is not good to take the children's bread and throw it to the dogs." But she said, "Yes, Lord; but even the dogs feed on the crumbs which fall from their masters' table." Then Jesus said to her, "O woman, your faith is great; it shall be done for you as you wish." And her daughter was healed at once.

This scene has troubled me for years. Given the context and the potentially derogatory implications which could have been perceived through the reference to 'dogs,' the picture painted in my mind had been one of a bigoted and harsh man whose heart was only toward his own people. However, in watching Buddy this morning as he devoured the T-bone saved from last night's dinner, it occurred to me that the scraps that fall from the Master's table are so far superior to a bone. And yet, Buddy may have demonstrated more alacrity and gratitude for an inferior blessing than I often do for the superior ones.