“Have faith”.

Maybe somebody has said that to us.  Maybe we have said it to ourselves.  Most of us would say we have faith, but aren’t there times when we wish our faith was deeper and greater?  Aren’t there moments when we think our faith isn’t as strong as it should be, or as robust as we think it should be. 

We aren’t alone.  There is a story, in the 17th chapter of Luke, when the disciples came to Jesus and asked him to “increase our faith”.  Jesus says to them “If you had faith the size of a mustard seed, you could say to this mulberry tree, ‘Be uprooted and planted in the sea,’ and it would obey you.”

It might be easy for us to hear Jesus as chastising here –  “come on guys, where is your faith? – Can’t you muster up even a little bit?”   And if we hear it that way I think it has to do with our own ideas about faith, and how we wish we had more of it or were better at it.  We might think if I had more faith, maybe my prayers would be answered – or if I had more faith, maybe this or that, would or wouldn’t have happened.  If I had more faith, the path I’m supposed to take would be clearer.  If I had more faith, life would be better.     It can be easy to feel we aren’t measuring up.  But I think that says more about us, than it does about God.   

But maybe what Jesus is saying here is that faith is not about quantity or quality, it’s about where (or who) we put that faith in.  The question isn’t “how much faith is enough?” – it is “do you have even a little” – it is “what is your faith in?”  Any faith, even as small as the smallest seed they knew (mustard) is enough.  The question is do you have any faith, not how much faith do you have. 

If you have faith, you have it. There’s no bigger or smaller. Any amount is enough.  I think he is telling those disciples (and us) that if we have faith, no matter the size, we have all that we need.  Pastor Tim Keller once wrote that “It is not the strength of your faith, but the object of your faith, that actually saves you.”

To question whether we have enough faith misses the mark.  I believe we can hear Jesus’ words not as an admonition, but as an encouragement.  Not meant to make us feel guilt but rather feel like maybe we do have everything we need.  And that what we’ve been looking for is found in having any amount of faith in him.  Faith is a relationship of love and trust in that Jesus.   It is not about how deeply we understand, it is about how deeply we trust.  Not about how strong our faith is but where our faith is.  It is not about a perfect faith, but a faith.   That is enough, Jesus says.  An amount even the size of the smallest seed is enough.  It is not that we need more, it’s seeing that we have all that we need.

May that be so for each of us.