We all face moments when our faith seems too small for the challenges before us. Those times when doubts crowd out certainty and what we believe feels inadequate for what we're facing.
Matthew 17:20 speaks directly to this feeling. The disciples had just tried to cast out a demon and failed. Confused and embarrassed, they asked Jesus privately, "Why couldn't we drive it out?" His response wasn't what they expected: "Because you have so little faith. Truly I tell you, if you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mountain, 'Move from here to there,' and it will move. Nothing will be impossible for you."
Jesus didn't scold the disciples for having small faith. Instead, He pointed to a tiny seed and said, "Even this is enough." The power wasn't in the size of their faith but in the object of their faith.
Small faith in a big God still moves mountains.
I used to think I needed mountain-sized faith to face life's challenges—that if I could just believe harder, pray longer, or trust more completely, then God would act. But that understanding puts the pressure on me, on the quality of my believing, rather than on the One I believe in.
The mustard seed doesn't strive to be bigger. It simply is what it is—small, unimpressive, easily overlooked. Yet it contains life that grows far beyond its tiny size.
Your faith may feel small today. Perhaps you've been worn down by waiting, by unanswered questions, by circumstances that haven't changed despite your prayers. You might even feel embarrassed by the doubts that have crept in where certainty once lived.
But what if those very feelings—that sense of inadequacy, that awareness of your limits—actually create room for God to work? What if your small faith is exactly what allows you to depend more fully on His great faithfulness?
In the kingdom of God, smallness isn't a problem to overcome. It's often the very place where grace shows up most clearly.
Think of the five loaves and two fish—a lunch that couldn't possibly feed thousands until it was placed in Jesus' hands. Think of the widow's mite—coins that seemed worthless until Jesus declared their immeasurable value. Think of the disciples themselves—ordinary, doubtful, fearful people who changed the world not because their faith never wavered, but because the One they followed never did.
When your faith feels small, don't despise it. Don't hide it away, ashamed of its size. Instead, bring it—just as it is—and place it in the hands of Jesus.
Small faith is still real faith. Questioning faith is still living faith. Struggling faith is still faith that matters.
Whatever mountains you face, whatever seems impossible from where you stand, remember that the power to move them never depended on the size of your faith, but on the greatness of your God.