My Mountain-Moving Mustard Seed Faith
May 22, 2026 — Emily Matuza
Matthew 17:20 — He said to them, “Because of your little faith. For truly, I say to you, if you have faith like a grain of mustard seed, you will say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it will move, and nothing will be impossible for you.”
The suffering in this earthly life truly tests your faith. It tests not only the faith you have in God, but also the faith you may have had in relying on others. Grief is a solitary journey as the situation that has brought you to this grieving place is unique to you. This solitude is necessary, but sometimes we believe that others should be carrying this with us or for us. Unfortunately, more often than not, their lives are moving forward at a different pace and they simply cannot sustain that load. For myself, it was my faith in God that carried me through those moments when others simply could not fulfill my need.
There were times, however, that my faith was very small. I know that some walk away from their faith in times of trials or go through a time that they feel their faith just isn’t possible in their grief. I think questioning is normal for grievers. We have seen a side of life that likes to steal things like faith and hope; a darker side. It’s truly as if there is a battle between dark and light and we are doing all we can to see the light.
I personally had moments following Joey’s death that were “impossibles” and it was hard to have faith that these would be “possibles”, just based on my own situation. But I would grasp the tiny glimpse of faith that I could see. I would simply surrender my circumstances to God and let Him carry me through this impossible. Over and over again, these situations became possible. Some were monumental; they were mountains. Others were so small at the time that I can only see them now as I look back. Either way, it was that tiny faith, that “mustard seed faith” that made them possible. Our faith holds with it a firm grasp on hope. There is freedom in the surrender while that faith points us to hope.
I love the verse, Romans 5:3-5 (NLT). “We can rejoice, too, when we run into problems and trials, for we know that they help us develop endurance. And endurance develops strength of character, and character strengthens our confident hope of salvation. And this hope will not lead to disappointment. For we know how dearly God loves us, because he has given us the Holy Spirit to fill our hearts with his love.”
Other translations say that suffering produces PERSEVERANCE, perseverance produces CHARACTER, character produces HOPE, and hope does not disappoint.
This is such a truth. We do have to persevere in suffering. Life for everyone around us is moving forward. Our steps forward may be much shorter with many more pauses to catch our breath, but forward is still our direction. Since that pace is slower, it gives us time to reflect and process, and in that time, we start to see the tiny light at the end of this very long tunnel. The light of HOPE. We are able to fix our gaze toward it and thus, our feet propel us forward.
Those who are runners know very well that the way to "stay on track" and increase your endurance is to keep your head up, leaning slightly forward with your eyes focused 10-20 feet in front of you. Hope is no different. If you are looking straight down, you will not see the light and thus, you may lose your footing. HOPE does not disappoint, and I will continue to walk in faith towards that HOPE.
Does your faith seem miniscule right now? Keep looking to Jesus. He is carrying you. He is strengthening you. And one day, our faith will become sight. What a glorious day that will be.
