14 When they came to the crowd, a man approached Jesus and knelt before him. 15 “Lord, have mercy on my son,” he said. “He has seizures and is suffering greatly. He often falls into the fire or into the water. 16 I brought him to your disciples, but they could not heal him.”
17 “You unbelieving and perverse generation,” Jesus replied, “how long shall I stay with you? How long shall I put up with you? Bring the boy here to me.” 18 Jesus rebuked the demon, and it came out of the boy, and he was healed at that moment.
19 Then the disciples came to Jesus in private and asked, “Why couldn’t we drive it out?”
20 He replied, “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.”
-Matthew 17:14-20 NIV
Mountains. We all have them. You know, the obstacles that are so large in your life that they seem not only inescapable, but immovable. Maybe your mountain is declining sales in your company that you can’t seem to turn around. Maybe your mountain is the uncertainty of an economy on the brink of a recession. Maybe your mountain is a chronic illness or an ongoing battle with depression and anxiety. Maybe your mountain is the resistance to and offense towards the Gospel that someone you love holds. Maybe your mountain is a toxic work culture you can’t seem to change for the better. Maybe your mountain is the hurt and brokenness in your own marriage or family.
Moving mountains is beyond our human capabilities. In our own strength, it’s simply an impossibility. More often than not, we stop trying to move them after exhausting all our efforts. We settle for the mountains, accept the mountains, or try to work around them the best we can.
Jesus offers us a radical alternative. Some mountains, according to Jesus, can be moved and ought to be moved. This is most certainly beyond our own human efforts. Only God can move the mountains in our lives. Just like Jesus healed the boy afflicted, Jesus’ will is to bring freedom and hope to the seemingly impossible. Our strength is not required, but our trust in God is.
Does your faith at this moment seem so small in comparison to the mountains in front of you? Good news, friend: Jesus promises that faith even the size of mustard seed can move mountains. So today, stop trying to move the immovable on your own, in your own human efforts. And today, dare to dream again where you have given up hope. Let your mustard seed faith propel you to prayer. Believe that God is a mountain mover, and with Him all things are possible.