“Our God is a great and wonderful God!” I heard those words several years ago while on a mission trip to South Africa. Our team was worshipping in a small church in Knapp’s Hope, a tiny village in the middle of nowhere. The villagers shouted for joy, sang with great gusto and constantly proclaimed whenever the spirit moved, “Our God is a great and wonderful God!”
In the midst of this joyous experience I realized that I had more money in my wallet than most of them would see in a year’s time. Prior to that realization I had been worried about an issue I was trying to solve back in the States. My worry looked pretty silly in the face of these who were dancing and singing, “Our God is great!”
My view of God was limited. I mistakenly thought that if I’m having a hard time with something God must not be active in my life.
I am certain that an inadequate view of God makes it very difficult to live as gracious people of faith, as ones who know how to be loving and forgiving. Jesus instructs the disciples to forgive, forgive, forgive and then forgive again. They hear his instruction and cry out, “Increase our faith!” The disciples, with their small, limited view of God, seem to be saying, “No one can forgive like that! We’ll need a lot more faith.”
John Ortberg says, “When human beings shrink God, they offer prayer without faith, work without passion, service without joy, suffering without hope. It results in fear, retreat, loss of vision, and failure to persevere.”
When the disciples cry out “increase our faith” they are asking for a sign of God’s presence in their everyday lives. They want to know that God is with them. They want to believe that no matter what happens God will never leave them. They want to understand that even in moments of great worry and fear that they will not be abandoned. Jesus hears them (and us too) and says, ““If you had faith the size of a mustard seed you could say to this mulberry ‘Be uprooted and planted in the sea’ and it would obey you.”
I trust in Jesus’ words. I do have faith, maybe not much more than a tiny mustard seed’s worth, but I’ve got that much. Jesus says, to me, to all of us, “that’s more than enough.”
Grace and Peace to you,
-Glen
