Faith as Small as a Mustard Seed

Posted on April 27, 2025 by

33 Comments

The apostles said to the Lord, “Show us how to increase our faith.”

The Lord answered, “If you had faith even as small as a mustard seed, you could say to this mulberry tree, ‘May you be uprooted and be planted in the sea,’ and it would obey you!”

Luke 17:5-6

According to Oxford, faith is defined as:

  1. complete trust or confidence in someone or something.
  2. strong belief in God or in the doctrines of a religion, based on spiritual apprehension rather than proof.

As Christians, it might be assumed that we have “complete trust or confidence in” God. And we might say we have trust and confidence in Him. However, are our actions always a good reflection of that trust and confidence?

As Christians, I would agree that we have “strong belief in God… based on spiritual apprehension rather than proof.” However, I do believe the lack of proof can trip us up at times.

When things are going well in life, it’s easy to proclaim our faith in God and how blessed we are. But when we face trials, especially one piled on top of another, doubts will creep in. We want to see God working on our behalf. But often times, the Lord seems to move much slower than we would like. Or not at all.

At least that’s how it might appear on the outside. But we don’t always see or know what God is doing behind the scenes. That’s when our faith needs to kick in.

Faith in times of trouble is a choice we have to make. Will we choose to believe that God is working in our favor? It takes willpower to keep making that choice, day after day.

But the good news is that we don’t need faith the size of a mountain. Jesus said we only need faith as small as a mustard seed.

Charles Stanley put it this way: “We do not need more faith to comply with the Lord’s instructions, but genuine faith. It’s not the amount that matters—even a mustard seed of faith will do. However, it must be based completely on the Lord’s ability, not our own. The almighty power of God can work in an amazing way through a willing vessel.”

My family and I recently saw small mustard seed faith in action, when a family member was in the hospital. Things did not look good and the doctors’ words didn’t bring hope. Suddenly we received good news that things took a positive turn.

I was shocked, as were my family members. I hated to admit that I was shocked because I felt that was a terrible reflection of my faith. But I love how this story brings to life Jesus’ words about having faith the size of a mustard seed.

Even when our faith is small, Jesus hears our prayers and makes up for our lack.

You might be familiar with the words found in Luke 18:1 where Jesus reminds the disciples to keep praying and never give up. I recently stumbled across the Amplified Bible version of this verse and I really loved the extra words at the end. In this version we are reminded to keep praying, don’t give up, and don’t lose heart!

“Now Jesus was telling the disciples a parable to make the point that at all times they ought to pray and not give up and lose heart.” – Luke 18:1 AMP

Wow. I have to say that this really hit home. Over the past year as my family has faced (and continues to face) many battles, it has been so easy to lose heart.

But Jesus reminds us to hold onto faith. He knows some days our faith will be the size of a mustard seed. And that’s okay, because it’s not about us. It’s about Him and what He can do. He is the one that can move mountains. When we remember that, it takes the weight off of our shoulders.

Thank you for reading. God bless!

This is a real mustard seed in my hand. My husband loves growing a vegetable garden and he had some of these available. You can see just how small a mustard seed is!

© 2018-2025 Bridget A. Thomas. All rights reserved.

Category: Seeking God

33 Comments on “Faith as Small as a Mustard Seed”

  1. Wonderfully encouraging. I appreciate the reminder that “it must be based completely on the Lord’s ability, not our own.”

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  2. “However, it (faith) must be based completely on the Lord’s ability, not our own. “

    It’s encouraging to realize that genuine faith comes straight from God. It’s not something we can manufacture and “bring to market” on our own.

    Saving, mountain moving, mustard seed faith is not my own doing. 🙏Lord, increase our faith!

    Blessings, sister. You and your family remain in my prayers. I know well the road you are traveling in losing a loved one.

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    • It’s amazing how Jesus is all we need. And even when our hearts are discouraged, we can still count on Him to stand in the gap. Thank you, David. Your prayers over these many months have meant so much.

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  3. Such a powerful reminder that even the smallest faith can move mountains… It’s comforting to know that God doesn’t require perfect faith, just genuine trust in His power.

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    • I agree, Willie. It really is comforting and takes a lot of pressure off of us. Everything begins and ends with Him. We just have to believe.

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  4. How gracious a God we have to bless us richly regardless of our own measure of faith – hallelujah 🙌

    May He continue to guide and bless you and your family each day Bridget 🙏

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    • So true! It reminds me of God’s grace. We cannot work for it, because it’s a free gift. And faith too is all about what HIM and not us. He is everything we need. Thank you for your kind words, Alan. And may God continually bless you and yours as well 🙏

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    • It’s amazing how The Lord can use even a tiny speck of faith to show us His power. Thank you, Pauline. I hope you and yours are all well.

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  6. I recently finished (re)reading Corrie ten Boom’s The Hiding Place. My human faith might have assumed that, because they were doing a good work, that God would have allowed them to remain hidden, and continue the work.

    As you say, though, it’s not about us. God created circumstances to bring Him glory in His way and timing.

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    • Such a good point. There are many things we can’t understand why God allows. At least not in the moment. But sometimes when we look back we can see how His great plans brought something better than we could foresee. Thanks for sharing that!

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  7. I’m thankful to hear your family member got better! Thank you for the inspiration to keep the faith. I agree that it gets hard sometimes. I am glad the Lord meets us where we are and gives us what we need. Nice seeing your post today! ❤️

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    • Hi Dawn! I’ve missed being here with you and our other friends. It’s such an encouraging community we have. And thank you for the sweet words about my family member… I appreciate how you put that – “the Lord meets us where we are and gives us what we need.” It’s such a gift to know He understands what we are going through, and is there beside us no matter what. ♥️

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  8. Bridget, I found your post very encouraging. I so agree that when things are going well we feel our faith is strong but when something happens, it shakes us. I love what you said that it is indeed based on the Lord’s ability and not ours. I find that I have to intentionally remind myself that often, otherwise I look for circumstances to reflect whether the change is happening rather than trusting that He is working irrespective of whether I can see it or not. Hugs and prayers to you my friend and may we lean close to God and persevere in prayer 🙏🏽

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    • I so want to have strong faith, even when things don’t go well. It’s a choice we have to continually make. But you’re right – it does help when we remind ourselves that it’s about God and His strength. Even when we don’t see Him moving yet, He is trustworthy. Sending hugs back to you. And prayers for you too, my friend. Yes and amen – “may we lean close to God and persevere in prayer 🙏🏽”

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  9. The mustard seed teaching is encouraging because it means that even the faintest of prayers to God in our weakness is heard. The potential the seed has in itself is brought forth by watering and sunlight. If our faith is small, it can grow through being in the Word and spending time with Jesus.

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    • Hi big brother! Due to my lack of hope at the time, I did have a faint prayer when things took a turn in a positive direction. How awesome that God hears even the weakest prayers. He showed me that I need to hold onto faith. And I so love how you compared being in the Word and spending time with Jesus to the seed getting water and sunlight. So very true. During my season of discouragement, the enemy has tried to zap my time with the Lord. But as Christians we see firsthand how our time with the Lord fills us, and that helps us to persevere.

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  10. Love your honesty, Bridget, and your tenacity to hang onto your faith in God in spite of the trials you’ve faced. I’ve always taken encouragement from the early Christians who prayed for Peter’s release from prison. Even when Rhoda said he was at the gate, they didn’t believe her. In spite of their mustard-seed faith, God miraculously interceded for Peter (Acts 12). Praise God for his compassion and understanding–for all of us!

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    • Oooh such a good connection with that story. Picturing them praying and then not believing that God answered is kind of funny actually. But I guess I was in the same boat. And many of us have been at different times, depending on what we are facing. God asks us to walk by faith and not by sight. Yet we often focus on what we see with our eyes. Such a great lesson. Thank you, Nancy! Your comment gave me further encouragement ♥️

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  12. I think when we encounter difficult situations what we truly believe shines through. Experience has taught me that I can trust in the Lord and I’m so grateful for that truth. This is one of Terri’s favorite verses. I hope you are well, Bridget. Been missing your posts. Blessings.

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    • Such a good point. One quote I remember a preacher saying years ago was – “When you squeeze an orange you get orange juice.” This resonates with your words – “when we encounter difficult situations what we truly believe shines through.” That really hits home. I want to show strong faith when difficulties come. And I really appreciate your point about how your experiences have taught you that you can trust in the Lord. I know this year God has really been trying to teach me to trust Him more. Unfortunately some days I am kicking and screaming at the lessons He brings my way. So, thank you for the reminder here, Rainer. I really needed this. I need to remember to trust Him. It’s a choice. And thank you for the kind words. I miss being here with you and our other Christian friends in this community. I hope you and Terri are doing well too. Blessings to you both.

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  14. Hi Bridget. I found your post encouraging regarding the importance of daily choosing faith and trust in God. I don’t think I have always realized how small a mustard seed was and the importance of Jesus’s teaching that even faith of this size can move mountains. However, I am troubled by the second definition of faith by the OED- I get the part of “strong belief in God” and that sometimes we don’t always have proof- at least not to the extent we want in the physical word. What I am tripping up on is I am not sure what they mean by “spiritual apprehension.” Apprehension is worrying about the future and fearful something negative will occur. I don’t see that congruous with faith at all. The only that makes sense as to why the OED would use apprehension is to look at the etymology of the word that connotates “perception or comprehension” (from the Old French) or “a seizing upon, laying hold of; understanding” (from the Latin). Regardless, thanks for the encouraging post. God bless you. (My source for the etymology of apprehension was etymonline.com)

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    • They for sure could have worded their definition better. I get frustrated with definitions of words that have another word I need to look up the definition for 😂 However, I think in this case they mean comprehension or understanding, which is another definition of apprehension. Either way, I’m so grateful for Jesus’ words in these verses. They have brought me encouragement and I’m so glad they did for you as well. Thank you for stopping by. God bless you too.

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    • Hello, my friend! I’m glad this brought encouragement. I needed to hear it too. Thank you for stopping by. It’s always a blessing to hear from you ♥️

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  16. Hi Bridget! How have you been? Here’s a funny…I looked at your picture and thought it was a tick on the hand. Haha. The reason being is that 2 of my relatives recently got bitten by ticks. Nasty creatures.

    Glad it’s the mustard seed instead 😌

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© 2018-2025 Bridget A. Thomas. All rights reserved.