By Fin Sheridan

I’ve heard a lot of sermons and preachers talking about faith… and I’ll be honest, they often leave me feeling more discouraged then encouraged. I hear about how I need “more faith” and how I need to “believe bigger” and I really want to but sometimes, I just can’t.

I don’t know how to get more faith. Can I buy it somewhere? Is there a form I should fill in? Is it like a fairground stall where, if I throw 3 rings around some tin cans, I can win some more faith? Just how big is a mustard seed? I’m supposed to have faith that can move mountains? That seems so far from my reality.

All these questions buzz around my head as I explore this faith journey. Maybe it’s just me but I’ve got a suspicion that I’m not alone.

Then, the other day, I heard someone say something that I haven’t been able to shake from my heart.

“It’s not the quantity of your faith that matters. It’s the object of your faith. The tiniest bit of faith in Jesus is far greater than huge amounts of faith in anything else.”

Something happened when I heard this and it’s been changing me since. I felt liberated from the need for “more faith” or even “better faith”. It wasn’t about me at all (hint – it very rarely is… but that’s a subject for another day).

Believing in Jesus is what really matters; not just belief itself. It’s about who I focus on, not just how much I’m focusing. It’s about who I trust in, much more than how much I’m trusting.

The paradox is, when that focus is correct, when I’m really focussed on Jesus, then faith becomes a whole lot easier. Trusting, in both the big and small decisions, starts to feel more natural. More relaxed. More authentic.

When our faith is in Jesus, not in the size of our faith, then maybe, just maybe, we’ll see the mountains move.