What is faith? I don’t mean the textbook definition. I’m talking about the kind of faith Noah had when he built the ark knowing it had never before rained. The kind of faith David had when he ran from Saul for 13 years after he was anointed to be king of Israel. The mustard seed kind.

When I was younger, I thought faith was something I could conjure up. After all, how many people were commended in the Bible for their faith? Let’s see…

Matthew 9:2 says:

And they brought to Him a paralytic lying on a bed. Seeing their faith, Jesus said to the paralytic, “Take courage, son; your sins are forgiven.”

And in Mark 5:34:

And He said to her, “Daughter, your faith has made you well; go in peace and be healed of your affliction.”

Oh, and of course the classic – Matthew 17:20:

And He said to them, “Because of the littleness of your faith; for truly I say to you, if you have faith the size of a mustard seed, you will say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it will move; and nothing will be impossible to you.

When I read verses like these, it sounds like I just need to do better. It’ll please God and He’ll bless me if I just have a great big faith. But how do I do that? I’m coming to realize that maybe David-like faith isn’t something I can do. Ephesians 2:8 says:

For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God.

And I love this one in Mark 9:23-24:

And Jesus said to him, “ ‘If You can?’ All things are possible to him who believes.” Immediately the boy’s father cried out and said, “I do believe; help my unbelief.”

Faith the size of a mustard seed is grown by God. As with everything in a Christian’s life, God is the answer.

In an effort to focus my attention on God, I’ve compiled a list of my favorite verses. Each one speaks to me in a different way, but all of them give insight into my God. And in God, my faith is grown.

What about you? What verses or experiences help to build your faith? I’d love to hear from you in the comments.

More reading…

• My Faith Bucket List from HISsparrowBlog
• 5 Things I Wish I’d Known Earlier in Life from HISsparrowBlog