"Increase Our Faith"

And the apostles said to the Lord, "Increase our faith."  Luke 17:5

"Increase our faith." There is a statement we've all probably spoken at one time or another throughout our walk with Him.  I know I have in my thirty four years of walking with Him. As a matter of fact I cry out for increase all the time.  Every time I read about someone in the Word doing the impossible or making some great stand for Him it moves me to cry out for more. 

Truthfully, doesn't it make you want to grab a slingshot and some rocks to go after giants when you read David's response to Goliath, "You come at me with a sword, with a spear, and with a javelin, But I come to you in the name of the Lord of hosts, the God of the armies of Israel, whom you have defied." Or how about Elijah. Can't you picture him there calling for them to dump water on his sacrifice for the third time and then He is calling out to God with such confidence and conviction that God will respond, "Lord God of Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, let it be known this day that You are God in Israel, and that I am Your servant, and that I have done all these things at Your word. Hear me, O Lord, hear me that this people may know that You are the Lord God, and that You have turned their hearts back to You again." Then whoosh, fire from heaven! Sacrifice consumed!

I could go on ... speaking to the sun and moon, hanging with lions, speaking to dry bones, shouting at walls, fiery furnaces, building arks, walking on water, raising the dead, and healing blind eyes, lepers, and the deaf.  Every time I see in the Word someone standing for Him and being used by Him in such amazing powerful ways to bring Him glory, it makes me, like the disciples cry out, "Lord, increase my faith!"

The thing is, these men and women who have inspired us with their faith to stand and be used for Him are no different then you and I. They, like us were just normal everyday human beings who had a love for Him.  They, like us had a desire to serve and obey Him. They, like us just wanted to honor Him with their lives! They, like us, had the faith necessary to do what they needed to do! I know this because because Jesus said so.

Jesus had a response to the disciple request for an increase in faith! ...So the Lord said, "If you have faith as a mustard seed, you can say to this mulberry tree, 'Be pulled up by the roots and be planted in the sea,' and it would obey you." Luke 17:6  Just so you know, these words aren't just Jesus giving His disciples a pep talk. They were the answer to the request! They are the "Increase!" He is telling them the secret to great faith is to use the little faith you have! Its powerful enough! It only takes a speck of faith and we all have that or we wouldn't be here.  He told them to use their little bit, their mustard seed faith and speak to the mulberry tree, send it to the sea, and it would obey! It wouldn't have a choice.  It doesn't have a choice!

I don't know about you, but I'm ready to tell the next giant I come across, "Back off, or your is going to lose your head!" The next time a mulberry tree that starts putting down roots where it doesn't belong is going to get to hear  "Take those roots and go jump in a lake!" Increase in faith comes as we believe Jesus when He says our, "little faith" is enough to overcome!