If you have faith as a grain of mustard seed ...

If you have faith as a grain of mustard seed, you will say to your mountain, """"MOVE!" and it WILL move... and NOTHING will be impossible for YOU! - Matthew 17:20 Consider the lowly mustard seed this morning. Although there is much controversy over what plant Jesus actually referred to (some claim there are huge mustard trees, others claim that true mustard is a bush, while others prefer to believe Jesus spoke of ordinary mustard ... like the picture here... ) the fact remains that a tiny seed harbors within itself the ability to sprout and grow into a living plant much greater than itself. But how does it do that? If we are to believe the teaching of Jesus, it does it by faith ... and if we have this faith we can move mountains. The lowly mustard seed can lie dormant for years, but given water, warmth and good soil it will sprout and flourish. It doesn't worry that it cannot grow. It doesn't spend its days begging for water or praying for the sun. It doesn't fear that perhaps it is not good enough or smart enough to grow. It simply trusts that within itself lies everything it needs to sprout and grow into exactly what it was meant to be. I always thought having the faith of a mustard seed meant to have tremendous faith, something I had to work hard to attain. But the seed doesn't work hard. It doesn't need to study or perform specific tasks. All it needs is the quiet faith of knowing it will become something much greater than itself. How much greater are we than the tiny seed, and yet we lack faith. Have faith in yourself today and let the seed of who you are sprout and bloom. Today, I am grateful for the bright winter sun as it glistens on the snow, for houseplants that thrive throughout the long winter days, and for my garden of flowers that waits under the snow ready to grow and bloom when spring returns. I am grateful for those I love and for those who love me. I am grateful to be alive and for the chance to share my thoughts with you. And, I am grateful for you, dear reader, as you stop to share my day. May your day be filled with joy and peace and may you find the faith of a mustard seed that will set you free.