"Increase Our Faith"

 

Luke 17: 1-6 

Sin, Faith, Duty

17 Jesus said to his disciples: “Things that cause people to stumble are bound to come, but woe to anyone through whom they come. ² It would be better for them to be thrown into the sea with a millstone tied around their neck than to cause one of these little ones to stumble. ³ So watch yourselves.

“If your brother or sister sins against you, rebuke them; and if they repent, forgive them. ⁴ Even if they sin against you seven times in a day and seven times come back to you saying ‘I repent,’ you must forgive them.”

⁵ The apostles said to the Lord, “Increase our faith!”

⁶ He replied, “If you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mulberry tree, ‘Be uprooted and planted in the sea,’ and it will obey you.

These short verses challenge us to be on guard, on the alert, for there are stumbling blocks that await to trip us up and cause us to fall into sin or to scandalize others, especially children.  Little do we know how much they hear and see, so we must be careful. Life is not easy and in exasperation we cry out with the apostles for an increase of faith. Jesus tells us even faith the size of a tiny mustard seed is enough, so let's not hesitate to pray for it constantly and put it into practice as best we can.

Dear God, increase our faith and spur us on to live it despite our lapses and mistakes. Amen.