Sufficient Little Faith
Jesus told Peter as He drew him from the waters,”O man of little faith. Why did you falter?” Mt 14:22-33
19th Ordinary Sunday Cycle A
Jesus had said initially that even with little faith as little as the mustard seed you can command mountains to transfer. But today Peter almost drowned because as Jesus said he had little faith. His little faith did not help him walk on the water. Is not Jesus contradicting himself with what He said before?
All of us have faith but admittedly also little. Will we also drown like Peter if we attempt to walk on the water? How little is the little faith needed to move mountains?
The gospel episode today gives us an answer. And the answer is this. If you are not afraid then your faith little though it may be is more than enough to work wonders. The secret to little faith is not to be afraid. We read that the apostles were afraid when their boat was being tossed by the huge waves. They were more afraid when they saw Jesus walking on the water, thinking that He was a ghost. Peter was likewise afraid when he felt the strong wind as he got out of the boat. All of the apostles were afraid and therefore their little faith could not help them. We can conclude that if one is never afraid of any storm, winds, or waves, then one’s faith though little would still be enough to survive.
In the first reading instead of a storm at sea, Elijah experienced an earthquake, a strong wind and fire. But when he heard the tiny voice, he covered his face went out of his cave. He was not afraid anymore of the earthquake, the strong wind and fire because he knew it was God’s voice that he heard. Like his faith, the voice though faint and hardly audible was more than enough for him to survive. 1 Kgs 19:9a, 11-13a
What is your storm now? Are you before a brewing storm, or in the midst of one? Or have you just gone out of a tempest? What is the earthquake, strong wind and fire that you are experiencing now. But in all of these do you hear that faint and hardly audible voice of God? Are you then still afraid that your little faith is not enough for you to survive?
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