In today’s reading* the disciples ask Jesus, “Increase our faith!” It is an honest plea that I frankly understand deep in my core. How many times, particularly in the past 12 months have I reiterated those same sentiments. When the world feels overwhelming, when injustice, struggle, and exhaustion piles up, it’s tempting to think we just need more. More faith. More strength. More hope.
But Jesus answers with something unexpected. He doesn’t say “Sure. You’re right.” Instead, he says: “If you had faith the size of a mustard seed, you could say to this mulberry tree, ‘Be uprooted and planted in the sea,’ and it would obey you.”
It doesn’t have to be steady all the time or free from doubt to make a difference. Even a seed-sized bit of faith can take root and grow. Even the smallest glimmer of hope can push back despair.
Reflecting on the AIDS crisis, Dan Savage, a LGBTQ+ community activist, said
“During the darkest days of the AIDS crisis we buried our friends in the morning, we protested in the afternoon, and we danced all night, and it was the dance that kept us in the fight because it was the dance we were fighting for.”
This reflection is an honest reminder that a chance to dance, a small glimpse of joy, even faith as small as a mustard seed, carries real power. Power to push back oppression, to resist the weight of empire, and to remind us that sorrow is never the end of the story. God gives us enough to keep going, enough to keep fighting for justice.
Joy as resistance is about holding on to light in the middle of shadows. It’s the laugh of a friend, a song sung in community, a moment of beauty noticed in the middle of a hard day. Small joys that remind us we are alive, connected, and never alone.
The world would rather keep us tired, hopeless, and quiet. But even a small seed of joy can disrupt that. A little joy can grow into resilience. A whisper of hope can spark change.So when the weight feels heavy and discipleship feels hard, remember this: mustard seed faith is enough. A little joy is enough. A moment to dance, to laugh, to breathe, to think about something other than the burdens that press us down. These are glimpses of freedom, and they are not small things at all. They are the beginnings of transformation.
-- Lindsay Fertig-Johnson, Evangelical Lutheran Church in America
For More...
Listen to this episode of the podcast We Can Do Hard Things with Amanda Doyle, Glennon Doyle and guest, Natasha Rothwell.
