Jesus said to him, “‘If you can’? Everything is possible for the one who believes.”
‭‭Mark‬ ‭9‬:‭23‬ ‭CSB‬‬

Today’s verse is part of one of my favorite passages in the Bible. Mostly because of the verse that immediately follows this one.

Let me give some context. A man has brought his son to be healed by Jesus’s disciples. So far, they have been unable to. Then Jesus shows up. He asks what’s going on, and the man says, “If you can heal my son, please have compassion on us.”

That’s why today’s verse starts with Jesus’s incredulous, “If you can?”

Then Jesus says, “Everything is possible for the one who believes,” and the man comes back with, “I do believe! Help my unbelief!” (That’s the part I like so much.)

Faith is a funny thing. It can seem so fragile and hard to hold, like a wisp of smoke. It seems solid one minute (I believe!), but with the slightest breeze, it is gone (Help my unbelief!)

On the other hand, sometimes faith can seem as solid as a rock. I have faith like a rock that the sun will come up tomorrow at the exact time that is predicted.

Why is my faith so varied? The main difference is experience.

In my experience, the sun has never failed to rise on time, every day for 57 years. So I believe wholeheartedly that it will rise again tomorrow.

How do I go from wispy faith to stone-solid faith in God? With experience. By trusting in God’s promises and seeing how He meets them.

For example, tithing is one simple way to increase my faith. God invites me to test Him with my finances. In fact, it’s the only time God invites me to test Him. He promises that if I give my tithe first and faithfully, I will be blessed beyond my giving.

“Bring the whole tithe into the storehouse, that there may be food in my house. Test me in this,” says the Lord Almighty, “and see if I will not throw open the floodgates of heaven and pour out so much blessing that there will not be room enough to store it.” Malachi‬ ‭3‬:‭10‬ ‭NIV‬‬

I started tithing when I was in high school. And I can definitely testify that God met this promise many times. And my faith was increased with each step toward Him.

And now, I can say my faith is much more solid than a wisp of smoke. However, there are still times, dark and doubtful times, when I must cry out, “I believe, but help my unbelief!”

Dear God,

Thank you so much for proving yourself to me over and over again. I cannot out-give you! And yet my faith in you is still not as strong as my faith that the sun will rise tomorrow. Show me ways to increase my faith. Help my unbelief so that I can accomplish anything you ask of me.