Last spring, right before my daughter turned one I had a lot of fun teaching her a little basic sign language. I was so excited when she began to sign back to me. It was a great way for us to start to “talk” before she had any words she could say. From the beginning Alexa had one favorite sign MORE and soon she used it for everything. More food, more stories, more swinging, more mommy. Simply by tapping her fists together she was able to get whatever she wanted.

I know I am a little like my daughter. I am often looking for more, but my requests are often a little harder to fill then my daughter’s. You may be able to relate, if you have ever felt the need for more rest, more money, or a little more time.

Jesus’ disciples were a little like this too. In the Bible they ask Jesus for more faith. Jesus answers this request in a rather puzzling way, saying that if they had even the faith the size of a mustard they’d be able to uproot a tree and replant it in the sea. For those of you non-horticulture majors a mustard seed is very small only about one or two millimeters long. So Jesus claims that with just a time bit of faith the impossible, like planting a tree in the ocean, become possible.

Wanting more faith is not an unusual request. I believe we all have times where we doubt and despair and wish for more faith. Times when we worry our faith cannot be enough because it seems so weak. Often college, when you have moved away from your family and support system, can be a time when your faith seems dried out, maybe even nonexistent.

So you, like the disciples, may have worried that your faith isn’t enough and have begged for a little more, hoping to make things a little easier and to feel a little more reassured. In telling the disciples they only need the faith the size of a mustard seed, Jesus is teaching them about the nature of faith. You see, faith isn’t a substance that you can measure or count. It’s not something you can add to, subtract from or measure in anyway. Faith is not about an amount, it is about a relationship. Therefore, what matters is not how much faith you have, but who you put your faith in.

You may have learned this the hard way. When we put our trust in the wrong people we can end up badly burned. Perhaps you have learned to be careful who you put your trust in. After all the more you trust the more it hurts when they let you down.

But our relationship with God is not like our human relationships. When we put our trust in God all things are possible. Therefore, Jesus does not want us to spend our time worrying about whether or not we have enough faith; instead, he desires that we delight in the Lord. When we are able to drop the fear and worry that can consume us, our lives are open to God in a whole new way. We are able to see the blessings and gifts God has given us and trust Him to guide our lives. Then instead of asking for more, we are able to delight in the time, the resources and the relationships that we already have.

Vicar Amy Martinell can be reached at amartinell001@luthersem.edu.

#1.1668955:4106007149.jpg:Columnists/AmyMartinell.jpg:Vicar Amy Martinell:File Photo

From Animal House to Old School, if you are watching movies about college it might seem that the hardest decision you will have to make in your college career is whether to get the Busch Light or spring for the more expensive Bud Light. In actuality you will be making big decisions that will impact the rest of your life and spending your time searching for much more than where the best party will be this weekend. Instead (or maybe in addition) you have been searching through the construction looking for all of your classes, looking for something fun to do, looking for a major. Perhaps you’re looking for new friends, looking for a job, looking for a new major, looking for a person to spend the rest of your life with or looking for the person you will be. Just listing all of these options makes me feel exhausted and a little frightened. From the outside college may look like a big party, but from the inside it can be a time of conflict, uncertainty, and stress as you wrestle with major life decisions.

The worst part may be that things are always changing. If you are like me, change is not something you necessarily welcome and embrace, but unfortunately it is unavoidable. Once you locate all your classes they change for the next semester, once you pick a major you realize it’s not what you want to do, and once you finally get your dorm room perfectly arranged it will be time to move out. Along with the inevitable changes there are also those changes you won’t expect, such as growing apart from a close friend, the end of a long-term relationship or losing the job you thought was going to turn into a career.

In your college journey you will continue to change dorms, roommates, jobs, majors and a million other things, but you may find that what changes the most is you. There are many opportunities in college to have life changing experiences. Whether you become a hospice volunteer, travel abroad, work on a challenging internship, play D-I sports or join a new club or group, chances are “the you” at the end of college may not resemble the scared, cocky or confused person who started here.

In times like these it is more important than ever to have something to believe in, something that will stay constant in your fast-paced, ever-changing world, especially when you are a fast-paced ever -changing person. I hope faith can be that for you; the thing that grounds you and what you cling to when everything else is changing. No matter how much your world is changing, Jesus’ promises stay the same. In fact, there is no change you can make that will separate you from God’s love. In those times of confusion and transition you will find that God’s love never wavers.

Yet, faith does not guarantee answers and it will not save you from all the changes and agonizing decisions. Actually, it may give you even more to wonder and change your mind about. A faithful relationship with God may lead to you changing how you spend your time, who you hang out with and perhaps, the career you choose. However, faith can provide you with a community to wonder with, scripture to be grounded in, and the basis for your hope even in the deepest moment of conflict. Most importantly, no matter how many changes you make you cannot wander so far away that you are outside of the love of God.

Vicar Amy Martinell can be reached at amartinell001@luthersem.edu.