Greetings in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit!
“Then Peter got down out of the boat, walked on the water and came toward Jesus. But when he saw the wind, he was afraid and, beginning to sink, cried out, ‘Lord, save me!’” (Matthew 14:29–30)
Faith.
It’s a word we hear often. Sometimes it feels inspiring. Other times, it feels distant. Like a beautiful but fragile thing—something reserved for extraordinary people in ancient stories, not ordinary people like us.
But faith isn’t just a story for the past. It’s the very heartbeat of a life connected to something greater than ourselves. And it’s not always big or bold. Sometimes it’s as small as a whispered prayer. Sometimes it’s as shaky as a trembling hand reaching out in the dark.
When Jesus taught about faith, He didn’t paint pictures of superheroes. He spoke of mustard seeds—tiny, ordinary seeds that grow into something extraordinary. He spoke of faith that moves mountains, but He also asked, “When the Son of Man comes, will He find faith on the earth?” (Luke 18:8)
He wasn’t asking because faith would be easy or common. He asked because faith is precious. It’s a choice. A step. A journey.
Today, we’re going to explore what faith really is—not as something unattainable, but as something that meets us exactly where we are, even in our doubts. Especially in our doubts.
Because true faith is not the absence of doubt. True faith is moving forward even when doubt whispers at our heels.
Faith Is Stepping Even When You’re Afraid
It happened on a night when everything seemed against them. A group of tired fishermen found themselves trapped in a fierce storm on the Sea of Galilee. The winds howled. The waves pounded their small wooden boat. They strained at the oars, battling the waves, fighting to stay afloat. Fear gripped them.
And then—out of the darkness—they saw a figure walking toward them on the water.
Imagine the moment. The terror. The confusion. Was it a ghost? Was it a trick of the storm?
But then they heard a voice, familiar yet mighty, cutting through the roar of the wind:
“Take courage! It is I. Don’t be afraid.” (Matthew 14:27)
It was Jesus.
And Peter—impulsive, passionate Peter—did something no one else dared to do. He spoke up:
“Lord, if it’s you,” Peter replied, “tell me to come to you on the water.”
‘Come,’ he said.” (Matthew 14:28–29)
And Peter stepped out of the boat.
Picture it: the first foot landing on churning water, somehow holding. Then the second. For a moment, he did the impossible. He walked on the water toward Jesus.
But then the storm caught his attention again. The wind whipped around him. The waves towered. His eyes slipped from Jesus to the chaos around him. Fear took hold. Doubt flooded in.
And Peter began to sink.
“Lord, save me!” he cried. (Matthew 14:30)
Immediately—without hesitation—Jesus reached out His hand and caught him.
“You of little faith,” he said, “why did you doubt?” (Matthew 14:31)
Notice carefully: Jesus didn’t scold Peter for stepping out. He didn’t wait for Peter to drown as a lesson. He caught him.
Peter’s faith wasn’t perfect. It wavered. It stumbled. But it was real. He dared to step when others stayed. He dared to reach for Jesus even when fear pulled at him.
This is a picture of faith—not flawless confidence, but courageous dependence.
Faith is not about never feeling afraid. Faith is about stepping anyway.
Sometimes we think faith means having all the answers, feeling no fear, standing strong without a tremble. But the truth is, real faith often looks like stepping out of the boat with shaking knees. It looks like trusting Jesus more than you trust the storm.
It looks like hearing Him say, “Come,” and deciding that His voice is louder than your fear.
Because storms will come. Waves will rise. But if we fix our eyes on Jesus, even trembling steps become holy ground.
Hebrews 11:1 defines faith this way:
“Now faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see.”
We don’t see the whole path. We don’t know how the storm will end. But we know who is calling us forward.
Faith isn’t the absence of fear. It’s choosing Jesus over fear. It’s lifting one foot, and then another, even when the winds howl.
And if we sink?
He is right there, with an outstretched hand, ready to lift us up again.
Every small step toward Him is a victory. Every trembling moment of trust matters.
Faith is not about being fearless.
It’s about stepping out in love, in trust, and in hope—even when you’re afraid.
Faith Is Small but Powerful
When Jesus talked about faith, He didn’t describe it as a towering mountain of certainty or a flawless performance. Instead, He described it with something almost invisible: a mustard seed.
“Truly I tell you, if you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it will move. Nothing will be impossible for you.” (Matthew 17:20)
A mustard seed is tiny. You could lose it between your fingers without even noticing. Yet, from that tiny beginning, a mustard plant grows tall and strong—far beyond what its small size would suggest.
Jesus’ point was clear: It’s not the size of your faith that matters. It’s the size of your God.
Sometimes we think great faith looks like never questioning, never hesitating, never feeling weak. We imagine it as standing on a mountaintop shouting prayers with total confidence. But Jesus painted a different picture.
Real faith often feels small. Fragile. Sometimes it’s just enough to whisper, “Lord, help me believe.” (Mark 9:24)
Sometimes it’s the simple act of showing up at all.
Because here’s the truth: Every step of faith carries some measure of doubt.
Every act of trust, every prayer we dare to pray, every decision to hope again—all of it is touched by questions we can’t fully answer. But that doesn’t mean our faith is invalid. It means it’s real.
Doubt doesn’t disqualify faith. It often proves it.
You don’t wrestle with something you don’t value. You don’t struggle toward something you don’t believe matters. Doubt isn’t the enemy of faith—it’s often the sign that you’re reaching for something bigger than yourself.
And yet, the invitation is not to stay stuck in doubt. It’s to let faith have the final word.
Faith isn’t about pretending doubts don’t exist. It’s about not letting doubt drive the boat. It’s about not letting doubt steer your life. It’s about choosing, even in the questions, to move toward Jesus.
James 1:6 reminds us,
“But when you ask, you must believe and not doubt, because the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind.”
Faith steadies us. It anchors us not because all the storms go away, but because we fix ourselves to the One who stands above them.
And even mustard-seed faith—trembling, questioning, halting—can move mountains when it’s placed in the hands of the living God.
It’s not about how tightly you can hold on. It’s about trusting that He is holding on to you.
A whisper of trust. A faltering prayer. A broken but willing heart. These are the offerings God cherishes.
“If you have faith as small as a mustard seed…” (Matthew 17:20)
That’s enough.
Enough for God to move mountains in your life.
Enough for healing to begin.
Enough for grace to flood in.
Enough to walk through the storm and still believe that light will come.
You don’t have to manufacture a perfect faith. You just need to offer your small, trembling trust to the One who is faithful—and He will do what you cannot.
That’s the power of mustard-seed faith.
It’s small.
It’s honest.
And it’s more than enough.
Faith Is Fixing Your Eyes on Jesus
There’s a simple but powerful reason why Peter walked on water—and why he began to sink.
When his eyes were fixed on Jesus, he did the impossible. He walked above the storm.
When his eyes shifted to the wind and the waves, fear overwhelmed him, and he began to sink.
It wasn’t that the storm suddenly became stronger. It was always there.
It wasn’t that Jesus moved away. He was right there.
The difference was where Peter placed his gaze.
Faith isn’t about denying reality. The waves were real. The wind was strong. Life throws real storms at us—illness, loss, disappointment, fear. Faith doesn’t ask us to pretend these things don’t exist. It asks us to keep our eyes on the One who is greater than the storm.
Hebrews 12:2 tells us:
“Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith.”
Jesus isn’t just the beginning of our faith. He’s the one who carries it through. He’s the author and the finisher. He calls us, equips us, strengthens us—and one day, He will complete what He started in us.
Faith isn’t a one-time decision we make at an altar or in a moment of emotion.
It’s a thousand daily choices.
– To lift our eyes from fear to the face of Christ.
– To remember His promises when life feels uncertain.
– To stand up after falling.
– To take another trembling step toward Him, even when yesterday’s faith felt fragile.
This is what it means to walk by faith, not by sight (2 Corinthians 5:7).
And we don’t do this alone.
The Holy Spirit—the very breath of God—is at work within us.
He witnesses to our hearts when doubt whispers loudly.
He reminds us of the words of Jesus when our memory fails.
He strengthens knees that feel too weak to stand.
He doesn’t demand perfection. He simply invites participation.
Romans 8:26 says:
“In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness.”
Step by step, breath by breath, we are being built up into people who live by faith—not because we are perfect, but because we are being made new, and day by day.
And every small step matters.
Every time you lift your eyes from your circumstances and fix them on Jesus, heaven rejoices.
Every time you get up again after falling, grace floods in.
Every time you take one more step, even with a trembling heart, your faith grows.
Because faith isn’t just about believing something—it’s about trusting Someone.
It’s about trusting the One who loved you enough to walk to the cross.
It’s about trusting the One who conquered death so you could walk in life.
It’s about hearing Him say, “Come,” and daring to answer, even when the waves crash around you.
The storms will come. The winds will howl.
But when your eyes are fixed on Jesus, you find a strength the world cannot explain.
A peace that doesn’t depend on the absence of trouble.
A hope that anchors you when everything else shakes.
Faith is not the absence of storms.
Faith is keeping your eyes on Jesus in the midst of them—and stepping forward, one step at a time.
Summary: Faith Is Stepping, Trusting, and Hoping Again and Again
So what is faith?
Faith is not the absence of fear. It’s the courage to step forward even when fear is still whispering loudly in our ears.
Faith is not the absence of doubt. It’s choosing to move toward Jesus even when our hearts still have questions. Doubt does not erase faith. Often, it is the soil where faith takes root and grows stronger.
Faith is not the guarantee of a smooth or easy path. It’s the assurance that no matter what path we are on, Jesus walks with us—guiding, strengthening, lifting us when we fall.
Faith can be as small as a mustard seed, but it carries the power to move mountains.
It can look like a trembling step out of a boat.
It can sound like a whisper of trust in the middle of a storm.
It can feel like fixing your eyes on Jesus, even when the waves around you are high.
Faith is daily. It’s messy, but it’s beautiful.
It’s getting up again after falling.
It’s praying again after silence.
It’s daring to hope when everything in the world says hope is foolish.
And through it all, the Holy Spirit is with us—strengthening what is weak, encouraging what is tired, building what feels broken. We are never walking alone.
When the Son of Man comes, will He find faith?
Not perfect faith. But real faith. Living, breathing, persevering faith, hoping and trusting in Him.
Today, you are invited into that life—not a life of flawless belief, but of real trust in a real Savior.
“Now faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see.” (Hebrews 11:1)
You are seen. You are called. You are loved.
So lift your eyes, take the next step, and walk in faith.
Let’s pray together.
Lord Jesus,
We thank You that You call us not to perfection, but to trust. Thank You for loving us even when our faith feels small and shaky. Thank You for reaching out Your hand when we sink.
Today, we bring You our fears, our doubts, and our hopes. Teach us to fix our eyes on You. Strengthen us through Your Spirit to stand again, to step again, to hope again.
Grow in us the mustard-seed faith that moves mountains—not because we are strong, but because You are.
Bless each heart here today. May we know that we are loved, held, and carried by You. And may our faith, small and simple, shine bright in this world because it rests in You.
In Your name we pray, Amen.
“Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith. For the joy set before him he endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.” (Hebrews 12:2)