While studying my scriptures one morning I came across the verse in Matthew 27:20 where the Savior teaches that if we have faith the size of a mustard seed, we can move mountains.
I pondered that verse for several days. I am certainly no prophet, and my faith may be much smaller than most, but I was pretty sure I at least had faith the size of a mustard seed! After all mustard seeds are tiny!! You can barely see them! Certainly my faith is at least that big!!
So I thought I would give it a try. There is a mountain by my house I wouldn’t mind having moved. Well, in the spirit of full disclosure, I must admit it really isn’t a mountain. Not by the Rocky Mountain standards, anyway. It is just a small hill. And a hill, I thought, would be a good place to start.
But the hill didn’t move. Not at all. I realize I didn’t really have a purpose to move the hill, other than my desire to say to someone, “Guess what I did today? I moved a mountain! Yep! That is what happens when your faith is as big as a mustard seed! You move mountains! Whether they want to be moved or not. . . .”
But I failed.
And so I continued to ponder the verse.
Then one day I had an experience that gave me some added insight.
Our son-in-law was applying to several graduate schools. The school that had the program he liked the most, didn’t have all the classes necessary to meet his particular needs and so it didn’t appear he would be able to attend there.
One morning my daughter called to tell me they had received an email from the school saying the dean of the college had agreed to adapt the program to his needs and if he were interested, they would love to have him come and be the first student in his specific area of study.
Later that day, in gratitude, I knelt in prayer to thank Heavenly Father for this blessing. While expressing appreciation that the program was being adapted to our son in law’s needs, a very clear voice came into my head saying, “A mountain was just moved.”
And then I understood the lesson the Savior was teaching much better.
We know Enoch literally moved mountains (Moses 7:13) but there was a necessity for him to do so. Most of us, at least at this time in our lives, don’t need to move the Wasatch Front, the Andes or the Alps to a different location. But most of us do encounter obstacles on our paths.
And when the Spirit has confirmed we are on the right path, and an obstacle arises to block our way, we can pray in faith to have the obstacle, the mountain, moved. And then, just as Moses told the people of Israel, as he stood on the shore of the Red Sea,
“Fear ye not, stand still, and see the salvation of the Lord.” (Exodus 14:13)
Lori Wagner,
One Mormon Voice
