Moving Mountains: Understanding Faith That Transforms

Jesus once said, "Truly, I say to you, whoever says to this mountain be taken up and thrown into the sea, and does not doubt in his heart, but believes that what he says will come to pass, it will be done for him" (Mark 11:23).

Have you ever read this verse and wondered if it's for real? Most of us have never seen a mountain thrown into the sea. In fact, most of us have never even talked to a mountain! So what do we do with this seemingly impossible promise?

Is Jesus Being Literal About Moving Mountains?

Our first inclination is often to explain away Jesus' words. We assume He must be speaking metaphorically or using hyperbole. But what if He meant exactly what He said?

A pastor once shared a story about discussing this promise with his young son. The boy immediately started looking around his room for things he wanted to move. When his father asked what he was doing, the boy replied he was looking for things that needed to move, like his lamp. The father quickly cautioned his son against "tempting the Lord."

The problem? The child took Jesus seriously. The father didn't.

What Does "Have Faith in God" Really Mean?

In Mark 11:22, just before our key verse, Jesus commands, "Have faith in God." These four simple words are revolutionary. They remind us of a fundamental truth: God either is God, or He isn't. There's no middle ground.

If God is who He says He is—the great "I AM" (Exodus 3:14)—then everything changes. His promises become not just possibilities but certainties for those who believe.

Why Our Prayers Are Too Small

Psalm 81:10 says, "Open wide your mouth and I will fill it." Jeremiah 33:3 invites us to "Call to me and I will answer you. I will tell you great and mighty things which you do not know."

Yet most of our prayers suffer because our vision is too small. We pray for details—health concerns, daily needs—but rarely do we pray for mountains to move. Perhaps if we want to honor God, we need to believe what He says and act on that belief by praying large prayers that require God to act.

Consider this story: During a drought in England, a pastor called his church to a special prayer meeting to ask God for rain. Only one person, Mary, showed up with an umbrella. Everyone else came empty-handed. As they prayed, the winds rose, clouds rolled in, and rain poured down. Mary stayed dry while everyone else got soaked.

That's what faith does—it brings an umbrella to a prayer meeting when you're praying for rain.

How to Talk to Your Mountain

For a disciple to cast a mountain into the sea, two conditions must be met:

• You must talk to the mountain
• You must not doubt in your heart

Most people would say the second part is harder—having faith without doubt. But perhaps the bigger challenge is actually talking to the mountain in the first place. If you regularly speak to mountains, people might question your sanity. Yet that's exactly what Jesus told His disciples to do.

Edward Towns, in his book "Say It Faith," argues that God honors those who dare to say out loud what they're asking God to do. There's something powerful about verbalizing your prayers:

• If we're praying for missionaries to reach an unreached people group, say it out loud
• If we're praying for healing, say it out loud
• If we're praying for church growth, say it out loud

When you speak your prayers audibly, they become clear to you, to others, and even to the enemy. It's like Babe Ruth pointing to the outfield before hitting a home run—a declaration of confidence.

Faith Believes in Advance

Philip Yancey defines faith as "believing in advance in something that will only seem logical when seen in reverse." Often God calls us to believe Him for things that, humanly speaking, make no sense. But when we dare to believe God, we see in retrospect how logical it was.

Think about it: We already believe something that defies human logic—that a God-man died 2000 years ago to forgive all our sins. If we can believe that, why can't we believe God for other seemingly impossible things?

The Mountains in Your Life

We all face mountains of difficulty:

• Tasks beyond our strength
• Broken relationships
• Stubborn sinful habits
• Health issues
• Loved ones far from God
• Failing marriages
• Churches that need to grow

One major part of seeing these mountains move is having the courage to speak to them because you believe God can cast them into the sea.

The Timing of God's Answers

In Mark 11:24, Jesus continues: "Therefore I tell you, whatever you ask for in prayer, believe that you have received it and it will be yours."

Notice the change in tenses:

• Present: whatever you ask for
• Past: you have received it
• Future: it will be yours

We are to pray in the present with the assurance that God has already granted our request, even though we won't see the answer until sometime in the future. Because God exists outside of time, the prayers we pray today are certain of fulfillment yesterday, even though we don't receive the answers until tomorrow.

It's like buying a Christmas present in September and hiding it until December. You know you're going to give it, but it's not yet in the recipient's hands. In prayer, our part is to trust God completely while we wait for answers to come.

Real-Life Examples of Mountain-Moving Faith

Consider these examples:

• A small church with only $95,000 needed a new building. Instead of receiving a large check as expected, God provided materials from a failed construction project and a church being demolished. Every door, fixture, light, HVAC unit, and even a $75,000 entrance door came through unexpected means. The mountain moved, just not in the way they anticipated.

• Someone with ulcerative colitis, a supposedly incurable condition, was completely healed after years of prayer. When they visited a new doctor, he asked, "Who told you you had this disease?" because there was no evidence it had ever existed.

Charles Simeon wrote over 150 years ago, "No prayer offered in faith can fail." Sometimes God answers exactly as we prayed. Often His answers come in a different fashion—delayed, substituted with something better, or by giving us grace to bear what won't be removed.

Why Don't We See More Mountains Move?

Mountains fly into the sea all the time. We just don't see it because we're not looking for it.

The only limit on prayer is the will of God. By yourself, you'll never move a mountain. But God can. So when faced with a mountain of impossibility, go to the Lord and ask Him to move it.

Prayer is not a burden or duty but a privilege. We should pray not because we must, but because we want to.

Life Application

What mountain are you facing today? Is it a health issue, a relationship problem, a financial crisis, or something else that seems impossible to overcome?

This week, I challenge you to:

• Identify your mountain clearly. Name it specifically.
• Speak to it out loud in prayer. Don't just think about it—verbalize your request to God.
• Believe God has already answered, even before you see the results. 
• Be prepared to participate in the answer. Sometimes when we pray for God to move mountains, He hands us a shovel.

Ask yourself:

• Am I praying prayers that are too small?
• Do I truly believe God can do the impossible in my life?
• What would change if I started praying with mountain-moving faith?
• Am I willing to be part of the answer to my own prayers?

Remember, the reason we often don't talk to mountains is that we're afraid God might ask us to do something. But like Noah building an ark before it had ever rained, our obedience in faith—even when it doesn't make sense—prepares the way for God's miraculous provision.