Hebrews 11:1- DEFINITION OF FAITH But faith is, the substance of things hoped for (assurance that gives confidence for our expectations and desires), the evidence of things not seen (a conviction of facts when they are not yet observable by our physical senses).
Matthew 17:20- PROPORTION OF FAITH "And Jesus said unto them... If ye have faith as a grain of mustard seed, ye shall say unto this mountain, Remove hence to yonder place; and it shall remove; and nothing shall be impossible unto you."
In other words, you don't need huge faith to address big issues, you need productive faith! Productivity is the hallmark of a seed; the mustard seed is very tiny, but is highly productive.
WHAT MAKES FAITH PRODUCTIVE? 1. Obedience. Rom. 16:26 2. Love. 1Cor. 13:2, Gal. 5:6 3. Holiness. 1Tim. 2:15 4. Soberity. (i.e Discretion, modesty, self-control, sensibleness). 1Tim. 2:15 5. Pure Conscience. 1Tim. 3:9 6. Patience. Heb. 6:12 7. Works. James 2:17-26 8. Diligence. 2Pet. 1:5 9. Virtue. 2Pet. 1:5 10. Knowledge. 2Pet. 1:5
The deception of the 21st century, a century of fast foods and 1 minute drive-throughs is to want immediate results, but Faith operates on the principle of eventuality, not the principle of instancy. Faith guarantees your result, but the speed of productivity (the time it takes for your faith to translate into physical reality) is determined by the 10 things listed above (and beyond that, the sovereignty of God).
God is sovereign, hence, he cannot be coerced to follow our 'orders'. That's why intimacy with God is extremely important so that we don't make a shipwreck of our faith, asking for things that God is not giving us.
Finally, God's promises does not depend on our Faith, rather, our Faith depends on God's promises... If God didn't promise it, you can't have Faith for it! "So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God."- (Romans 10:17)... The thin line that differentiates faith from mere hope/wishful desire is that there is a word from God; one MUST get a word from God before releasing Faith.
Shalom!