Let's say, you're up at 5:00am to be at work at 6. Have a four-hour sales meeting in the middle of the afternoon, or you've got an 8:00am class.

Whatever. Generally, whenever I get up in the morning, or am sagging in a lengthy time of prep work, I look for a quick way to spike my energy level. How about you? When you've been burning the candle at both ends, you hope for a power nap or something to give you a fresh boost.

Traditionally, that role has been served by a strong cup of coffee, or ice cold cola, but these days the latte is passe - the real adrenaline buzz now comes from a can. And a small can at that. Some call it the Red Bull Buzz.

Enter the energy drink.

Hey, need to fly through that midterm? Crack open a Red Bull (it "gives you wings").

Drained after a late night? Attack the day with "Pirana."

Got a big project to tackle? A big task calls for some "Whoop A**."

Cool Fire and Rockstar are other options for you. With colorful names and word of mouth buzz, energy drinks have become the fastest growing segment of the soft drink market, with sales going to a $1 billion this year.

Survey says that 22 percent of college students are slurping down these sugarpacked and caffeine-fortified cans of juiced-up juice. Now there are some 200 brands of energy drinks following in the wake of Red Bull, the over-hyped daddy of them all.

So what's the real attraction? It's probably not the taste. Red Bull, for example, tastes something like "liquid Sweetarts" - really, really sweet. The caffeine is a bigger draw-but get this; I hate to break it to you, but, the reality is that an average energy drink has about the same caffeine content as a weak cup of coffee.

The most-hyped ingredient, though, is "taurine" - a nonessential amino acid that sounds pretty testosterone-fueled: taurine - Taurus - bull (hence "Red Bull"). The presence of taurine in the ingredients has even led to rumors on campuses that there's really something else added to the drink.

What is clear is what energy drinks claim they can do. Here are just a few of the rather vaguely stated "benefits" of chugging one down:

• Improves performance and stamina
• Improves concentration and reaction speed
• Improves vigilance
• Improves emotional status
• Stimulates metabolism

To put it in perspective for the boomers among us, it's the pop culture equivalent of Popeye scarfing down a can of spinach which, when you think about it, it may have been the original can of Whoop A **.

Whatever the situation, whether facing a final or battling a Brutus, the cry goes out from the tired and fragile among us: "Just gimme the juice!"

When the disciples Cry out to Jesus in Luke 17:5, "Increase our faith!" it sound: very much like a similar request for an instant energy boost. "Just gimme the juice!" or "I needs me spinach!"

In verses Luke 17:1-4, Jesus opens our text by telling the disciples (the crowd at large--his followers) that there would be 'hard trials and temptations' and 'things that cause people to sin.' The original meaning of this word group skandalizo- was "trap" -- or more specifically a trap's tripping mechanism. Metaphorically, this was applied to words or actions which could "trap" one's adversaries.

Jesus said that they have a deep responsibility to not "cause one of these little ones to stumble" in sin (vv. 1-2). Little ones aren't children, but those who are seeking truth. Those who have come to Christ, yet who haven't matured.

With this understanding, what are the causes to sin that will confront us? How do we cause others in the community to sin? By our life example.

• One approach is to refer to the previous story in chapter 16 in Luke (Rich man and Lazarus). Not helping those 'less than' right outside our doors is a stumbling.
• Not sharing of one's surplus is a stumbling.
• Not matching our lives up to the word, or not yielding to the Spirit is a stumbling- in our case today
• Not believing in the resurrection is a stumbling.

But the one thing Jesus is bringing home to his disciples-to those following him is this: Be careful your words, actions and even your deeds that would bring attention to yourself out of your own self interest.

This means once again, being a smug, hypocritical insider while those outside our cliques and our church family are in need of holding on to truth.

These "stumbling blocks" can both offend us and be a cause of sin if we don't respond in a godly, graceful way. This would cause a seeker or young Christian to stumble, or to imitate. It would be leading them into error.

Jesus says in v.3 to 'be on your guard', to 'watch out', and 'be alert'. We might expect that after what has gone before, the warning would be against causing others_to sin or sinning against others; but the warning is about dealing with someone who has sinned against us. It is a warning to be a forgiving community.

When someone wrongs them they are to forgive the person who sins against them even "seven times a day" (v. 4). When the verb hamartano (= to sin) occurs in Luke, it is always connected with forgiveness. Just pointing out sin is not the whole story in Luke's gospel. There needs to be forgiveness. The origin of the root hamart- meant "to miss the mark" then "to fail".

It seems to me that often the sins against one another in the Christian community are not "great sins" like stealing, murder, or adultery, but simply the failure of one party to carry through with his/her responsibilities, such as, the assigned usher or Sunday school teacher who fails to show up or to call a replacement, or someone who fails to financial support the church and her ministry.

The persistence and energy it takes to guard oneself and others from wrong and to forgive even the repeat offender is daunting. It's no wonder, then, that the disciples. hearing Jesus' commands, were suffering from a severe case of spiritual fatigue!

Spiritually speaking, the demands of discipleship can leave even the strongest among us feeling tired and defeated. What used to be called "burnout" among clergy and other dedicated church folk now has a new name: "compassion fatigue."

It's that exhaustion that comes from always being in output mode, caring for and nurturing others without recharging the spiritual batteries. It's a deep tiredness that can leave even the most devoted disciple dreading the next phone call, visit, Bible study or even sermon preparation! There's always something to be done and someone to do it for.

It's during these times of spiritual fatigue that we join the disciples in wanting an energy-cranked shot of faith, and we'll try to get it in many different ways.

For some of us, the quick fix that brings the rush of a dynamic spiritual "high" can be found in the

• latest seminar,
• book,
• retreat or program

We figure that all we need is a lot more faith, a lot more time and a lot more energy. We vow to do better and, freshly fueled with new ideas, we plunge back into the grind.

Problem is that when the effect of the proverbial potion wears off, we're more burnt than we were before - our time toasted, our energy exhausted, and people peeved.

Jesus' response to "gimme the juice" is to instead give 'em some advice. The answer isn't more faith or a cranked-up, caffeine-fueled ministry - it's simply embracing the faith you have - even if it's only a little bit.

Jesus uses the metaphor of a mustard seed - the tiniest of seeds - to symbolize the kind of faith his followers should embrace. Over time, a mustard seed grows, matures, and blossoms. But that takes steady nurture, the right. conditions and a patient vision for the long term. In the same way, true faith is the result of the long-haul discipline of discipleship. It starts small and grows gradually, steadily, intentionally.

Sooooo ... truth is, there's no faith-shaped Red Bull buzz. No Piranha faith, or AMP faith, or no can of Whoop A**.

There's Mustard Seed Faith. That's it. But that's enough - more than enough.

If you want to do well on exams, climb the corporate ladder, mountain bike in the Himalayas, pastor a church, lead a Bible study, or serve a neighbor, the real energy for execution isn't found in the bottom of a loudly labeled can. What you really need is proper rest, good nutrition, plenty of good old fashioned water, and, if you're a follower of Christ, a simple faith in God's ability to use you to do the impossible.

Jesus said that even a little faith could cause a mulberry tree, a tree known for its deep and entangled roots, to be uprooted and "planted in the sea" (v. 6). Impossible? Absurd? That's the point. But notice that Jesus doesn't say how long pulling up those deep roots will take. It may take a manic minute or a lifetime, but with faith even the most stubborn, entangled lives can be moved!

What are the impossible tasks in our lives?

• Forgiving others - repeatedly?
• Watching out for others?
• Getting to the root of relationship problems?
• Serving the needs of others?

Here's the good news: The more daunting the task, the more weak we may feel, the more God can work in us and through us if we'll only have faith. Faith is not about our abilitv to do the iob, but God's ability to do the job through us, and we know that with God "all things are possible." All we have to do is slow down, take care, and make ourselves available. Faith is not about using God to help us, but about God using us to help others.

And, because faith is more about God's ability than ours, it also means that God is the one who gets the credit. Jesus goes on to say that we ought not to think that our often times manic approach to ministry is going to get us the recognition we think we deserve.

God is not looking for adrenaline-fueled junkie superstars of faith, but servants who do the simple stuff-and this is what I like about v. 10; who do "only what [they] ought to have done" without seeking the head rush of a reward.

Want to improve your performance as a disciple? Want to really improve your "emotional status" and energy for serving others? Kill the quick fix buzz of activity and people-pleasing performance and dive into the freedom of following Christ.

All it takes is a little, just a little.... bit of faith. That's the real deal!