More Than We Can Handle

Jesus Moses Elijah

“ The Lord is my strength and my shield;
in him my heart trusts, and I am helped;
my heart exults,
and with my song I give thanks to him.” Psalm 28:7

We often hear Christians say “God will never give you more than you can handle.” They mean well when they say this, trying to offer comfort to those who are being crushed in this life by the burdens of illness, loss, poverty, addiction, and other trials. The idea behind the comment is that God is in control, He loves us, and will not let us be crushed by the weight of life. But, the message is a direct contradiction of the message of the Bible, and it consigns those who follow it to a life of struggling to carry all that weight alone.

If God never allowed our lives to have more trouble than we could bear, what would be the point of faith? Many of us never find God until we have tried for so long to carry the burdens of our lives our alone that we have become broken by them. This message of God never gives us more than we can handle leaves us feeling stranded. It gives us a sense of failing to live up to God’s expectations for us. At its core it tells us that if we cannot handle the strain of the difficulties in our lives it is because we are not strong enough.

Yet, the Bible is filled with stories of those who were not strong enough. Jeremiah was too young and he was afraid of the task God had set for Him. Elijah ran away from Jezebel. David had to face a giant. Moses ran away from Pharaoh’s household as a refugee sheep herder in the desert. Job had his entire fortune and family wiped out. The end of these stories are all ones of overcoming, but it was not by their strength that these trials were endured and their great deeds were accomplished.

God does not promise that He will not give us more than we can handle. He does promise that there is nothing that His strength cannot handle, and that He will be with us through the acceptance of Jesus Christ and the indwelling of the Holy Spirit. Whatever you’re carrying today, lay it down, let your heart trust in Him and with your song give Him thanks, for you will be helped. Be blessed and be a blessing.

Prayer

Daddy, we are so weary and burdened. The weight of our lives makes us word and frail. We cannot carry it alone. Help us to place our cares and troubles in Your hands today. Send You peace in the Spirit and increase our trust in You. Daddy, help us sing Your praise as You give us rest. In Jesus Name, Amen.

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