When God Gives Us Too Much To Handle

I cringe when I hear
these words, “But God will never give you more than you can
handle.” I literally bite my tongue and start twitching. I’ve heard it
said to others and it’s been said to me more times than I can count. The
intentions of those words are meant to be encouraging, but they aren’t. Because
if you are anything like me, when you are standing in the middle of the darkest
season of your life, it IS too much to handle. And saying those words and
believing them is just plain, bad theology.

When those words are
spoken, they often are referring to the passage in 1 Corinthians 10:13
that says, “No temptation has overtaken you that is not common to man. God
is faithful, and he will not let you be tempted beyond your ability, but with
the temptation he will also provide the way of escape, that you may be able to
endure it.” We’re talking about temptation here, not suffering.

Jesus tells us all
throughout the New Testament to not be surprised when suffering comes. He tells
us to even expect it. He invites us to “share in His suffering.”
Suffering is something we all experience. No one can escape it. Sometimes we
think God’s ultimate plan for our lives if for us to be happy. When really His
plan for us is to be stripped of ourselves so only He remains.

That’s a good Father. Giving His children what
He knows is best for them… Him.

Of course He gives us too much to handle. If
He didn’t we wouldn’t need Him. We would do hard by ourselves. Our hearts would
continue to grow more independent of Him, and any victory would be for our
glory, not His. We would miss out on the privilege, the honor, of knowing
intimately the Creator of the universe.

I’m glad He gives me too much to
handle. It takes all the pressure off of me to perform and allows me to
put it back on Him, the Savior, the One who redeems, the One who has already
done it all.

Let me tell you sister, God gives us too much
to handle.

And He does it in the most loving way. His
intentions are truly good, wanting us to become more like Him. So if you’re
like me today, standing in the middle of what feels like total darkness, with
no end in sight, feeling like it’s absolutely too much, just know it is.

So run to Him. Or crawl. Or stay where you are
and He’ll meet you there.

Let Him scoop you up in His big, strong arms. Rest
your weary head on His chest and listen to the cadence of His heartbeat.
Breathe in His nearness. Savor the smell of His faithfulness.

And let Daddy handle it.

Because He can.