“God won’t give you more than you can handle.”

Ten years ago, when our son Robbie was in the hospital hanging on to life by a thread and enduring terrible suffering, I thought about that statement above. It was one I had heard many times and had probably even said. After Robbie’s hospital experience, I never said it again. It is, at its core, untruth.

I takes the apostle Paul’s words to the Corinthians out of context. Here is what he said:

So, if you think you are standing firm, be careful that you don’t fall! No temptation has overtaken you except what is common to mankind. And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can endure it. ~ 1 Cor. 10:12-13

Clearly, temptation is what Paul is talking about. God always provides a way out of doing wrong and, as Peter says, His divine power has given us everything we need for living right. (2 Peter 1:3a). This in no way says that we aren’t given more than WE can handle. Robbie’s time in the hospital was far more than we could handle. Many other circumstances in our life have been more than we could handle as well. These are opportunities I believe God uses to help us learn just how utterly dependent upon Him we truly are.

The vision God has given me for Lumenations is far more than anything I could accomplish in my own strength, abilities, resources and knowledge. While it clearly meets a need I have seen in the Kingdom all around the world, it is certainly “more than I can handle”. I know that it is not too much for God, though, and I know that I can do all things through the One who strengthens me. As it says above, that’s why we need prayer! If you are reading this and are NOT on our prayer team, would you consider joining? Just click “PRAY” above and fill out the form to join the team.