When Life Is More Than I Can Handle - Martin Wiles

Series: The Things We Say

Each time he said, “My grace is all you need. My power works best in weakness.” 2 Corinthians 12:9 NLT

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

Many a well-meaning Christian has made this statement—or some form of it, to someone who’s going through a tough time. To a woman who has miscarried. To a man who has watched his wife walk out and leave him holding the bag—and everything in it. To the wife who has received the news that her husband has just been killed in the line of duty. Or to the child whose parents keep telling him he’s no good and will never amount to anything. 

I’ve heard it said—and maybe have said it myself in the heat of the moment before I had time to think about what I was saying. Perhaps I just nodded my head in agreement with the one who was saying it. Or agreed with the devastated person who said it themselves to me. 

This isn’t the only thing I’ve heard attributed to God or the Bible that wasn’t true—or was at the least misinterpreted. Paul had a thorn in the flesh. Opponents? A handicap? Poor eyesight? Who knows? What it was isn’t important. How he responded is. When God told Paul He wasn’t going to remove it, Paul accepted it. God assured Paul His grace was sufficient to live with it, move through it, and get over it. After all, God works best when I acknowledge my weaknesses. 

The truth of the matter is, God will put more on me than I can handle. 

If I could handle everything, I wouldn’t need God. And many don’t think they do. They use their wisdom, resources, friends, acquaintances, or addictive substances to get through—all the while proclaiming they can pull themselves up by their own bootstraps. 

I suppose I’ve been guilty a few times of thinking I could handle what life threw at me, only to discover I wasn’t as strong as I thought. 

I crumbled beneath the load—or succumbed to the temptation to find something, or someone, to help me get through. 

God puts more on us than we can handle so we’ll come running to Him for guidance and strength. 

So we’ll realize we were created to live life under His authority and love. 

Don’t try to handle life’s burdens on your own. God wants to lighten your load.

Prayer: Father, thank You for handling our burdens so we don’t have to labor under the load of trying to do it ourselves. 

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Throwback Tuesday - But They're Not Like Us - Martin Wiles

But They’re Not Like Us

He was traveling through a region with a history of opposition to his people. She was a native who needed help and didn’t know where else to turn. 

Jesus met this woman in the predominantly pagan region of Tyre. Her daughter was demon possessed, so she didn’t mind approaching a miracle working Jew for help. Jesus’ answer to her request-“First I should help my own family, the Jews (Mark 7:27),” seems unloving, but it was a faith test. Her answer-“But even the dogs under the table are given some crumbs (v. 28),” revealed her trust and resulted in her daughter’s healing. Even though she was a “them,” Jesus accepted her. Read more...

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Flawed but Functional - Martin Wiles

For you are a people holy to the Lord your God. The Lord your God has chosen you out of all the peoples on the face of the earth to be his people, his treasured possession. Deuteronomy 7:6 NIV

Sin had ensnared another victim.

I listened as the newscaster gave a piecemeal report. The leaders of a noted megachurch were meeting behind closed doors. The pastor had planted the church 16 years ago on a college campus. From a small start, it grew into a megachurch with numerous satellite campuses. Thousands flocked to its campuses each week. The following morning, I listened to the newscaster again. This time the news was grimmer. The pastor had been accused of alcohol abuse and asked to step down. 

Had church leaders polled church members for advice on how to handle the situation, they would have been given a wide variety of opinions. Some would want him to stay, some would want him to leave, and some would have given intermediary actions between the two extremes. What will happen to his ministry is also up for grabs. Opinions of those in leadership positions will determine whether he ministers again.

Though God proclaimed His Old Testament people holy, they were often anything but. They dabbled in the pagan worship rites of their neighbors while trying to worship God simultaneously. Their repeated pattern was faithfulness followed by rebellion. God designated them as holy—and expected them to be, but they rarely were. Flaws decorated their lifestyles—just as it did the pastor of this mega church.

Flaws are inevitable.

I was born with a flawed nature. Christ gives me a new one at salvation, but He doesn’t perfect me immediately. I’ll have to wait for heaven to experience that. In the meantime, I’m flawed like the Israelites and the pastor—and all people. I journey toward experiential holiness, but flaws keep me from reaching it in this life. 

But the news isn’t all bad. I may be flawed, but I’m still functional. 

Though this pastor abused alcohol and was asked to step down, God can give him power over his addiction and use him again. God used the Israelites in spite of their rebellion. King David committed adultery, murdered, schemed, and lied, but God still found room in His service for him. And He has continued to use me even though I’ve made many missteps into areas I should have avoided.

You may be flawed, but you are still functional in God’s service. 

Prayer: Father, we thank You for using us even when we fail to be all You want us to be.

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Prayer Changes Things…Or Does It? - Martin Wiles

Series: The Things We Say

Three different times I begged the Lord to take it away. Each time he said, “My grace is all you need. My power works best in weakness.” So now I am glad to boast about my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ can work through me. 2 Corinthians 12:8-9 NLT

I prayed numerous times daily, but nothing changed.

Due to circumstances beyond my control, a life-changing situation had turned my world upside down. Because of the nature of it—and the prevailing belief in the denomination I belonged to--I could no longer serve in the profession I had been in for the past fourteen years. I prayed for God to open a door.

Individual churches had the authority to overlook and understand what had happened and call me anyway. Few did. Hundreds of resumes pummeled the mail system. One church representative called to say having me as a pastor would split his church—a call I thought could have been avoided. Two others called with salary offers no one could live on. Entering another profession seemed my only option. 

During this time in my life, disappointment, discouragement, and depression were my occasional bedfellows. Like Paul, I begged God to remove my thorn in my flesh. Though I didn’t hear His answer, my unchanging circumstances revealed it: “No.” 

Would I learn to do what Paul did—boast about his weakness, or continue wallowing in my self-pity? And, of course, some reminded me prayer changes things.

My prayer seemed to change nothing. Over time, I discovered it had. My prayer changed me. I let go of the bitterness over what had happened and my bitterness toward those who wouldn’t allow me to obey God’s call. Paul learned to glory in his weakness, and I did as well. 

Instead of stewing over my circumstances, I allowed God to use them for His glory. Since then, many have come to me for counsel because of what I’ve gone through—whereas they wouldn’t talk to others who couldn’t comprehend their pain. And in time, God put me back into full-time ministry. 

Prayer might not change the course of a hurricane or tornado, alter the mindset of a spouse who chooses to walk away, modify the course of a rebellious child, or revise the boss’ mind about a layoff, but it will change my perspective on the circumstances which in turn will alter my attitude. And when my attitude changes, so will my response. 

Prayer will change things. If nothing else, you.

Prayer: Father, may we be faithful in our prayers, trusting You to answer them in the manner You see fit.

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Flashback Friday - Chewing Gum for God by Martin Wiles

Chewing Gum for God

“Hey, I’m going home to chew my gum,” he yelled from the bus as my wife and I entered the resale store where we were vendors. I was clueless, although it didn’t surprise me that she would connect with someone by using gum. Only later did the story unfold. 

While working at the store, my wife would occasionally see this physically and mentally incapacitated young man from the Adult Day Care Center parading around in his wheelchair and chewing gum. “Where is my gum,” she would ask, and he would smile. Read more...

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When the Game Plan Changes - Martin Wiles

Trust in the LORD with all your heart; do not depend on your own understanding. Proverbs 3:5 NLT

The week had been slow, but I’d been in full-time ministry long enough to know things can change in a second. And they did.

Besides my normal schedule, all I had planned for the next day was to pray with our church mission team at 6 am. They were leaving for Myrtle Beach, SC. Then I received a call from a church member. Her husband would be having surgery around 7 am. On the way to church that evening, my wife’s brother called. He was on the list to receive a heart transplant and had just left the doctor’s office. They wanted him at MUSC in Charleston, SC, at 4 pm the next day. He had no one to take him. Without the heart, his days were numbered. 

Suddenly, my game plan had changed—a change not only for us but for my two children. Since my wife keeps our grandchildren, a change in our game plan means one in theirs. They have no dependable backup plan so a last minute call from us can put them in a quandary. But they know I’m on 24-hour call and things can change in a moment.

I like to initiate change—when it’s needed and when the end result will entail a helpful alteration—but I don’t like it thrust upon me. I’m a creature of habit, and this change meant getting up two hours earlier as well as a four-hour drive to the hospital—and to an area I dislike. We’d be lucky to get home by midnight. A long day. And I’d have to work from the car. 

Trusting in the Lord with all my heart and depending on Him rather than my own understanding isn’t easy—or always convenient. 

A part of following Him means making myself available to opportunities He sends—even when they change the game plan. Our mission team needed prayer, and so did the man having surgery. My wife’s brother also needed our help. Three opportunities. Three chances to serve.

When God changes your game plan, trust He has a reason. Then enjoy the chance He’s giving you to serve.

Prayer: Father, though we don’t enjoy changes thrust upon us, help us trust that You have a reason. Then prompt us to serve in love. 

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Forgive and Forget - Martin Wiles

Series: The Things We Say

But if you refuse to forgive others, your Father will not forgive your sins. Matthew 6:15 NLT

If you still remember, you haven’t forgiven.

After 17 years—19 if you count the dating part, Sarah called it quits. Walked out and left her husband and two kids. She couldn’t explain why she did it, but she did. Maybe it was because she never wanted to be a preacher’s wife in the first place. She had endured for 16 of their 17 years together. That seemed more than fair. Now the lifestyle was getting to her. She had wild oats to sow she’d never had a chance to sow before. 

John, her husband, was bitter. He couldn’t believe she would do what she had done. Leave it all. Everything they had built together. And leave him with the bills and the kids. He knew what the Bible said about forgiveness—and forgave her. Forgetting was another story. Occasionally, one of his church members would remind him if he didn’t forget he hadn’t forgiven. He wondered how you could consciously forget something.

The Bible—and Jesus particularly--has a lot to say about forgiveness. One thing it doesn’t say is that I have to forget what others have done to me as a part of the forgiveness act. 

Forgiveness is releasing someone from a debt they owe because of a sin they have committed against me. 

Period. Forgetting is impossible unless I experience brain damage or contract a brain disease such as dementia or Alzheimer’s. 

What I can—and must, do is stop dwelling on the infraction.

In my own power, I can’t even accomplish this, but God’s power in me can. John eventually moved beyond what Sarah had done to him and the family. He never forgot it because he couldn’t, but he no longer sought revenge. Neither did he stew over the situation all the time. 

I know I’ve forgiven when I don’t dwell on the injury, when I’m not out for revenge, when I can interact with the person who has offended me if I have to, and when I don’t get angry when I think about the injustice committed against me. I’ll never forget others’ wounds against me, but I can forgive and move on.

Stop trying to forget the infractions others have committed against you. Just forgive.

Prayer: Father, as You have forgiven us, enable us to forgive others who harm us in various ways.

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Throwback Tuesday - The Markings of a Hypocrite by Martin Wiles

The Markings of a Hypocrite

“There’s nothing but a bunch of hypocrites at that church.”

I’ve heard the statement frequently when inviting people back to a church they previously attended or when inviting someone who wasn’t attending anywhere. Usually details followed. _____________, who is a deacon (the normal prime target), drinks, smokes, curses, etc. Or, So and So did something that made them mad. And of course, the old standby: “The preacher…” Read more...

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God Don’t Like Ugly - Martin Wiles

Series: The Things We Say

Don’t you realize that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit, who lives in you and was given to you by God? You do not belong to yourself. 1 Corinthians 6:19 NLT

Hearing about ugly episodes is a normal part of any day.

The early settlers along the James River—in what would become the United States of America, had some ugly in them even though they were responsible for the founding of one of the greatest nations in the world. 

Although the Native Americans helped them survive, the settlers fought with them and eventually pushed them from their land. Soon slavery made its ugly entrance into the young colonies. Africans were imported by the millions and crowded in squalid conditions on ships where many died before they ever reached the colonies. 

As the colonies grew into a country and westward expansion occurred, slavery increased and so did the mistreatment of other Native Americans. 

Ugly didn’t cease once America was finalized with 50 states. Nor is it confined to America. I listen to ugly every day when I hear about murders, rapes, terrorist acts, natural disasters, and other acts of unkindness. I sometimes wonder where the pretty is. 

Since my body is a temple of God’s Spirit, it should be a pretty place.

I’ve never considered myself handsome. I can’t remember girls pining to date me when I was in high school. I had somewhat of an ugly complex. But regardless of how I appear on the outside, my inside can be handsome. 

Sin makes me ugly. 

It’s easy to make light of sin by redefining it, calling it something else, or making it appear less tragic than it is. No matter what I do with it, God still sees it as ugly. Sin is behind the ugly I hear about and see each day. The absence of sin would result in the annihilation of all that’s bad in our world. 

The only way I can keep my temple clean is to accept God’s solution for ugly: forgiveness. 

If ugly will separate me eternally from God, then I better fix it. Accepting what Christ has done on Calvary’s cross allows His righteousness to be credited to my account. Then I’m not ugly in God’s sight anymore. With the help of God’s Spirit indwelling me, my pretty inside will manifest itself outwardly in kind words and admirable actions, making the world a better place. 

Let God transform your ugly to beauty.

Prayer: Father, thank You for the beautiful new nature You offer us through Jesus Christ. 

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Come Out of the Closet - Martin Wiles

In the same way, let your good deeds shine out for all to see, so that everyone will praise your heavenly Father. Matthew 5:16 NLT

She’d been in the closet for five years. Now she was coming out.

Collecting old picture frames with photos of unknown dead people is a hobby my wife doesn’t particularly appreciate. She does love the old frames with the ornate handiwork and will gladly replace the dead person with a modern piece of art.

This particular closet dweller hung on my office wall for three years, eyes following everyone who looked at her regardless of where they stood. Then we moved to our current residence, and my wife said, “No dead people hanging on our walls—except in your office.” 

But my dead girl with the roving eyes wasn’t even allowed there. I convinced my wife not to sell her. Instead, she stuck her in a closet. 

One day when I came home from work, I found my girl leaning against a bookshelf. My wife had cleaned the closet in my study. 

“Why is my dead girl picture out of the closet?” I asked.

“I have a place on the wall you can hang her.” And she did. Now as I walk in every morning, her wandering eyes greet me. I’m glad she got to come out of the closet.

Jesus doesn’t like closet dwellers either. He wants our lights—our good deeds, to shine brightly before others. Putting a light under a cover or shielding it only dims the light or extinguishes it altogether. 

The light I have as a believer is my testimony of what Christ has done in my life as well as how I act out daily the difference He has made.

I don’t have to preach a sermon to tell others what He has done. Because of the snippet-world technology has created, I need to shorten my testimony to the bare essentials so I can share it in a minute or two.

But what I say isn’t nearly as important as what others see.

Words mean little without actions to back them. God gives me numerous opportunities to act out my faith in practical ways. And I’ll see them if I ask Him to give me a gentle nudge when He sends them my way. 

Don’t hide your faith. Come out of the closet.

Prayer: Father, give us the courage to live our faith before others so they will be pointed to You.

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Flashback Friday - Martin Wiles

Casting the Bread

As if things aren’t cheap enough at yard sales, my wife tends to lower them even more.

While participating in a spring fling sale at a local resale shop, a couple with a small child approached our table and poured over our Jell-O molds. My wife--noticing their antics--offered them all three for a dollar instead of one dollar each. A neighboring vendor scolded her…as did I. But she can’t help it. Her heart won’t let her act any differently. Read more...

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