Series: The Things We Say - God Won't Put More on You Than You Can Handle - Martin Wiles

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.” But who says he won’t?

Many a well-meaning Christian has made this statement—or some form of it—to someone 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 said it—or agreed with the devastated person who said it to me.

But that statement isn’t the only thing I’ve heard attributed to God or the Bible that wasn’t true —or at least wasn't interpreted correctly. Paul had a thorn in the flesh. Opponents? A handicap? Poor eyesight? Who knows? What it was isn’t important. How he responded was. When God told Paul he would have to live with it, Paul accepted the bad news. Yet, God assured Paul that his grace was sufficient to live with it, move through it, and get over it. After all, God works best when we acknowledge our weaknesses.

The truth of the matter is, God will put more on us than we can handle. If we could handle everything, we 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 get me 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 he created us 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.

Father, thank you for handling my burdens so I don’t have to labor under the load of trying to do it by myself. 

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