I have been going through some trials lately. It hasn’t been easy,and many people have tried to help. Some have encouraged me, and some have not known what to say. Many of those are reduced to using Christian clichés or out of context Bible verses. One made me laugh out loud. “God never gives us more than we can handle.”

I started thinking about the “greats of the faith”. And how they never had more than they could handle? Let’s take a look at just a few of the Biblical accounts.

God told Abram that his new name would be Abraham,and he would be the father of a multitude of nations (Gen 17:5). Abram was 99 years old, and his wife was 90. God promised them a baby. “And he never gives more than we can handle.” Sure, Abraham and Sarah were going to handle making a baby in their nineties when Sarah was post menopause.

Moses, go tell Pharaoh to let my people go! Sure, no problem. I have a speech impediment; I ran away from the law after I murdered someone; I have no authority to appear before the royalty who rules Egypt. No problem! God would never give me more than I can handle, I will run back Egypt right away! That’s not how it happened. Moses argued with God because he knew that it was more than he could handle.

Peter thought he could handle anything. He believed he could stand for Jesus even if he were the only one left believing. “Peter replied, “Even if all fall away on account of you, I never will”” (Matthew 26:33, NIV). But he faced a situation that was harder than he imagined, and he denied Jesus. It was more than he could handle.

Jeremiah preached for 40 years, and nobody listened. He was sad and depressed because it was more than he could handle. Elijah ran away and hid when Jezebel threatened his life. David wrote “My heart is in anguish within me; the terrors of death have fallen on me. Fear and trembling have beset me; horror has overwhelmed me” (Psalm 55:4–5, NIV). Although these men were faithful it doesn’t sound like they could handle everything thrown their way.

After pondering the Biblical accounts and looking at my own life, I realized that God often gives us more than we can handle. He wants us to learn to trust him. He was to be our source and our strength. There is no reason for him to intervene on our behalf if we have it all under control. We won’t receive a miracle if we don’t need one. We won’t depend on God’s unfathomable gifts if we aren’t in a very deep pit.

So my conclusion is that God often gives us more than we can handle. Fortunately it is always within His control. He will manage the problem. He will direct our circumstances. He will intervene with supernatural power that allows us to overcome obstacles that are too big for us to handle. Are things in my life right now more than I can handle? You bet. Are they more than God can handle? No way.

Today my prayer is not “Oh Lord, I should be stronger and feel less overwhelmed because you never give me more than I can handle.” Instead, I pray this prayer that David wrote when he was suffering, “But as for me, I am poor and needy; may the Lord think of me. You are my help and my deliverer; you are my God, do not delay.” (Psalm 40:17, NIV)