More than You Can Handle

I have some people close to me who currently are in the midst of turmoil. One could say they are in the middle of one of "life's storms"...however the magnitude of what some of them are dealing with is like being in a dingy in the middle of the Gulf of Mexico during Hurricane Opal...without a paddle. Big storm, big problems. In my last post I spoke about my fatigue in dealing with my own problems; essentially, I was sick of being consumed with my self. So many times we call things tribulations that are really annoyances. Want some perspective? Take a look around you and see what other people are dealing with; suddenly, your perspective will change and you'll be thankful for what you have instead of focusing on what you don't.
One of my friends was really struggling and someone tried to comfort her by telling her, "Remember, God will never give you more than you can handle!" I was standing near and immediately I felt my hair stand on end. I know the person meant well, but I despise when Christians use this expression. Why? Because, frankly this is just not true and  further is not based on scripture at all. Telling someone this only adds to their defeat. It either makes them feel like they are inept and that's why they can't handle what they obviously should or it leads them to the conclusion that God does not care about them and that is why they are feeling overwhelmed by their circumstances.

Paul tells us that "the temptations in your life are no different from what others experience. And God is faithful. He will not allow the temptation to be more than you can stand. When you are tempted, he will show you a way out so you can endure." (1st Corin 10:13) This scripture lets us know that when we are faced with difficult situations in life, or we feel like we are in way over our heads, our enemy will always be there to offer us a short cut or a way out that leads to sin. God will never allow us to endure any temptation  that we cannot overcome, if we turn to him for the solution. Paul is telling us that we have a choice in any situation...to believe God or not. What is factual is that we will be given situations in life that are more than we can handle. If you could handle everything in life on your own, you would have no need for a Savior. You would have no need for Jesus.

This leads me to my final thought. Trials are where the rubber meets the road. When life is going well, what we believe to be true is not tested. But when life overwhelms us, like a rogue wave on the ocean, this is when your theology becomes your reality. Trials are necessary to test our faith...do you really believe that God uses all things toward your good? (Romans 8:28) Do you really believe that nothing can separate you from the love of Christ?(Romans 8:39) In other words, do you really believe what you say you do? Or is that just what you want others to believe about you? The reality of life is that you are not fooling anyone by telling them what you think they want to hear.  Fiery trials bake the fake right out of us. That is what God is after. He is seeking authentic believers who 'know what they know' because they have experienced God coming through for them time and time again.
"Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance.  Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything. If any of you lacks wisdom, you should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to you.  But when you ask, you must believe and not doubt, because the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind. That person should not expect to receive anything from the Lord. Such a person is double-minded and unstable in all they do." (James 1)  The spiritual paradox about the rogue waves of life is this: the more you keep your eyes focused on Jesus the smaller the waves become and the less effect they have on your person. What once would have knocked you off your feet in the past, can eventually feel like a breaking tide around your ankles. Tribulations become annoyances.