More than we can manage....

“When life piles up on us it makes me question the notion that God does not give us more than we can manage. Fodder for a discussion.” From my email in-box

This appeared in my email at a very apropos time. The 5 days over the Thanksgiving weekend had been horrendous, starting with being rear-ended at a traffic light and ended with my phone dying and needing to be replaced immediately, in order that I could deal with the fallout from the previous 5 days. Add into this mix, a husband recovering from surgery, the expectations surrounding Thanksgiving, doctors and physiotherapy appointments for me, all over a holiday weekend, and it becomes obvious why this email impacted me.

‘God never gives us more that we can handle”, is an oft-heard quote, that never actually appears in the Bible. It seems to suggest a benevolent God, that watches over us, deciding just how far we can be pushed. It belongs to the belief system that has an all-knowing God out there who answers our prayers when we say the rights words often enough. If these prayers aren’t answered, it must be because either we did something wrong, or God knows better.

It is a very comforting thought in one hand and a guilt-inducing one on the other..... after all if it was more than we could bear then it must be our fault. We weren’t good enough, didn’t try hard enough, etc. It discourages us from being vulnerable, because after all being vulnerable says we can’t cope with what God has sent our way! As my friend put it, tongue in cheek, “Yes, indeed, we must pull up our socks. Suffering is good for the soul!” She went on to say, ‘Life does pile up on us and there are times we need physical and emotional support. We are not just weak and needy.”

And we get that support from the people in our lives. People who whether they are aware of it or not, are showing the love that is God to others that they meet, being followers of the Christian path and disciples of Jesus.

A heartfelt thank you to them all! The last 8 months would have been incredibly more difficult without you in our life.

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