His Encouragement #27

Happy Thursday! I am blessed to be a part of a group of bloggers who feel led to share a bit of encouragement each week from the Bible. We recognize that the source of our peace, strength, and security in this life comes from Jesus, and we aim to share that with our readers. Plus, when Thursday comes around, we can all use a little encouragement right? I hope that this posting blesses you and that you find strength and peace in the Lord today ❤

This week it’s on my heart to share:

No temptation has come upon you except what is common to humanity. But God is faithful; he will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation he will also provide a way out so that you may be able to bear it.

1 Corinthians 10:13 (CSB)

One of my cousins-in-law is a pastor at a local church. I recently started attending his Sunday night services, and one of those messages has really stuck with me. He recently did a short series on “Christian Clichés.” Each week he took a few common clichés people use and examined them to see if they should really be used or not. It makes perfect sense that the first one he discussed was “God will never give you more than you can handle.” I’ll admit my ears have been perked to hearing when people say it now, but I don’t think I ever noticed just how often it’s used. The most interesting thing about it– it’s not what scripture actually says!

The phrase itself comes from the above passage in 1 Corinthians, but it is used almost exclusively out of context (human tragedy). The big word that’s missing is TEMPTED. God never said He wouldn’t give us more than we can handle, but He did say He’d never let us be TEMPTED more than we can handle. He will always provide us a way out. In truth, God often does allow more than we can handle, so that we are able to realize our need for Him. If we didn’t see a need for Him–why would we look to Him? Another thing is that the cliché essentially blames God for all of our temptation and heartache but temptation is actually coming from Satan, and many things happen because of the sin in the world. God allows us to be tempted and allows bad things to happen, but that doesn’t mean they are from Him.

If we allow people to believe the statement that God won’t give them more than they can handle, then we are crippling them in their walk with the Lord and their fellowship with other believers. If people truly believe the statement, then when things get too tough for them they will start to look inward instead of upward. “If God won’t give me more than I can handle, then there must be something wrong with me that I can’t handle it.” Instead of calling out to God for the help and hope they need– or even asking for help from fellow believers– they isolate and withdraw at the time that they need support and fellowship the most.

Instead, what this passage does say, is that God will allow us to be tempted in this life, but He will always give us a way out. It’s human for us to sometimes see our situations as unique, but the sin itself hasn’t changed. God will give us what we need to stand against the sin we face if we look to Him. Does that mean we will never sin again? No, we are still human. But over time we are able to become more Christlike by turning from our sin and looking to our Heavenly Father.

I hope this message encourages you this week. If you feel like God has given you more than you can handle, run to Him! He loves you and will comfort you. Your situation itself may not change, but your relationship with God will in a deeper, more vulnerable way. Don’t be afraid to reach out if you need help. God gave us fellowship with other believers for a reason too.

This week I will actually close with 2 worship songs because I couldn’t decide which one to include. The lyrics in my head were “it’s okay to not be okay” which come from the song “Exhale” (2nd song below), but I couldn’t help but notice “Need You Now” on the YouTube page as well. I think both are relevant to the message though, so I included both of them. I hope you have a blessed rest of the week and pray for God’s comfort and peace over you whatever situation you may be in.

Now, it’s your turn!

What Biblical verse is encouraging you today?

And, check out more Thursday Encouragement from my fellow blogger friends:

Nicole @ Christian Fiction Girl

Trisha @ Joy of Reading

Jacquelyn @ A Heavenly Home

Jessica @ A Baker’s Perspective

Jenny @ Author Jenny Lynn

Gina @ Stories By Gina

If you would like to join us: please contact Trisha or Nicole