Has someone ever told you when you were going through a tough time, “God will never put on you (trials/tribulations) more than you can bear”? It sounds right and some people even quote scripture to support their argument, but the Bible never makes such a statement nor implies it, either. Rather, God may well put you through trials that are tougher than you can humanly bear, but if He does, there is always a purpose that is involved.
Let me explain. The Scripture that supposedly supports this idea is 1 Corinthians 10:13.
“No temptation has overtaken you except such as is common to man; but God is faithful, who will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation will also make the way of escape, that you may be able to bear it.” (NKJV)
Notice carefully that the verse says, “no temptation...” and NOT “no trial or test.” The Greek word that is used for “temptation” can be used for “trials or tests,” but the context leaves no ambiguity about which meaning God intended. Read the entire passage from 10:1-14 and it becomes clear that God was not talking in this context about “trials, tests, or tribulation,” but rather, about “temptation to evil.” If there remains any question in your mind about it, 10:6 should clear it up for you because the indictment is that the Israelites lusted after “evil things.”
What God has promised is NOT that He will never put on us (trials/tribulations) more than we can humanly bear, but that He will not allow us to be TEMPTED above what we can bear. Whenever we are being enticed to evil, there is ALWAYS a way of escape.
Now that you know this verse doesn’t support the popular opinion that gets shared as Biblical truth, what do we say to those who are enduring difficult trials in life? Paul gives us, from an incident in his own life, the reason God sometimes allows us to be overwhelmed in the midst of trying circumstances (2 Corinthians 1:8-9):
“For we do not want you to be ignorant, brethren, of our trouble which came to us in Asia: that we were burdened beyond measure, above strength, so that we despaired even of life. Yes, we had the sentence of death in ourselves, that we should not trust in ourselves but in God who raises the dead..” (NKJV)
Did you notice that God HAD allowed something in Paul’s life that was MORE than he could bear (“beyond measure, above strength”)? The reason He allowed it was so Paul would come to the end of himself and find God’s resurrection power that could sustain him. Sometimes God allows our difficult circumstances to turn us to Him so that we will trust Him and nothing else. In other words, He brings us to the end of ourselves to help us find that He is all we need. This idea is born out in other passages from Paul’s writings, as well. Take a moment and read 2 Corinthians 11:21-30 and 12:6-10.
Here are some things to consider when you are feeling overwhelmed.
1. Maybe you need to put something down. (Luke 10:41-42)
On one occasion, when Mary and Martha were at the house with Jesus, Mary chose to sit at His feet and worship, while Martha was overwhelmed in preparing the meal. What Martha needed to do was “put down” her pots, pans, etc., so she could worship, too. Sometimes we feel like we’ve been “thrown under the bus” because we haven’t prioritized what is really important in life. When you don’t know what’s most important and can’t let go of what’s less important, you get overwhelmed. Put down the things that are secondary and focus on what is primary.
2. Possibly you need to hand something off. (Exodus 18:17-22)
Moses was trying to judge all of the people of Israel and decide every case himself. When his father-in-law saw it, he recommended that Moses “hand off” some of the responsibility to others so that he could give himself to the things that ONLY he could do. When we feel overwhelmed, it might be that we need to ask ourselves, “is there something I should delegate to another person?” If you think you have to do it all or that you are the only one who can do it right, you end up hurting others, as well as yourself. Many times, it’s our pride that says, “my way is the only (or even best) way.” Maybe someone else won’t do it exactly the way you would, but by allowing them to do it, you are helping them grow and become a part of the greater purpose. In the process you are relieving yourself of responsibility God didn’t intend for you to carry.
3. Certainly, you need to give something up. (Psalm 55:22; cf. 1 Peter 5:6-7)
By this, I don’t mean that you should run up the white flag of surrender and quit living life. Rather, I mean that you need to “give up” to God (in prayer and seeking Him) the things that are overwhelming you. This is the time to ask Him for His resurrection strength to enable you to do what you humanly cannot do yourself. Actually, this is the most important thing you can do and one that should be a constant in all of our lives. This is where you are truly learning to live by faith and depend on Him for everything that you need and this is the reason God has allowed your situation to push you beyond yourself. You need God’s help, but we often won’t recognize it until we are outside our comfort zone.
Feeling overwhelmed today? God is trying to get you to stop trusting yourself and start trusting Him!
