`God won't give you more than you can handle?

There hath no temptation taken you but such as is common to man: but God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able; but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it. – 1 Corinthians 10.13

There are some well-meaning attempts to use scripture to make a point. ‘Money is the root of all evil’ is one of them. ‘Don’t judge’ is another. To me though the worst misuse, because it gives false hope is the phrase ‘God won’t give you more than you can handle.’ I guess it is taken from the verse, but sadly that is not what God says here. God certainly will allow you to face more than we can handle. We are only human after all.

What does this verse mean then?

If we read the whole verse we see what it means. The context is of Israel in the Wilderness. They certainly had more than they could handle, but God always provided for a way to get through the trials. Too often they tried to do it their own way and then they failed. Sometimes they were even punished for their sin.

We certainly will face more than we can handle. We face death of loved ones. We face serious illness in children. We face massive financial problems. This are often just too much for us to deal with.

‘But God…’ I love that phrase. The ‘but Gods’ of the Bible are always the things that turn bad into good. Here it is ‘but God is faithful.’ We can’t handle it, but our faithful God can handle it and He will get us through it. He will provide a way of escape that we can bear it.