I've often heard it said: "God will never give you more than you can handle."

Even Mother Theresa had a sweet quaint reply to that:  "I know God can't give me more than I can handle.  I wish He just didn't trust me so much."

So sweet, bless her heart!  And what mighty works she did, in such miniscule ways for such diminutive people too.  I love her heart and her struggles and tenacious faith!

So it's hard for me to argue with this sweet sister about the belief about God not giving us more than we can handle.

I know that this saying is supposed to bring relief, but it just ends up bringing shame - like, "Why can't YOU handle it!  Other people do.  Guess you're not cut out for taking care of your own tiny life." 

I think instead of feeling ashamed when we feel overwhelmed, we need to realize that the idea that God won't give us more than we can handle, is not only a misnomer...

...but is totally false. 
Why?
Because if we could handle something - then we don't need God to handle it for us.  We don't need Him at all!

And here's a list of Bible people who couldn't handle situations thrown at them either:

*Could Noah 'handle' saving all the animals of the world (and as many people as he could persuade) from the onslaught of rain that would destroy the world?

*Could Joseph 'handle' his brothers selling him into slavery?  Could he break free?  Could he have defended himself so well that he wouldn't end up in jail?  Even after becoming so powerful - could he prevent a famine that didn't just affect him but those he loved too - that HADN'T prepared ahead of time?

*Could Moses 'handle' the Egyptians pressing on him and his people when all they had behind them was the Red Sea with NO WAT out? Could he handle getting people water when they were dying of thirst in the desert?  Or could he feed the multitudes with anything when there was nothing they could do or raise on that barren sand?

*Could David 'handle' going up against a giant in full armor with no armor on of his own?  He DID try to put on armor, but it was too BIG for him.  Therefore a little defenseless David went against a man who carried a spear that regular men couldn't even pick up. 

*Could Daniel 'handle' a lions den on his own?  What did he do - sit in the den and convince the lions who hadn't eaten in days that he didn't taste good?  "NoOoOooo...you got it wrong.  Humans don't taste like chicken."

Had enough?

Oh wait...
*Could old Elizabeth suddenly be pregnant when she was olllllld?  I mean great-grandma ollllld. Even the Bible said that her womb had 'dried up'.  (Okay, gross AND freeeeeeaky!)

* How about Mary with Jesus?  Or telling her fiancé  "No REALLY! It was GOD!  I wasn't with anyone else!"  (You'da thought that God would have smoothed the way for her, but noOoOoOooo...with accepting what God had spoken over her - she becomes pregnant and has to tell her beloved why *he* was not the first.  (Uhhhh...totally believable.  Mmmmm....yeah...)

*Then there's two-timing Peter...once betrays Christ, now gets to the point where people are laying sick people in Peter's SHADOW so they could be healed!! His actual shadow!  How much you wanna bet that Peter "handled" the ability to do that?

* Then there's the "Get Out of Jail FREE" card that God pulled on Peter.  Peter's locked in prison, destined to die - iron-locked between two guards, with a locked jail cell.  Along comes an angel -- *boop* -- the chains come off - while the guards still snoring!  Then the angel swings open the door to the jail...

....Peter walks out...

...goes to the House Church where people are praying for them...

...tries to open the DOOR to the house...

...and it's LOCKED.


He can't get in.

I can imagine how this scene could  have played out:

With an incredulous look on his face, Peter realizes he is locked out of a house with a simple lock, even after being freed from a LOCKED JAIL with tons of padlocks!!

(Up in heaven looking down, Jesus face is filled with tears rolling down his cheeks from laughing so hard as he watches Peter rattle the door.

"Hooo-boy!! That's a good one, Dad!!  Wait...wait! Watch - he's trying to open the door again!  Buhahahahhaaaaa!!!"

Peter's stares at the locked door and then look up:  "Very funny, God.  You bringing that angel back or something? Can he unlock THIS door too?"

Suddenly, the door swings wide open. The servant girl, Rhoda, answers the door - and with eyes as wide as the open door frame squeels with delight when she sees him!! He's about to enter, when she accidentally flings the door shut, so she can tell everyone that their prayers have been answered, because Peter is HERE!

While Rhoda is sharing her story - frustrated Peter is still standing ...at the door of the locked house.

Again.

(I imagine by this time both Jesus and God are just laughing sooo hard at Peter's confused and annoyed look, they're bent over in howls!!)

Peter looks up towards the heavens with a mock scowl. "Oh just wait till I'm with You!  You are SO going to get an earful from me about this!"

But as he stops to think about the irony of this whole situation, he starts chuckling at the silliness of it too.  :)

Sooo...

All this to say is - Peter couldn't get out of a locked prison on his own, nor could he get into a locked house full of people that were praying for him to be freed.

Peter didn't have a clue or a key how to do it.

And you know what, friends?

Neither do we.

Nor are we suppose to.

God wants to be God in our lives.  All our lives. The stuff that is simple.  The stuff that is hard.  All the stuff in between. 

No He's not going to be some kind of prankster God.  I don't even know if in Peter's situation if it really was a joke among them...but just in reading the story, it's as if you can feel the winks of ribbing going on - that only someone looking for those hinted "Easter eggs" in a story can really appreciate.
Do not worry dear one.  There are going to be times where you won't be able to "handle" what's going on around you.  But that's okay. 

There is One who can.

And He's got the whole world in His hands.