We often hear phrases like “God won’t give you more than you can handle,” which sounds super scriptural and holy, but guess what?! They’re wrong! That is nowhere to be found.
When I was 26, my then-husband told me he didn’t want to be married anymore. That was more than I could handle. When I was alone in a foreign country, that was more than I could handle. When I was told that my son would be born with “severe cerebral damage” and possibly never walk or talk, that was more than I could handle.
When our plans of moving back to the Dominican Republic came crashing down, that was more than I could handle. When my aunt and uncle died suddenly in a plane crash, that was more than we all could handle.
When our family was rocked and I walked my kids through things kids shouldn’t be faced with, that was more than we could handle. When I felt discarded, alone, not good enough, and hopeless, that was more than I could handle.
And I’ve watched you too. When your baby died, that was more than you could handle. Or when your child passed away suddenly. Or that friendship heartbreakingly ended. Or the divorce papers came. Or the terminal illness was diagnosed. Or the job laid you off. Or you couldn’t pay your bills. It’s all more than we can handle. And if we rely on a God who promises not to give more than we can handle, we are sunk.
But guess what promises are in scripture . . . He will hold us, He will sustain us, He will walk beside us through our difficulty, He will be glorified in the end.
I can look back now on each of the darkest hours I’ve been through and very distinctly see how God was next to me, sustaining me and pointing me to the exit. Each one of those times has made me into a person who gets it a lot better. I can walk beside you better in your dark times because of where I have been. I can relate.
And I can hope. Because I’m not done. There will be another dark time. And just like He has shown, He will be faithful to carry what I cannot handle. Because that’s who He is. He’ll allow more than we can handle so we learn to give it to Him. He will shoulder the burden. Every. Single. Time.
Originally published on the author’s Facebook page
by Shelby Skiles 
by Jennifer Thompson 
by Kelli Bachara 
