There’s a common phrase that gets kicked around in Christian circles, “God won’t give you more than you can handle.” It gets used a lot, usually when we are in times of trouble, and need to make ourselves feel better, or when something bad happens and other people are trying to make you feel better. If you have never sat down and read the Bible cover-to-cover, you’ll see that this particular phrase never shows in the context of suffering.

When we first came to Love INC, we were suffering. Our suffering was mild in comparison to some others at Love INC, but life is hard. We both spent our lives going to church. We both worked hard to get where we were. But life just seemed to have other ideas. We’d been forced out of the home we were renting, forced to quickly uproot three children and move back in with Jeremy’s mom. We tried to rent other houses, but were told we didn’t make enough money for that. We tried to apply for assistance from the government, but were told we made too much money to for that. Jeremy looked for other jobs, trying to bring in more money, and finally found one with a 45 minute commute that he made while facing two major depression episodes, which made this an extremely difficult time for not just him, but myself and our three kids, too.

Life at home was difficult. I took on more responsibility at work in an attempt to start attacking our growing pile of bills while also trying to keep life for three kids as close to normal as we could make it and helping Jeremy through his depression and anxiety. The toll was starting to wear on both of us. We did the best we could. We got up most days, put one foot in front of the other, and tried to keep moving. And then the pandemic happened.

The pandemic was rough for a lot of people, including us. I wasn’t bringing in a steady paycheck anymore. Jeremy was able to find a closer job where he made slightly more money. The schools closed and the kids were forced to be home.

So, will God give you more than you can handle? Yes, yes He will. The very act of waking up in the morning and having to live life means you are going to be given more than you can handle. 1 Corinthians 10:13 says, “he will not let you be tempted beyond your ability.” When you are suffering, there are temptations. You need money, so take it, no one will notice. Life with your spouse isn’t going great, so cheat on them, you can get a divorce easily. You’re having a fifth panic attack in six days, so just stay home, your co-workers and family will pick up the slack. Verse 13 ends with, “… but he will also provide the way of escape, that you may be able to endure it.”

When we were struggling, we were given the tools we needed to start taking on those challenges – Ruth, our mentor, Jean’s classes, Eloise’s patience, Barry’s jokes, Sharon’s box-making abilities – we were brought to people who truly cared about how we were doing and did their best each week to help us. Will God give you more than you can handle? Every day. But He’ll also give you the people, the words, the teachings, and the tools you need to carry those things.