Have you ever found yourself reciting scripture to someone who may have needed a little encouragement or was having a tough time in their life? I’m sure many of us have, at one point or another, provided a word of encouragement to someone. Did you know that a lot of the standard “go to verses” you and I have likely used aren’t actually in the Bible? I was reading my Bible and came across a verse that sounded a lot like something I’ve heard people use from time to time and realized it hasn’t been used in the appropriate context. This realization urged me to go down several rabbit holes and determine some of the most widely used “verses” people use to encourage others. But, there’s a catch, they aren’t actually in the Bible.
This post is not about rebuking the practice of encouraging others. Instead, I want to help us all use scripture in its context without putting our own spin on it. There are plenty of verses in the Bible that can help us help others, so we’ll look at those, too. First, though, I want to talk about a quote people commonly mistake as scripture. Probably the top misunderstood quote people is: “God won’t give you more than you can handle.”
I’m sure you’ve heard that quote before and perhaps even used it when encouraging or comforting others. It sounds good and would be excellent encouragement to others; however, it’s not in the Bible. I would argue that telling someone “God won’t give you more than you can handle” is one of the most common misunderstandings of scripture when providing encouragement to others. This quote is commonly mistaken for 1 Corinthians 10:13 which reads:
No temptation has overtaken you except what is common to humanity. God is faithful, and He will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation He will also provide a way of escape so that you are able to bear it.
As you can see, this passage is referring specifically to temptation. Of course, you could use this verse when someone is struggling with temptation, but when a person is challenged by trials in their life, this verse doesn’t address that. Moreover, the phrase, “God won’t give you more than you can handle” is not Biblically accurate. The Bible doesn’t address the amount of trials one can handle. What it does address is a person’s ability to strengthen their faith through trials. James 1:2-4 says this:
Consider it a great joy, my brothers, whenever you experience various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces endurance. But endurance must do its complete work, so that you may be mature and complete, lacking nothing.
This passage addresses the ability of someone to strengthen their faith in the face of trials. The Greek word for endurance is hupomone which means “a person who is not swerved from their deliberate purpose and loyalty to faith”. In other words, trials produce in us a strengthened faith and perseverance. We have all had challenges in our lives and, generally, we are one of two types of people. Either we embrace the trials and find strength in the Lord or we give up and hope it all goes away. Sometimes things can seem so unbearable that it is simply inconceivable that we would have the strength to get through it. But, the Bible does say that we will find comfort and strength in the Lord (Isaiah 40:31; 2 Corinthians 1:3-4; Matthew 11:28-30; Psalm 91:1-16, et al).
I believe God will undoubtedly give us more than we can handle. If we were able to handle everything on our own, why would we need to rely on God? Therefore, it is my belief that God, indeed, gives us much more than we can handle—if for nothing else than to remind us that we NEED Him. There have been plenty of times where I needed God to help me get through challenging times in my life. In Iraq we were shot at over 120 times in eight months. For some, that may not seem like that big of a deal. But, for me, it was a moment in my life where I absolutely realized that I needed God to help keep my fellow service members and me safe. We wore all the appropriate armor and had our weapons strapped to us, but God would be the One to keep us safe. There is only so much we can do on our own; God can do everything—we need to allow Him to do so.
If there is anything I’ve learned over the past 20 years as a follower of Christ, it’s that I am not invincible. I get hurt and hurt others, do and say stupid things, and seek forgiveness from God and others. Seeking the face of God won’t make my sinful nature melt away, but it will help me when I’m struggling with life’s challenges. I’m certain that seeking the Lord will also help you through your challenges. I would love to tell you that God won’t give you more than you can handle, but the reality is He will. Christians are a unique people group in that we have and seek God constantly. If you have trouble letting go and letting God (admittedly, I struggle with that at times), commit with me to try. God is the ultimate. He may give us more than we can handle, but He will be right by our side as we navigate through it (Psalm 118:6).
So what’s the big take away here? First, I would remind us that God does and will give us more than we can handle. He does this, in my belief, so that we will seek Him with the understanding that we absolutely need Him. Second, I would encourage you to dig into the scriptures to retrieve some special passages that will help you and those you comfort. Remember to look at the context of the passage (I use the 10+10 rule – read the 10 verses before and 10 verses after the passage you’re looking at to understand its context). There is a lot in the Bible; I would encourage you to spend an afternoon and get acquainted with some of those passages so you’re ready when called upon to provide comfort and encouragement to others.
I find encouraging and comforting others to be one of the highlights of my ministry. It strengthens my faith and helps those who are struggling. I have been on both the receiving and giving end of misunderstanding Scripture with commonly used quotes. Once I realized it wasn’t actually scripture, I stopped, but I wonder how many people I erroneously told, “God won’t give you more than you can handle.” Hopefully not many.
There are other phrases people use that aren’t exactly Biblical (in context at least), but I’ll save those for another day.
Yours in Christ,
Jeremy