By Brad LeRoy
The last time I wrote for this column was in April. We were a month or so into this global pandemic we’ve been experiencing. Never in my wildest dreams would I have ever imagined that four months later this would still be the consuming aspect of our lives.
If you’re honest with yourself, you might say that the last four months have not been the easiest ones in your life.
In April I wrote about praying until the peace comes. This month I want to encourage you by telling you, “You can handle more than you think you can!”
It’s absolutely true. In fact, some of you might have realized this truth recently with all you’ve had to face. But to grab a hold of this reality, there are two truths we must also acknowledge.
Truth No. 1: Life will give us more than we can handle. If we are to learn that we can handle more than we think we can, we must also acknowledge that life will give us more than we can handle. You’ve been living this, so no explanation is really required.
Truth No. 2: By ourselves, life is overwhelming.
One of the things we all have craved over the past several months is interaction with others. In an age of “social distancing,” we have also recognized our need for each other.
Why is that? Because life just becomes too much, especially during moments like we’re living through, when we try to do it by ourselves.
But so far, I really haven’t made the argument yet that you can handle more than you think you can. I certainly haven’t explained how this is possible. The two truths I just mentioned beg the question, “How can we handle more than we think we can”?
There is one very important disclaimer you have to understand in all of this, and here it is: It’s only with God that you can handle more than you think you can.
I’ve met lots of people who have all kinds of thoughts and opinions about the current situation we’re facing in life, believing that if we follow a certain course of action, everything will be fine. And no two people seem to have the exact same idea of what needs to be done.
I know only one person who sees the entirety of life with the clarity that is needed. The Bible tells us that “Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever” (Hebrews 13:8).
What that means is that He’s the only one who can see everything through the lens of time and eternity. None of what is going on has caught Him by surprise. Not only that, He’s the only one who knows what each of should do.
Therefore, and this is important, it can only be with God, that we can handle more than we think we can.
By yourself, you will always come up short. But with God, you will always overcome. So, with that, I encourage you to go with God and handle more than you ever thought you could!
Brad LeRoy is lead pastor of Harvest Church in Mt. Comfort. This weekly column is written by local clergy members.
