Trust

“God will not give you more than you can handle.”

This is a saying I would bet we all have heard before. The saying itself is only half true and therefore totally false. I do not know who originally said it, but I have no doubt that it was inspired by the devil who was misquoting scripture in an attempt to lead people away from God. If God does not give you more than you can handle, then you should be able to handle anything you face on your own. On your own is where the devil wants you to be.

Today, in the first reading and again in the gospel, we see people faced with an impossible task; feeding hundreds and thousands with very little food. The Disciples reacted in the same way we do. They saw the situation as hopeless, more than they were capable of. This is a story that is repeated over and over in many different forms throughout the bible. In these stories, we are given the biblical principle on how we are to face our problems, no matter how big or small they may be.

We are to begin everything we do by giving thanks to God. God is the giver of all things, including our trials. When we are given a trial, we shouldn’t view it as a punishment, but as an opportunity to conform ourselves even closer to the image of Christ. That is, after all, the purpose of our time here on earth. We should strive in all that we do to reclaim the image and likeness of Jesus that was veiled by the disobedience of our first parents.

Then we are to present our needs to our Father in heaven and ask for his divine assistance. Yes, God knows what we need, even better than we know ourselves. God respects our free will above all things and will not work his will in our lives unless we give him permission to do so. We ask so that God can act. If we wish to face our trials alone, he will allow us to do that as well. Just remember, alone is where the devil wants you to be.

Now comes the hardest part – trust. After we have asked for God’s help, and given him permission to do his will in our lives, we have to trust in his response. The Disciples didn’t believe that the multitude could be fed with only five loaves of bread, but they did as Jesus instructed them to do and they fed the people. Trust is the hardest part because we have to give control of the situation to someone else and we have to be willing to accept the end result.

We end everything in the same way we began it; by giving thanks to God. If we truly trust in the Lord, then we can give thanks for how something turns out because it is in accordance with his will. If it does not go the way we had hoped, we need to be open to learning what God is trying to teach us from it. We shouldn’t say in response, “Why me?” Instead, we should be saying, “Speak, Lord, your servant is listening.”

This is the biblical principle on how we are to face our trials; give thanks, petition, trust, give thanks. So, with this principle in mind, let us correct the saying we began with.

“God will not give you more than you can handle, when you ask for his help and put your trust in him.”

Thanks be to God.