Realizing God Thinks More of Your Abilities Than You Do

I've spent the last week reading a book called "Stuff Christians Like." It's a comedy book written by Jonathan Acuff. I had a chance to see Acuff at the Catalyst conference, and I've been reading his book ever since. The book is really a collection of short, satirical truths about Christendom that are from his Website, www.stuffchristianslike.net. After reading the book for a few days, I went on the site and read some more. One of the things I saw was that Acuff allows for guest writers.

This, of course, appealed to me. I'm a Christian and I think I'm funny. I'm also a writer who has spent enough time honing my craft that I think I'm malleable when it comes to style. So I decided to give it a try.  Below is the piece I submitted today. It may never make it to Acuff's site, but it was still a little fun.


Anytime you are feeling overwhelmed, you can always count on your Christian friends to make you feel better. They just remind you that God never gives you more than you can handle. Sure, the Bible confirms that line of thinking, but somehow it just doesn’t make you feel dramatically better during a time when you’re starting to identify with the song “99 Problems.” Of course, most of your Christian friends probably wouldn’t understand that song either…


There comes a point in time, as a Christian, when you start to wonder if the problem isn’t the fact that God thinks more highly of your ability to cope than you do. Maybe God sees your potential, but you know in your heart you still have room to grow. That reality often occurs to me during those weeks when nothing goes right. (A side note is, when you’re in the midst of that, never wonder aloud what else could go wrong. That just inspires God to up the ante).


For me recently it wasn’t a week, it was the month of April. There was work projects, infighting, major illness, scheduled trips, and covering for people smart enough to leave the country during that period. But about the time my sister told us she was eloping in five days and wanted us all to attend and I woke up to find water pouring through my ceiling, I had to wonder if God didn’t have a higher opinion of my coping mechanism than was warranted.


It’s at times like that you want to throw up your hands and sit quietly rocking and mumbling to yourself in a corner. But, somehow I don’t think a stint in a Psych Ward would improve family relations, my work situation, or stop all the things in my apartment from getting wet.


Then a quote came to me. Once, during a blowout football game, John Madden saw players on the team being blown out laughing on the sidelines. He responded, “Well, sometimes you gotta laugh because it’s too early to start crying.”


So maybe its true. God never gives you more than you can handle. Or if he does, he just gives you a joke from John Madden to make it seem better.