“I have set the Lord always before me; because he is at my right hand, I shall not be shaken.” Psalm 16:8
Today… I ache.
I ache when I read the headlines each morning.
I ache for this broken country and this broken world.
I ache for the broken immigration system.
I ache for our president and his decision to limit the number of refugees to 45,000 (45,000??).
I ache for the millions of people whose lives are literally hanging in the balance.
I ache for the families and loved ones who are separated and will continue to be separated for an uncertain amount of time solely because of the passport they hold.
I ache – a lot – for my husband and our situation.
I ache for our dreams that we want so badly to happen.
Last night, after hearing some discouraging news, he and I both found ourselves beat down, broken, tired, and worn out. Sitting with our backs against the wall, elbows pressed to our knees, faces heavy in our hands, we realized we cannot go through life and this situation relying on our own strength any longer.
There’s a well-meaning but tiresome saying that has been floating around for years – God will never give us more than we can handle. And it would be encouraging if it were true – oh, I wish it were true. Yet, God DOES give us more than we can handle. When the burdens of life seem far too heavy to shoulder and we finally come to the end of ourselves and to the end of our human strength, this is when we have no choice but to surrender to Him.
This is the place where we both find ourselves now. It is hard and overwhelming.
Yet, oddly enough, I think it’s a good place to be.
Looking at the insurmountable mountain in front of us, we realized just how weak we are. Looking at our hands, scratched and muddy from trying, trying, trying to climb up the craggy cliffs, we realized just how helpless we are.
But we serve a God who divides the waters. We serve a God who breathes life into dry bones. We serve a God who walks on water. We serve a God who was crucified and just three days later walked out from the grave.
My husband and I have a mammoth mountain in front of us, absolutely. It’s impossible. We need a miracle. It looks foggy and we can only see a few steps ahead. But praise God, Jesus’ name is bigger than the president’s. Praise God, Jesus is on the throne, not our president. The Lord is bigger than the government and walls and bans. He is far above borders and policies and numbers and statistics.
Yes, God does give us more than we can handle. He does this so that we might come to the end of ourselves. He does this so that we might rely solely on Him and His strength and His power. He does this so that we walk up the mountain with our hands wide open.
God will intentionally give us more than we can handle and at the same time inject His strength and peace and wisdom into those heavy, too-hard-to-handle situations.
As I’m writing this, my husband is making tea (“so our home feels cozy”) and reassuring me that Jesus is good. We need only to trust in Him.
So this is what I cling to.
Sarah Bahiraei 