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John 9:1-5, James 1:13-17 What you face may not come from God at all

“God won’t give you more than you can handle” is flawed because it assumes that God is the source of any issues you face. As we saw when we studied “Everything happens for a
reason,” that is not a Biblical teaching. Both Jesus and his half-brother James taught that our God is the source of good gifts, not of traumas and tragedies.

  • James was unequivocal: “No one who is tested should say, ‘God is tempting me!’” When something that strains your faith has happened, have you ever said (or had someone say to you), “Why is God doing this?” How can James’ assurance that “Every good gift, every perfect gift, comes from above” serve to correct and reassure you when you’re tempted to blame God for bad things?
  • Jesus did not see this man’s blindness as something God had given him. He also did not see it as a trivial thing the man should just “handle” (though certainly many of God’s children have had to learn how to go on with their lives even with blindness). What does Jesus’ eagerness to heal the man (and God’s promise to ultimately wipe away all tears—cf. Isaiah 25:8) tell you about God’s heart when we face troubles?

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