MORE than you can handle
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Praise for “More Than You Can Handle”
“There is no shortage of shelves lined with well-intentioned books about how to handle our pain. How in the face of utter devastation to maintain some sort of strong Christian posture. How to preserve one’s biblical integrity in the face of searing loss. Those books are the worst. Thank God for Nate Pyle and More Than You Can Handle. In this book, Nate generously holds endless space for the moments of agony that leave us breathless, wordless, crushed, and trembling. He holds that space well, because he has sat in it. He draws deeply from his own story, along with the broken pieces of the stories of other people he has lovingly shepherded over time. And somehow, without attempting to answer the answerless, he gently points to the story God has been telling in the lives of his children from the Genesis garden to the present day. It seems nearly impossible these days to be a trusted leader who still manages to hold hands with those who follow along. I felt carefully led, and my hand felt safely held.
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“The book of Proverbs sets forth an ordered world where fearing God and doing what is right are rewarded with blessing. And it surely does help us order our lives according to wisdom. But it’s not the whole story. We also have the book of Job in our Bibles. Job acknowledges a painful world of deep disorder that we cannot control and cannot handle. The well-worn aphorism “God won’t give you more than you can handle” is proverbial, but it’s not the whole story. Nate Pyle adopts the unflinching honesty of Job to lead us past empty clichés and into the unfathomable mystery of grace. More Than You Can Handle is an honest and beautiful book for those overwhelmed by pain who need more than a quaint platitude.”
About the book
"God won't give you more than you can handle." This is one of the most common and least helpful reassurances floating around Christian circles. It is anything but biblical. The truth is that God does allow a lot more than we can handle. But why?
Nate Pyle has walked through tragedy in his own life--professional uncertainty, the intense impact of mental illness, and the struggle to build a family because of a lost pregnancy, infertility, and adoption. As a pastor, Nate has cried with countless people experiencing deep and overwhelming pain. They want answers but perhaps even more, they want someone to sit with them as they lament.
Cliché Christianity tells us not to ask questions in hard times. Yet transformation awaits us in the dark night of the soul. In More Than You Can Handle, Nate asks with you: "God, where are you in this pain? Why don't you step in and act?" Because when we courageously bring all of who we are to all of who God is--and stop pretending we can "handle" life--we encounter the God of Redemption. The good news isn't that we can handle everything, but rather that God promises to be with us at the very moments we can't handle anything.
Skillfully weaving together his own story, the stories of others, and a powerful look at the life of Jesus, Nate delivers a fresh and timely response to the pain we each experience. As Nate reminds us, the only thing more overwhelming than the pain of life is the love of a God who carries that pain with us.
More praise for “more than you can handle”
“Nate Pyle is more than a guide; he’s a pastor, a shepherd, for our souls when we are suffering and overwhelmed. This book may not take away your pain, but it will pastor you on the journey through and into the possibilities of hope.
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“Too often, Christian culture encourages the faithful to wallpaper over the gritty and difficult world we live in. More Than You Can Handle is a book about what happens when people of faith start to live in the world instead of trying to hide from it.”
“More Than You Can Handle is an invitation to walk through pain and suffering with words far truer than the trite ones we’re often offered. For anyone who has ever felt dismissed by grief’s greatest maxims—here, a hand to hold.”
“Real life is hardly ever like a fairy tale or a ninety-minute rom- com. Life rarely offers seamless transitions, easy answers, or end- ings tied up neatly with a bow. Instead, what we get is a fistful of unanswered questions, blazing heartbreaks, and sleepless nights filled with worry and fear. Nate Pyle doesn’t offer pat answers or surefire steps to follow to avoid the messiness of life, and that’s why this book is a must-read—whether you’re in the middle of a storm, just coming out of a storm, or headed into a storm. This is one man’s beautiful story of putting one foot in front of the other, even when there’s no promise that all will be well.”
“Nate Pyle reveals how a thoughtful pastor processes loss, grief, and hope in real time. With his signature authenticity, he bravely shows how he is learning to be faithful amid seasons that feel like “more than you can handle.” I hope his words will be an encouragement to others walking through the long valley and wrestling with the darkness. His is a work of honesty—and hope.”
“Nate Pyle’s More Than You Can Handle is the companion you’ll turn to in moments of crisis, pain, and suffering to be reminded of God’s goodness and faithfulness. Nate’s pastoral heart warms every page, and the stories from his own life are proof that he lives what he preaches. I’m so grateful for this book and for Nate’s wise counsel found inside it.”