There hath no temptation taken you but such as is common to man: but God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able; but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it. (1 Cor. 10:13)
In these uncertain times, many people are facing huge challenges that have left them feeling like they’re stuck in a trap with no way out. Maybe you’re feeling this way too. However, I have good news for you! There’s a means of escape from every trap, whether it was laid by the devil, by external circumstances beyond your control, or even by your own mistakes.
There are many different kinds of traps people struggle with that span all walks of life. For example, any type of addiction can be a serious trap, such as overeating, substance abuse, illicit sex, or some other destructive behavior. Left unchecked, turmoil in your relationships, whether past or present, can also cause mental anguish and make your mind feel trapped in an emotional prison. Or it could be a discouraging prognosis from your doctor regarding an illness you’ve been battling that overwhelms you with feelings of hopelessness and negativity.
A financial trap can feel particularly crushing. In fact, it can seem like the deepest ditch of all because it affects your emotions, your mind, and your relationships. When you don’t have enough money to cover your mortgage, car payments, credit card payments, or utility bills month after month, it’s easy to let worries about money consume your thoughts. Let me tell you — that is not God’s will for your life. He wants to deliver you out of that financial trap and bring you into abundant provision and blessing. And He knows just how to do it!
First Corinthians 10:13 gives God’s perspective on all the problems you are facing right now. The apostle Paul wrote, “There hath no temptation taken you but such as is common to man: but God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able; but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it.” The phrase “such as is common to man” is a translation of the Greek word anthropinos, which literally means commonplace to humans. So Paul was telling us that no matter how overwhelming, suffocating, and insurmountable your trap might seem, it is merely a common human problem that has already been faced and overcome by countless people and believers in the past.
Every human being has the same basic needs and faces the same type of problems and temptations in life. However, it is an insidious trick of the devil to plant the false assumption in your mind that your need is a special case. If he succeeds in doing this, it will be vastly more difficult for you to overcome your obstacle since you’ll view it as a one-of-a-kind problem that you alone have to face. You’ll assume that none of God’s principles apply to your situation because it is so huge, unique, and special. And when someone gives you an answer for your situation from God’s Word, you’ll just nod and say, “Yes, I know that’s what the Bible says, but my case is an exception. It has all kinds of unique complications that make it especially hard to deal with.”
This is wrong thinking! It is imperative that you stop looking at the trap you’re in as something that no one else has ever experienced. During my years as a minister, people have often come to me for counsel and said, “My situation is very unique, an especially difficult case. It isn’t like other problems.” However, as they begin to share their situation with me, I quickly find that it’s the same problem countless others have faced in the past and are facing today.
How you look at the problem will determine how quickly you get out of it! If you look at it like it’s huge, unique, and special, you’ll have a very hard time getting over it.
So how should you look at your problem? Simply address the trap that is holding you hostage and declare, “This is not a special problem. In the history of mankind, I’m not the first person to face this type of challenge, and I won’t be the last. There are countless other people facing problems far more difficult than mine, yet they smile and maintain their joy in the midst of the challenge and end up victorious on the other side! This is just a common problem that many people have conquered before me — and I’m going to be the next to do it!” When you adopt this attitude, you position yourself to quickly escape the trap you’re in by reducing the size of your problem in your mind into something manageable and conquerable.
Paul concluded 1 Corinthians 10:13 by saying, “…But God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able; but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it.” God is faithful to make a way of escape for you. He will show you how to get out of any trap you might find yourself in right now. There is a way out, and God has given you His Word and His Spirit to guide you every step of the way.
Make the decision today to align your thoughts, words, and attitudes with God’s Word about any problem you are currently facing. Then, step by step, begin walking out of that trap — until that glorious moment when you arrive on the other side, free and victorious!
MY PRAYER FOR TODAY
Father, as Your child, I am special and unique — but my problems are not. There is nothing new under the sun. Every temptation I have faced or ever will face has already been experienced by others. But more importantly, it has already been faced and overcome by the Lord Jesus Christ. Father, I rejoice that You are faithful to Your promise not to allow me to be tempted beyond what I may be able to bear, but with each temptation, You will also make a way of escape for me. Thank You for showing me the path prepared to get me out of traps that try to drain my hope and cause me to doubt and fear that I may never be free of it. I set myself in agreement with Your Word and Your Spirit to guide me out of my problems and into Your plan for me.
I pray this in Jesus’ name!
MY CONFESSION FOR TODAY
I declare that there is no temptation that may try to overtake me that isn’t already common to mankind. I refuse to see any problem as too big to solve. I confess that every situation has a solution and it can be conquered by the wisdom of God. Today I make the decision to align my thoughts, words, and attitudes with God’s Word about any problem I may face. I know my Father God will always provide a way of escape for me from every temptation. Therefore, I listen to His voice and expect His Word and His Spirit to illuminate and direct my steps as I begin walking out of every trap until I arrive on the other side, free and victorious!
I declare this by faith in Jesus’ name!
Copyright © Rick Renner Ministries
All rights reserved. Used by permission.
Rick and Denise met while they were each on an individual quest to wholeheartedly follow God's plan for their lives. Rick was a college student, growing in his teaching ministry. Denise was a talented vocalist. She chose not to pursue a course that held the prospect of performing with the Metropolitan Opera so that she could instead pursue a relationship with Rick and fulfill her heart's desire to enter full-time ministry.
Rick and Denise's friendship has led to lifelong love and a powerful partnership in building the Kingdom of God. After a decade of ministry, first as pastor and then as itinerant ministers, Rick and Denise Renner embarked on an adventure of a lifetime. In January 1991, the Renners and their sons Paul, Philip, and Joel left behind all they knew to relocate their family to serve the region that only weeks earlier had become the former Soviet Union.
Rick and Denise remember kneeling together as a family and kissing the ground when they arrived at the airport in Latvia on that cold January day. At that moment, they all committed their lives to the will of God and to the people of their new homeland. The following year, Rick moved forward to launch and establish the first of its kind, and eventually the largest, a Christian television network in that region of the world.
Over the years, Rick and Denise pioneered three churches, a Bible school, and a ministerial association that serves thousands of Russian-speaking pastors throughout the former USSR as well as parts of the Middle East. As Rick began training and mentoring leaders in the early days, Denise also developed a women's ministry that is actively involved in changing the lives of women and their families today. Specifically, they minister to the needs of orphans, women prisoners, the homeless, and drug-and-alcohol addicts.
Rick, Denise, and their children began as a small circle of five, willing to go beyond their comfort zone to reach the uttermost parts of the world. Today that circle includes their sons' wives, six grandchildren, and a large ministry staff that helps the Renners extend their reach as they exalt Jesus Christ as the Hope of all nations.