When I went to serve my first church, I had no clue what I was doing. I loved Jesus and I loved people, and that was a good foundation to build on, but I was clueless on everything else. I constantly sought the wisdom of older clergy, and I read the gospels to see what Jesus did. I remember searching the Gospels to see how Jesus conducted funerals. Do you know what I found? There is no record of Jesus conducting funerals. He only conducted resurrections. Jesus is in the resurrection business. Thinking about that, I think about Jonah. Jonah ran from God. He hits bottom and finds himself in the belly of a great fish. When he hits bottom, he turns to God. Sometimes you have to be flat on your back to look up. From the belly of the whale, Jonah cries out to God, and God delivered him. When we come to our senses and turn to God, He delivers us from messes. God is in the resurrection business. If you are running from God, doing some stupid stuff, and find yourself in a place you don’t want to be or in a mess, remember God is not in the funeral business. He is a God for whom all things are possible. He can raise you up. If He can raise Jonah out of the belly of a whale, He can raise you up, too. Let this be the day where you cry out to God and seek His help.
– Dr. Tim Thompson