Did you read in the paper last week about the funeral home in Michigan that opened up a drive-thru window where guests can stop at a window, look in on the deceased, sign a registry book, and drop off a sympathy card for the family? Their intentions are good. The funeral home director said they are doing it for people with poor health who can’t really manage to get in and out very well. Imagine that – a drive-thru viewing! I have been thinking about that, and the truth is that God created us to do life together and not alone. Whether it is a birth or a funeral or all the weeks in between, we need other people. That is what church is all about, connecting with God in the context of real relationships with other people. The Bible says that we need to spur each other on toward love and good deeds, and we not give up the habit of meeting regularly together. In other words, life isn’t intended to be a drive-thru; it is meant to be lived as a walk-together with other brothers and sisters in Christ. If you are not connected to a small group or a Sunday school class or a prayer group or a Bible study group or a support group, let me encourage you to take the steps this week to get connected. Life is a lot easier when you walk through it with other brothers and sisters to support you.
– Dr. Tim Thompson