With God there is Power to Redeem

There is an old story about a little girl who was talking to her grouchy old uncle about whales. The uncle said it was physically impossible for a whale to swallow a human. Even though it is a very large mammal its throat is very small. The little girl stated emphatically, “Jonah was swallowed by a whale.” Irritated, the uncle reiterated that a whale could not swallow a human; it was physically impossible. The little girl said, “When I get to heaven I will ask Jonah.” The uncle responded, “What if Jonah didn’t go to heaven? What if Jonah went the other direction?” The little girl replied, “Then you ask him!”

 It’s a funny story. But the point of Jonah is not to get all wrapped up in what kind of fish it was, or even how it all happened. The point of that story in Jonah is that God makes a way where there is no way.

 Psalm 130 ends with this resounding affirmation – “O Israel, hope in the Lord! With God is the great power to redeem!” That is the promise of the gospel. Not that God will give us every desire of our heart, no. But, when things seem hopeless, when everything seems to be falling apart, when there is no way forward, we can trust that with God is great power to redeem, and that God can make a way where there is no way.

 Let us pray: God you are the God who rescued the Israelites from slavery, you are the God who brought water from a rock, the God who raised Jesus from the dead. We remember today, that our messy situations in life do not get to have the last word, that sin and heartache and despair do not get to have the last word. You get the last word. We trust that you have the power to bring something good out of something not so good, the beautiful from the horrible, the light out of the dark. We turn our problems, our worries, and our lives over to you again this day. We hope in you, through Jesus Christ. Amen.