The Wisdom of U-Turns

Many know the book A Tale Of Two Cities; what follows is ‘A Tale of Two Roads.’

To be precise: the Pennsylvania Turnpike, and Rt. 15, at least from Frederick to the PA line. Now on the Pennsylvania Turnpike if you mess up, make a mistake, miss your exit, you’re a mess for a long time!  I mean there’s literally no place to turn around!  And so, on and on you go, needing to live with your mess, your mistake, your ‘miss,’ seemingly forever!  But Rt. 15 is different, at least from Frederick to the PA line.  Why there are plenty of places to turn around, if you mess up. 

Commonly called cross-roads, such avenues beckon us to make U-Turns -- to not be a mess for long -- to get going in the right direction.  Now frankly U-Turns are awkward, even risky, interrupting the natural flow of traffic.  But overall U-Turns end up being a blessing, inviting us to take the best route, heading for the best destinations!

In 1 Samuel 7, the prophet Samuel is inviting the Israelites to make a U-Turn and head for the best destinations.  For as children of God, chosen people, the Israelites are not on any road, they’re on a road with crossroads, inviting U-Turns.

And thank goodness, for the Israelites really are headed in the wrong direction. I mean though they’re children of God, they’re a mess, worshipping foreign gods (1 Samuel 7:3).   For example they worship Ashtoreth: the goddess of sex and violence, and Baal: the god of wealth and success -- popular gods, expedite gods, comfortable gods.   

But as Samuel points out, the one true God is not popular, expedite, or comfortable.  The one true God is counter-cultural, challenging and sacrificial.  And so ‘turn around’ Samuel admonishes; return to the one true God.  Be counter-cultural, challenging, and sacrificial.  “Return to the Lord with all your hearts…rid yourself of foreign gods…and commit yourselves to the Lord -- and serve him only…”  (1 Samuel 7:3).

    

In essence, we’re invited to do the same.  We’re invited to rid ourselves of foreign gods; to rid ourselves of our obsession with sex, violence, wealth and success.   For such obsession is the wrong direction, creating a culture of despair.

Recently JAMA Psychiarity released research results revealing that despair is on the rise, with one in eight teenagers now having persistent suicidal thoughts, and a third of those making a suicide attempt within 12 months of having the idea. 

No, our current obsessions and standards are not working; only the standards of God ultimately work.  And so it's critical that we make a U-Turn -- what scripture calls repentence -- and head in that direction.

God summarizes the result of such turning, such repentence:  redemption and restoration.  For “…I will restore…for you the years that the locust has eaten…And you shall…be satisfied -- and praise…the Lord, your God, who has dealt wondrously with you…And you shall know, understand, and realize that I am in the midst of Israel…that I, the Lord, am your God…”  (Joel 2:25-27, The Amplified Bible, emphasis added). 

Isn’t that powerful: in the end we will know, we will understand, the Lord is our God, for us, not against us – refashioning from our repentance, out of our sin and mess, a refurbished – restored – rebranded – redeemed life!