about u-turns

“That sign means a u-turn,” I said like a father reading a children’s book as she pulled into the left hand turn lane. “I know what the sign means dad, I just don’t know how to do one,” my daughter said with frustration. “Look both ways, look to see if there is any oncoming traffic, pull out past the median a little, turn the wheel as far as you can, accelerate into the turn, straighten out, and drive.” Smiling and rather proud of herself she asked, “Why can’t I just turn left for the rest of my life?” That got me thinking.

Left turns for the rest of our life. Sounds easy, sounds fun, and eventually you might end up where you started; and you also might be lost forever, tangled in a web of left turning entropy until you end up surprised and stopped at a dead end. Left turns for the rest of our life do not make any sense. However, having the opportunity to go back, to turn around and go the other way is genius, because it allows us the opportunity to return, or go in a different direction, or move along the route we need to go. How many times have I heard my wife say when we were lost, “Honey, we need to turn around.”

In Jerusalem, and I think most of Israel, the signs reading u-turn are the Hebrew word for “repent.” That’s great! Everywhere you drive in Jerusalem, above your head in the medians of everyday life to give you direction it says, “Repent” or “Do not repent.” That can be convicting, to say the least. It prevents us from simply making left turns all of our life. U-turns are God’s gracious and liberating gift for us to turn around, to go another way, and to get back on course. It is great advice in our journey with God to, “Look both ways, look to see if there is any oncoming traffic, pull out past the median a little, turn the wheel as far as you can, accelerate into the turn, straighten out, and drive.”

My daughter is getting her drivers license in another month. This has been an interesting time for all of us. It has taken her longer to obtain her license than it took to potty train her. I wish it were that easy. We’re in Las Vegas and it is simply frightening to drive by accidents almost daily, accidents mostly caused by people driving in fear; fear of being late, fear of not making the light, fear of not getting a parking place, fear of waiting in traffic, or just afraid of driving. The speeding and running of red lights is as prevalent as this city’s nick name, “Sin City.” She is studying the book, driving on every road we can put her on, in all kinds of weather and strange road conditions. Of course, we will not be able to prepare her for everything, but we should be able to prepare her to handle just about anything. And that means being able to turn around, in sin cities, and go the other way.

Just a thought,

Pastor Tom