U-turns

I can’t stand making u-turns! When I’m going the wrong way, I need to do a 180 to turn around. It seems to occur more often when I don’t use my GPS. I’m driving somewhere and I figure out I missed a turn and I need to go back, or perhaps I was distracted for awhile and now I’m lost.  Getting lost is so frustrating!  The trek back to where I should be is usually much longer than I expected. Somehow I didn’t realize just how far off course I went!  When there’s a passenger in the seat, it only makes getting lost and having to turn around even worse. It’s outright humiliating. It’s hard to hide my missed exits and random travels from a passenger who knows where we’re headed. In fact, it almost always involves a huge argument with a lot of shaming that I try to tune out and a whole bunch of “I told you so’s.”  Even after making the u-turn, I hear my passenger mumbling and complaining under his breath. Ugh! Why did he bother to come along?

Thankfully, riding along with Jesus on the journey of life is quite different.  He allows u-turns. In fact, He actually wants me to turn around, especially if I’m lost. He’s not mad at all. Sometimes I sense that He’s relieved; other times I actually think I hear Jesus cheering me on! When I’m riding with Him, I don’t feel ashamed when I make a wrong turn and have to turn around. He even points out some scenery along the way that I would have missed if I didn’t go the wrong way. There’s also no rush when I’m riding with Jesus. Sometimes He shares stories that amaze me, or we listen to the radio together and I sing along at the top of my lungs. Guess what? Jesus let me in on a little secret of His. U-turns were His idea. Seriously!  See, I think He knew we would make some wrong turns. Jesus knew we would get lost, that’s why He came for the ride!  

So, as I start this blog and we travel together, I hope we get some practice changing direction with Jesus along the way. You see, one thing I’ve learned on this journey called life is that we all make mistakes. Everyone gets lost. The u-turn signs remind us that sometimes we simply need to turn to Jesus.  The 180 Center is a place where people change direction. On this journey, I will share some stories about u-turns, people, The 180 Center, and Jesus.  Are you ready?