Wrong Turns

When I was in high school, my friends and I ventured downtown for a concert one Friday night.

Since I’d gotten my license only a few months earlier, the half hour drive felt to me like a road trip, full of adventure and the sweet sense of freedom. The sound of the radio was blaring in my speakers as we sped down the highway. 

I was in the middle of belting out a solo when I realized that I had missed the last exit into the city.

The next exit took us across state lines and into one of the most dangerous neighborhoods not just in the city, but in the country. We ended up turning around in the parking lot of a strip club as we searched desperately for road signs that would get us back on course (this, sadly, was pre-smartphones and pre-GPS systems).

That was nearly two decades ago, but I still remember the sick feeling in my stomach like it was yesterday.

If I’m being honest, that’s not the only time I’ve gotten off track and ended up somewhere I didn’t want to be. More often than I’d like to admit, I’ve willfully ignored the directions laid out in God’s Word. I’ve chosen to go my own way, rather than to follow Him obediently. I’ve allowed myself to be distracted by lesser things. I’ve rejected the very guidance designed to protect and keep me.

Yet God still calls me back.

He provides the way out. He invites me to get back on track – to submit to His direction and guidance. He reminds me that His instructions are not to ruin my joy but to expand it.

C.S. Lewis once wrote that, “We all want progress. But progress means getting nearer to the place you want to be. And if you have taken a wrong turn, then to go forward does not get you any nearer. If you are on the wrong road, progress means doing an about-turn and walking back to the right road; and in that case the man who turns back soonest is the most progressive man.”

If you’ve taken a wrong turn – if you’ve gotten off track and ended up where you never intended to go – then take heart.

No matter how far of course we stray, there is always a way back.

Trust the Guide

I’ll never forget the terror I felt as the old, repurposed school bus rumbled down a dirt road towards the Rio Grande River. I was seven-years-old and about to go white water rafting for the first time.

The guide had just finished giving us the safety instructions, warning us, basically, that if we didn’t do as he said and follow his lead, we could die.

My little mind heard a definitive, “You will die.”

I innocently thought my life was about to come to an early end. I tried to hide my tears but I failed.

My dad, seeing the panic in my eyes, put his arm around me and said, “There is nothing to be afraid of. He’s been down this river a thousand times. He knows every bend and boulder. He knows how to navigate even the strongest rapids. All you have to do is trust him enough to follow his lead. If you do, this will be the adventure of a lifetime.”

It’s been decades since that rafting trip, but I’ve often felt like I was sitting on that bus again, paralyzed by what is to come. I don’t know what lies ahead. I don’t know the bends my life will take and I don’t know where jagged rocks and crushing boulders have settled just below the surface. I don’t know how to navigate the rapids.

But I have a Guide who does.

So do you.

Jesus has gone before you. He’s been down this river, crossed this road, descended this valley, conquered this mountain.

He knows you and loves you. He protects you and guides you. You can trust Him because He knows the way. You can follow Him because He is committed to bringing you safely through.

Where do you need to trust Him right now? What are you facing that seems insurmountable?

You are never alone. You have a trustworthy Guide. So, trust Him.

If you do, I promise it will be the adventure of a lifetime.

With Jesus in the Desert

I don’t remember if it happened on my first or second trip to Israel, but I will never forget the day – or the lesson.

Our bus driver navigated the winding road through the Negev desert. There was nothing but miles of rocks and dirt.

Then, without warning, he pulled off to the side of the road.

Our teacher got off and began walking into the desert.

We gathered our packs, grabbed our Bibles, and hurried after him.

Within minutes we could no longer see the bus or the road. Sweat was trickling down our backs and our clothing was coated in dust kicked up by a welcome breeze.

Our teacher kept walking. In silence. For an hour.

He finally stopped and waited for his students to gather around.

“Why did you follow me out here?” he asked us. “You have no idea where you are right now. You don’t know the way out. What makes you think I do?”

We stood in silence, unsure where he was going with this.

“You followed me out here because you trust me. You trust I know where we’re going. You trust I’ve been this way before. I know how long your water will last. Even though you don’t know what’s up ahead, even though you don’t know what’s around the next turn, I do.”

He paused.

“That’s what it means to follow Jesus.”

Some of us are in our own deserts these days.

It’s barren and dry and you’re not really sure how long your water will last. You don’t know where you’re going or what’s up ahead.

You might feel lost or disoriented or just scared.

If that’s where you are, you’re in good company. The Bible is filled with people who spent time in the desert. In the coming weeks, we’ll look at their stories and discover what they can teach us about navigating our deserts.

For now, remember that you’re not alone.

You have a caravan of people hiking right beside you.

And you have a Leader. 

Trust your Leader.

He’s been this way before.