Repentence

One thing I don't enjoy doing is U-turns. On a motorcycle, no matter how good a rider may be, U-turns present problems. As adept as most motorcycles and their riders are in the turns, at such low speeds, even the highest performing bikes and riders are vulnerable to rider error or bike limitations (it has been said it takes more skill to ride slowly than it does to ride fast). Generally speaking, motorcycles are not inclined to turn such tight turns at such reduced speeds. Balance, precision, technique and concentration all come into play when riding slowly and navigating a 180 degree turn.

I also don't care for U-turns because generally speaking, it means I've "missed" something and am having to correct a navigational "error." Most of the time, a U-turn is a public admission of guilt for when I have made a mistake and must "turn around."

The biblical concept of repentance is basically a call for a "U-turn." It is a call for a 180 degree shift in behavior and/or thought and is critical to successfully navigating a journey with the Creator.

So often repentance in my life has been more of a response to my own shame than to true godly sorrow. I am puzzled to think of how many times I have "repented," often from the same sin over and over again and still fins myself doing it again . This makes me wonder how authentic and effectual my "repentance" ever was in the first place! Is repentance really repentance if we simply return to the same behaviors over and over again? Maybe, maybe not.

I wonder how often I have repented to merely salvage my own ego or to maintain some sense of a good reputation? Henry Drummond wrote about repentance, true repentance, as a matter of "looking God in the face," not merely looking at one's self in the mirror and dealing with the pain or injury of one's sin against self or one another.

For true repentance to take root in our life, we must be willing to walk before the throne of God with humble abandon and let the masterful work of His perfection expose the crude indecency of our sin. Only He can truly expose who I really am. Only He has the power to renovate my interiors so that my final exteriors will begin to ultimately bear His glory and praise.

Left to my own assessment, I'll surely try to justify my choices one way or another.

By God's grace and mercy, we can have the courage to face ourselves as only God sees us. He knows our hearts, He sees everything as it is and still chooses to love in spite of what He sees. He is the One, whom I may have just run past, that calls me back to a better course of direction and ultimately a better final destination.

For the sake of His love and mercy, I'm learning to gladly make a U-turn, even if it requires slowing down and exercising more caution than usual.