Going in Circles and/or Going South

For a year and a half before Altha and I moved to Arizona, I prayed and listened for the Lord's assurances. What followed were many confirmations. And when I was invited to mentor students at Phoenix Seminary, with the possibility to teach, I saw God at work.  Over the next months, one obstacle after another was removed and the path ahead became clear and straight.

But within days after moving to Arizona, my diagnosis of pancreatic cancer turned those plans on their head—‘everything started going south’ (an idiom I’ve spoken of before in this blog). After my ‘Whipple’ surgery, the Lord led us back to California where family (our daughter) and friends could support us thru the chemo/radiation therapies that lie ahead.

Honestly, I can tell you it seemed regressive to me—I was going in circles. But nothing in God’s methods is regressive. But progressive. And though it seemed my life was headed ‘south,’ God assured me it was not. Then this morning the Spirit led me to Deuteronomy, where God speaks to Moses, “You have circled this mountain long enough; now turn North” (2:2-3).

Are you presently feeling like your life is going in circles? Even worse, are you feeling like your life is “going south?” It may look that way by the natural eye. But by faith, you can be sure it is going in a straight line—straight into God’s blessed purposes for you. Before long, I know you will hear Him say, “Things have been going south long enough. But soon they will be turning north!”

Driving Without Blinkers

Do you know what kind of car the first century Christians drove? The Bible says they were all in “one Accord” (Acts 1:14). While that may be an especially corny joke, I will take it one corny step further and say it probably didn’t have any blinkers (turn signals).

There are many Scriptures where God commands “Do not turn to the left or to the right” (Deut. 5:32; 17:20; Josh 1:7; Prov. 4). Jesus' followers are warned to stay on the straight and narrow path (Matt. 7:14).

You don’t have to drive for long with the Lord to know it is not easy going straight in this crooked world (Phil 2:15); there are so many temptations to make a wrong turn.  And our enemy is only too ready to confuse us with false signs that will lead us in the wrong direction.  But not to worry! God promises to ‘drive’ them away just as He ‘drove’ out the enemies of Israel (Joshua 3:10). And I am convinced whatever He is ‘driving’ has no blinkers.  "Acknowledge Him in all your ways and He will make your paths straight" (Proverbs 3:6).

“Return to Me”

Today's post is not about a movie starring Minnie Driver or  a love song by Dean Martin...
“Return to Me” is a recurring theme in the Old Testament (Jer. 4:1; Joel 2:12; Zech 1:3). When a person's world is turned upside down, he either turns to God or turns away—more commonly the latter. Do you remember when, right after God turned the tables on the Egyptians by parting the Red Sea, the people turned on Moses angrily for turning them into victims of a waterless desert.  Then when God turned the desert rocks into springs of water, their hearts were turned around. You'd think it would have been a turning point for them, but that’s not exactly how it turned out.

Whenever trouble turned up, they were all too quick to turn and run. Centuries later, threatened by war with Assyria, they turned to Egypt. Did they really think God would turn a blind eye to their offense?  He graciously warned them that before things took a turn for the worse, they'd better turn back: “In returning to Me, you will be saved” (Is. 30:15).

Where do you turn when God turns up the heat?  Do you turn down God's opportunities for growth?  Well, as it turns out, you have a God who is too full of love to turn the page on you.  He is waiting for you to "return to Me with all your heart” (Is. 30:18; Joel 2:12). And when you do, He will turn your enemies on their head, and turn your trials inside out (Ro. 8:28; 37).

Backseat Drivers

Greyhound Bus Company used to have a slogan "Go Greyhound—and leave the driving to us." Now of course their slogan meant that you could sit back and enjoy having someone else drive. I am quite sure their slogan was not an indirect way of asking you not to interfere with the drivers, as if to say “please leave us alone while we’re driving!”

But a lot of people approach God this way. Instead of being able to relax and enjoy His driving, they become very expert ‘back-seat’ drivers. I think the most annoying thing about a backseat driver is his/her assumption that you, the driver, don’t know what you are doing. How insulting! So why do we presume to tell God how to direct our lives? ‘But I would never do that,’ you say. Well, may I suggest that whenever you complain about one of God's “turns,” you are back-seat driving.

During a time when Israel refused to follow the Lord, the prophet Isaiah spoke for God: “I am patiently waiting for you to return (let me back in the diver's seat), and when you do, your ears shall hear a word behind you, saying, turn to the right or to the left” (Is. 30:18, 21 author’s translation). They were definitely going the wrong way on a one-way street, and God was trying to turn them around. But they paid no attention; and got into a terrible accident (they drove right into their enemy's camp and were slaughtered!). Maybe God’s word to us is not to unlike the Greyhound Bus Company slogan: “leave the driving to Me.”

Twists and Turns

Before Altha and I left for Belize, I wrote asking that you pray we would follow the Lord through every twist and turn, allowing Him to make our path straight. How could I have known we would indeed experience ‘twists and turns’ in the form of a hurricane? On our last trip to Belize, in June, we were accompanied by the first almost-hurricane of the season, Alex—a tropical storm. But now we have seen the real thing—Belize City, its primary target. And there we were. That was last night (Sunday).

On Monday morning (today) Belize City awoke to a muddle of fallen trees, broken branches, downed power lines, and puddles the size of Olympic swimming pools—but, by God’s grace, not much flooding. Two of the missionaries we intended to meet today had several inches of water in their homes—so much for our plans! The other missionary (a church planter) was unavailable. He called from the local supermarket saying he had just purchased several cases of Top Ramen noodles and was heading across town to feed his church people—all of whom, I suppose, had no power to cook (they must have a generator at the church).

How will all these twists and turns affect our Christian brothers and sisters—and us? We are holding fast to God’s promise that He “twists and turns” [Greg’s translation] all things for good to those who love Him (we do) and are called according to his purpose (we are). So, if we are acknowledging Him in all our ways (we are), He will make our paths straight—there are no twisted paths in God's kingdom!