Day 16 - PURSUIT - The Turnaround

So this morning, I'm going to depart slightly from our path we've been on and instead continue with a thought I began yesterday.  Yesterday's thought was on "Turning"; the idea that repentance brings us all to a place of direction change.  Certainly, our initial time of repentance, when we make a decision for Christ and we turn from our past and embrace a Savior who died to redeem our sin, and to give us a new hope and life through and in Him.  We also talked about how "repent" literally means "to turn" and that it remains a part of the believer's life, even when as a Christian there is no longer a sorrow in repenting, but rather a course correction by God, as we remain in His hands as he directs us to make "turns" along the path of life, directing us toward the future that he has designed for us.

Now you're all caught up.

But today, I'd like to take the idea of "turning" a step further.  My friend Stephen Adkins made a very astute observation this morning, referring to one of the Super Bowl contenders, the San Francisco 49ers.  On Facebook, Stephen wrote:

"49ers -
2016 2-14
2017 6-10
2018 4-12
2019 13-3 Going to the Super Bowl

I love the parity of the NFL and how quickly you can go from worst to first. Anyone can make a turnaround. Great life lesson."

I immediately responded, "That's why hope springs eternal for "next" season," but then his thought began to rummage around in my brain.

In the NFL, if you have a bad season, you are rewarded with a higher draft pick, which in essence give you the first choice of the best of college players as they transition to the pros.  Now this guarantees nothing except that you get a high-paid, sometimes highly entitled, football player.  The teams that are different recognize the value of what they've been given, and they make the most of their picks.

In life, we transition from season-to-season every three months.  But in our spiritual life, seasons can be short, or they can seem to drag on forever.  The reality is when you have a bad season, you aren't rewarded with a new family, or new friends or new fortunes when the old season ends.  For the most part the things you carried into the season, you're carrying into your next season.  BUT how you carry them and the direction that you are going is what changes.

You see we may be in a season of loss right now.  But a turnaround could be in your future.  Yes, you may have suffered some setbacks, some delays, some denials, and maybe even some outright losses, but every obstacle you faced, every enemy that you had to fight, every time you felt beaten up, they were all simply opportunities to learn, to grow, to change so the next season gets you heading in the right direction.

Do you know that the U-Turn is one of the most controversial type of driving maneuvers.  There are signs that forbid it as certain intersections.  There are some signs that forbid it from certain turning lanes.  There are people who completely ignore these instructions and cause accidents regularly.  If you are from Mechanicsville, the intersection at Lee-Davis and Mechanicsville Turnpike is Exhibit A.  Some states completely forbid U-turns.   My daughter recently went off to college in Lynchburg, VA, and there are students there from other states who are struggling to drive because they've never seen a U-Turn.  And as if the U-Turn wasn't enough, now we are introducing Round-A-Bouts which are completely throwing people a curve ball.  The point is that these turns are designed for the express purpose of completely transitioning you from one direction to another.  A complete turnaround is possible in a matter of moments.  I wish life was that way.

Rarely does someone show up on your porch and hand you a check that instantly changes your life.  Rarely does an employer walk up to entry-level employee, and promote him to CEO.  Rarely do we see such drastic and complete turnarounds in life.  BUT in the Kingdom of God, that's exactly what we see.

Saul has gone to the magistrate and received warrants of arrest, and worse, against anyone who calls themself a follower of "THE WAY" (early reference to Christianity).  He, on the road to Damascus has a blinding encounter with Jesus, and his name changes to Paul, and from that moment forward the hunter of Christians becomes the hunter of souls.  Complete turnaround.

Bartimaeus fought his way to his normal spot on the road, alongside all the other beggars amidst the dirt and the filth.  Jesus comes by, Batimaeus cries out until he gets the attention of Jesus, and given an audience with the Master, he leaves his beggars garment, his spot on the road, gets new eyes OR atleast the dead ones come alive, and he follows Jesus in the way.

Today I wonder what season you are in.  Maybe you've been through batttle after battle.  Maybe you've lived a life that's your embarrassed to share.  Perhaps you are consumed with guilt and shame because in spite of God's obvious blessings in your life, you've squandered them pursuing things that you know didn't please God.  OR perhaps you've done everything right, and yet you find yourself facing sickness, disease, unemployment, separation, loss.  Regardless of the season, the potential for a great turnaround is available through an encounter with Jesus Christ.

TAKE A MOMENT - Consider the season that you are in.  Maybe yours is a season of fruitfulness.  I suggest you ride it for all it's worth.  Stop reading this and have yourself a praise and worship session.  But if your season is one that you'd rather not relive - consider the power of encountering Christ.  Take a moment in prayer and seek God for new direction.  Ask Him to reveal what is needed to change your season for the better.  Perhaps it's a lesson you need to learn.  Perhaps it's a decision that you need to make.  Whatever it is, if you've been pursuing God, you are closer now than you've ever been to finding the lesson of the season, and a transition to a new one.

MEMORY VERSE - This is one of my favorites because of the hope that it brings.

¹⁷  Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new. 2 Corinthians 5:17 (NKJV) 

This morning, I want you to position yourself from a place of hope.  Maybe this season has given you a losing record.  Maybe you thought it was going to be bad, but somehow things changed and suddenly you found yourself finding victory after victory (Congrats Tennessee).  Maybe it was going great, but it came off the rails at the end (sorry Green Bay fans).  Maybe you are still playing and searching for your next victory (Congrats KC and SF fans.)  Regardless of how your season has gone, if you position yourself toward the Cross, toward THE SAVIOR, In Jesus Christ, not only is a turnaround possible, but as you move into your new season, you can walk in faith and hope, because the old season has been put away, and everything became new.  Hope springs eternal - a new day is dawning.  Yes, the past might have been rough.  Yes, the season that you're coming out of might have been ugly at times, but today is a new day.  I have turned the corner and now I'm facing a new direction.  Christ is my guide, my destination is locked in to His direction, and I'm moving toward a new day.  The lessons of last season are firmly in my heart, and I'm envisioning myself receiving the Victor's Crown.

PRAYER DIRECTIVE - As you embrace this Pursuit of God, and seek His face in prayer today, ask Him to reveal the lessons of the season you are in.  More importantly ask Him to to allow you to embrace the calling, the new direction, the new season that He is bringing you to.  Many go into a new season reluctantly, because they spend all their time reminiscing of the past victories, and more likely all their past defeats.  Today, ask God to give you a hope that embraces tomorrow, and turns away from the failure of yesterday.  Paul, from a Roman Prison during a season of captivity said that He did one thing; He forgot "those things which are behind and reaching forward to those things what are ahead, I press toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus."  Philippians 3:13-14  

Forget the past - embrace today and the hope that it brings.  The new season awaits!  But only if you are willing to make the TURNAROUND!