I was 16 years old and desperate for a car.
I told my Dad that I was willing to drive anything.
I didn’t care how it looked, the year, or the model.
One day, my Dad came home with a car that met all of my criteria: it had four wheels.
It was not pretty, but it would move.
My Dad handed me the keys and then told me of one additional glitch about the car.
The car would only move forward.
The reverse gear was not working.
I tried to always park in a place where I would not have to back up the car.
I parked at the back of the parking lot.
I parked in the street.
I parked away from other cars or obstacles.
It turns out, this way of driving and parking got old really fast.
It sounds good to think that we will always just keep moving forward.
We can pride ourselves with thinking that there is no need to look back.
At times we want to live with the mantra of “no regrets” and that “the past is the past”.
But, one of God’s greatest gifts to us is allowing us to repent of things we have done wrong.
Repentance allows us to turn around.
Repentance allows us to head in the opposite direction.
Repentance allows us to acknowledge the changes that need to be made in our lives.
Repentance before God brings us freedom and forgiveness.
Repentance allows me to ask the questions:
What have I been doing that needs to stop?
What thoughts have I entertained that are untrue?
Who have I offended that I need to ask for forgiveness?
No matter what happened yesterday, we can repent today.
No matter where we have been headed, we can turn around.
No matter the weight of our sin, we can know God’s forgiveness and freedom.
The short time I spent with that car my Dad got for me showed me that the reverse gear is as important as the drive gear.
The same is true for followers of Jesus.
If we are going to walk forward with Jesus,
we will learn to be people of repentance.
1 John 1:9
If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.
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