Scripture
Joel 2:12 — “Return to me with all your heart, declares the Lord.”
When I first began ministry in this area 20+ years ago, GPS in our cars and on our phones was not a thing.
So, my senior pastor became my GPS.
We alternated going to the hospitals, and it would not be uncommon to have members at what is now Atrium and Novant, formerly CMC and Presby.
Being unfamiliar with downtown Charlotte, it was quite a challenge to try to figure out how to “get to” those hospitals. Much less, going from one to the other. Supposedly there were “shortcuts” and because my senior pastor took me on a “learning ride” once, I was supposed to remember it from then on. That didn’t work.
Multiple times, I’d be roaming the streets of Charlotte, ultimately having to call him to tell him my location and he’d have to talk me through how to get where I was going.
One thing I really appreciated about him, he never got frustrated with me. Even though I was interrupting his day, he’d always take the time (and often laugh), to get me where I needed to be.
That’s teshuvah.
We translate the Hebrew word teshuvah (תשובה) as “repentance,” but that English word carries baggage the Hebrew doesn’t have. “Repentance” sounds like groveling, like beating yourself up for being such a screw-up.
Teshuvah literally means “to turn” or “to return.” It’s not about feeling bad about where you’ve been. It’s about turning toward where you’re supposed to be going.
The root word shuv appears over 1,000 times in the Hebrew Bible. That’s how central this concept is. Not guilt. Not shame. Just… turning.
Think about it: when you realize you’re going the wrong direction, what’s the most helpful response? Sitting on the side of the road beating yourself up? Or making a U-turn?
Teshuvah is the U-turn.
Here’s what I love about this: the GPS assumes you want to get to your destination. It doesn’t question your motives or make you prove you deserve directions. It just helps you course-correct.
That’s God’s heart toward us.
When the prophet Joel says, “Return to me,” it’s not “Come back so I can punish you for wandering off.” It’s “Come back because this is where you belong.”
I think about a friend of mine, who spent years in what she calls her “wilderness decade.” Bad relationships, questionable choices, a slow drift away from everything she once valued. When she finally realized how far she’d wandered, her first instinct was to stay away from church, from God, from anyone who might judge her for the detour.
“I felt like I had to fix myself before I could come back,” she told me. “Like I owed God some kind of penance for the mess I’d made.”
But that’s not teshuvah. That’s shame.
Teshuvah says: just turn around. Don’t wait until you feel worthy. Don’t spend years trying to earn your way back. Just… turn toward home.
Because here’s the thing: you’re not returning to an angry parent waiting to lecture you about your poor life choices. You’re returning to a God who’s been saying “Recalculating” every time you’ve taken a wrong turn, patiently offering new directions toward the life you were meant to live.
Takeaway
Teshuvah isn’t about feeling bad for going the wrong direction. It’s about turning toward the right one. God’s GPS just says “Recalculating” and shows you the way home.
Closing Prayer
God, thank You that Your response to my wrong turns isn’t condemnation but redirection. Help me hear Your voice saying “Recalculating” instead of “You blew it.” Give me the courage to turn toward home, knowing You’re already showing me the way.